Andy Narell
Stickman
Hip Pocket (US) 1981
HP 101 (LP)
sleeve : EX(SRW)
media : EX/EX(some slightly noise.)
A 1981 release by American multi-instrumentalist Andy Narell, equally adept on steel pan and piano. Throughout, Narell places the steel drums front and center, delivering a refreshing, sunlit tropical Latin fusion with a delicate New Age sensibility. Highlights include the wistful Brazilian-flavored A1, carried by the cool shimmer of steel drums; B1, a cover of a piece Hermeto Pascoal composed for Edu Lobo; and B2, a high-velocity, 15-plus-minute take on an Egberto Gismonti classic, driven by clean-tone guitar and propulsive percussion. The closing stretch of B3—where female chorus enters the dramatic long-form Gismonti cover—is especially moving. A3 reimagines Celtic traditional material with a celestial atmosphere reminiscent of Eberhard Weber’s ECM works.
A3: Celtic Folk Song
B3: Frevo/Maracatu