SPINETTA JADE

The melodic material is truly complex, but it's also played as the whistling of an early morning walker, so light and so sharp it sounds. The harmony is elaborated and personal, and even so, it flows organically, communicating a sense of relaxed immersion in that atmosphere. The crystalline production allows every instrument and voice to shine and breathe in its own space, without any friction or interference with each other. Yet, even within that clarity, a room remains for a darker shade and a deep sense of drama underpinning the proceedings, as it shows, for example, in the last track, Sombras En Los Álamos.

The best known members of this band, if you follow Luis Alberto's career, are the drummer of his previous band, Invisible, Héctor "Pomo" Lorenzo, and Spinetta himself on guitar and vocals. The others are, nevertheless, extraordinary in their own right: both keyboard players, Juan del Barrio and Diego Rapoport, sustaining the multi-layered sonic textures with jazzy fuel, and exchanging solos with each other and the guitar, and the bassist Beto Satragni, from the incredible fusion band Raíces, who makes grow his fat lines as if they were living beings made of sound.

The title track and Dale Gracias are probably the best loved tracks of this set, but, to be honest, the entire album projects an irresistible sense of flow, so, please, don't try to avoid the impulse of listen to it entirely at once, because you'd be missing something.

A masterpiece can only be absorbed complete.

After two aggressive bands like Pescado Rabioso and Invisible, Spinetta got a little tired of his characteristic progressive sound and went in search of something jazzier, more intelligently delicate and more subtle. This album is released on October 6th 1980, and just 2 months later Luis Alberto releases the comeback album of his first band Almendra entitled "El Valle Interior", where he surprises everyone with a very melancholic and deep Jazz Rock sound, with existential and nostalgic lyrics. Anyway, that album is not relevant right now.

Alma De Diamante is one of the pearls of Latin American Rock .It's a piece full of beauty; it's like a diamond split into 7 great songs!

Luis Alberto Spinetta was always a musician who was known for his use of ultra-rare chords (and chord progressions) that were sometimes even dissonant but beautiful to listen to, and when he had his Jazz Fusion breakthrough he used his creativity to create memorable works. Such is the case of "Amenabar" on this album, an instrumental piece of great complexity and very difficult to interpret.

"Alma De Diamante", the title track, is a Latin American rock anthem. "Alma De Diamante (Diamond Soul)" refers to the fact that each one of us is a unique and special person who has that inner diamond that distinguishes us from everything else in the world. The simple and memorable piece on the album.

"Con La Sombra De Tu Aliado" has a sublime instrumentation, the instruments really come together very well. The bass has perhaps its most important minutes here, with instructive lines.

"Dale Gracias" is also a familiar song within the country, with a hopeful look at the afterlife and an attempt to defeat the crisis that comes when you know you're about to cross the boundaries of life and death is coming for you, but instead of trying to avoid it anyhow, thank it for being there. "A warrior never stops his march".

"La Diosa Salvaje" is probably one of the songs that best defines Spinetta's poetic style. The instrumentation is good and calm.

"Digital Ayatollah" is a great way to close the album. Here the celebrated musician Pedro Aznar participates playing bass (this information is missing) with his unquestionable skill, and gives the ambience a quality jump, which is another proof that this album can't be listened to just like that!

"Sombras En Los Alamos" closes the curtains in such a clever way... Latin American Jazz Rock has reached the pinnacle here. The longest song on the album and, therefore, the best achieved space and where the 5 talented musicians expand as they want to. It alternates instrumental parts with excellently sung parts (possibly this album shows the best vocal moment Spinetta ever had). The keyboards, the synthesizers and the rhythm of the drums give it that special and fascinating suburban psychedelia.

"Amenabar" is very jazzy to start with drums, bass and piano standing out. Mini-Moog comes to the fore just before a minute in this somewhat funky opening track. Synths replace the Moog but they will continue to take turns. Great sound after 3 minutes as the guitar jumps in. An excellent start. "Alma De Dia Mante" has this orchestral intro before piano and drums take over, then vocals for the first time on the album. Some emotion to these Spanish vocals in this ballad-like track. "Con Ia Sombra De Tu Aliado(El Aliado)" is another vocal track and the bass and drums are so impressive here. Nice bass solo before 2 1/2 minutes. A piano/ bass/ drum section follows. So good. A top three tune for me. "Dale Gracias" is where they slow it down some with piano and drums leading the way to start as reserved vocals take over with piano. A beat returns and it does get fuller at times but overall this is ballad-like.

"La Diosa Salvaje" is also a relaxed tune with synths and drums to start then vocals after a minute. Intricate guitar as well. Some beautiful piano melodies before 5 minutes. "Digital Ayatollah" is also a top three. Man the sounds are so punchy and precise as these intricate sounds come and go. So impressed. It seems to get fuller later on which blows me away as I try to listen to all those sounds. "Sombres En Los Alamos" is the closer and longest track at just over 8 minutes. This is another laid back tune and we get vocals as well. There's some emotion here as well as some outstanding playing. A change 4 minutes in as it turns more intense and there's more imagination as well. It settles back again as the vocals return. A top three track!

This is such a melodic and lush album, a very solid 4 star album that comes close to a couple of my favourite INVISIBLE albums but not quite.

Spinetta Jade is the most proggy band of Spinetta's career. This album is all about letting synthetizers and keys take the centre so as to create a jazzy sound pallete. In previous bands, guitar-centered rock compositions were the rule. An exception I would like to point out is Pescado Rabioso's Madreselva. That is a hell of a relaxing song which I can relate to Porcupine Tree's Dark Matter, though they are two completely different songs. It's just a matter of ambient and feel.

The album sets off with a jazzy instrumental, Amenabar, which sets the tone of the album and leads to the title song. Alma de Diamante is just one of those beautiful tunes that will end up sticking in your head, especially the solo, which is what I most recall from the album. Lyrics are standard Spinetta lyrics, which display a vast array of poetry-craft a la Artaud, after whom Spinetta named a Pescado Rabioso album. I cannot but urge you to listen to Cantata de Puentes Amarillos from Artaud, as it is Spinetta's masterpiece.

Rest is well... history. I don't think first listeners like to be spoiled on all songs of an album. So, roll in and enjoy a true gem of Argentine music as Spinetta Jade, its jazzy feel and lyrics that any poet would envy. The album has always been a three-star to me, but that's just a matter of feel. This album is a perfect sample of the Argentine prog-rock scene (is there still one?) so don't feel scared by the ratings: listen to it!

"Moviola" is a catchy vocal track with some energy. Synths come and go including a minute in, after 2 1/2 minutes and then at 3 minutes to end it. "La Herida De Paris" has a good intro then it settles with reserved vocals and some tasty bass that growls. "El Hombre Dirigente" is uptempo with vocals coming in before a minute. Good song. "Sexo" must mean sexy right ? Anyway it's laid back with wanting (haha) vocals. Yikes ! "Siguiendo Los Pasos Del Maestro" is my favourite. Love the growly bass and it's a somewhat intense instrumental.

"Contra Todos Los Males De Este Mundo" is uptempo with guitar and more. Vocals are prominant too in this catchy tune. "Un Viento Celeste" is synth led to start then reserved vocals take over in this mellow sounding tune. Not a fan. "Note Busques Ya En El Umbral" has relaxed vocals with acoustic guitar and more. It's okay. "Influjo Estelar" is an instrumental with lots of drums and synths. "Nunca Me Oiste En Tiempo" ends the album with a catchy beat, vocals and more.

I like this record but it's a little too soft and catchy for my tastes. Check out their debut though.

That being said, the record still shows some fine singing by Luis Alberto Spinetta and if you have some understanding of Spanish you should check the lyrics in songs like "Resumen Porteño" or "Vida Siempre" since those are some of the best L.A Spinetta has ever written.

In the end, that's some of the few things that can be appreciated on this record since it's less exiting than the previous records while keeping the same pop jazz style found on "Los Niños que escriben en el cielo". I can only recommend this record to Spinetta's completionists, but if this is your first record from this artist you will feel very disappointed.

That being said , this record is far from bad , even if it has very few aspects of interest for prog rock aficionados since it's basically a pop album. But a good one indeed! The highlights of this record are "Entonces es como dar amor" and the ballad "Ludmila". With the exception of "Este es el hombre de Hielo" in my opinion there are no weak tracks on this album , but none of them has the quality shown on the first two records by the band. That being said , it's a far stronger release than the previous "Bajo Belgrano".

A good record but without the level of excellence of the first two albums of the band. Recommended only if you are a Spinetta Jade fan like myself but don't expect to hear jazz ? fusion on this one.

Out of the records 10 tracks , the standouts are some Spinetta's classics like "La Herida de Paris" or "Un viento celeste" still being performed today in live concerts. There are some other particular songs that are really remarkable like "Nunca me oiste en tiempo" or "Influjo estelar". However , the record is less consistent than the previous album having some weak songs in the middle.

In the end , this record is still a good blend of jazz fusion and poppier songs like "Contra todos los males de este mundo" or "Moviola". The quality of the musicians involved is still top notch and the repertoire is more varied than Alma de Diamante but a somewhat weaker.

3.6 stars for me rounded up to 4. A very enjoyable record for the ones looking for accessible jazz fusion stuff.

The record is the most consistent of the Spinetta Jade releases including seven really strong tracks. Among those tracks you will find two instrumental tracks (Amenabar and Digital Ayatollah) and the other 5 tracks include stellar performances by all the band members and the most important factor of this album are the lovely vocals by the band leader Luis Alberto Spinetta.

Instrumentally , this record has predominant bass and keyboard sounds but is far from being a keyboard driven album , the guitar is classy played by Spinetta on the whole record and the record it's very balanced. I strongly recommend this album to those who want to get either into jazz fusion since it's much more accessible than the records from the "Big Three" of the genre meaning Weather Report , Mahavishnu Orchestra and Return To Forever.

This record is one of those hidden gems that can be found among the site and hope that this review will help you in raising your interest in South American prog and Jazz Fusion in general

IMPORTANT: If you want to check an even stronger jazz fusion album by Spinetta get A 18' del Sol. At the time this record is not included on the site.