~
I started the Vinyl LP series because I have over 20,000 albums I am selling; each blog entry of the series is about an album from my collection. Inquire for more information.
I remember being very, very, VERY stoned late in 1969 at a friend's house and hearing a piece of music the like of which I'd never heard before. It was rhythmic, fast and seemed to last an eternity. In those days, unless it was a piece of classical music, 18 minutes and 39 seconds was an eternity even if you weren't stoned.
Klaus Schulze,
Tangerine Dream and
Mike Oldfield hadn't hit the music scene yet with their half-hour long pieces. I was mesmerized and nailed to the spot, whatever spot I was in at that moment; it could have been a
bean bag (it had just been invented) but it could have been the floor, I can't recall. But I will never forget the experience of hearing it for the first time.
The music was
A Rainbow in Curved Air by
Terry Riley from the album of the same name. The next day I rushed out and bought the album (
not much of a surprise). It was one of the albums I recorded on tape as I knew I would play it to death, and I did (
the tape, not the record which is still pristine).
(click on any image to see slideshow)
I kept up with Riley's music career and bought all the music he produced thereafter,
In C was his follow up album. I listened to his music for decades then had the incredible luck to see, hear and photograph him in concert exactly 40 years later in 2009 at the
Berkeley Art Museum (BAM).
Now I ask: How can anyone be so lucky?
Some background
A Rainbow in Curved Air was the third album by
Terry Riley who is an experimental music and classical minimalism pioneer. Through the use of overdubbing, Riley, a keyboard virtuoso, played all the instruments on the title track: electric organ, electric harpsichord (
Rock-Si-Chord),
dumbec (or goblet drum), and
tambourine.
The entire 18 minutes and 39 seconds of
A Rainbow In Curved Air can be heard on
YouTube.
My thanks to all these creative people who have given me such pleasure.
The entire collection is for sale. Interested? Contact Styrous®