The Beautiful Game (album)
Encyclopedia
The Beautiful Game was the tenth full-length album by Acoustic Alchemy
, and marked a turning point in the career of guitarist Greg Carmichael
.
This album was the first without founding member Nick Webb
, who had died two years previously due to pancreatic cancer; duties on steel string guitar were now filled by understudy Miles Gilderdale
, who remains in the post to this day.
The album came as a stark change to fans of the group. Glossy production and radically different songwriting brought about a new 21st century sound, completely adverse to the style built up over a decade and a half up until this point.
Experimentation was certainly a prominent factor in "The Beautiful Game". Tracks like "The Last Flamenco" brought drum and bass
style synthesised loops, whilst "Kidstuff" employed a repeated sample of a baby giggling.
One of the band's longer efforts, the album lasts over an hour including two bonus tracks, featuring Greg Carmichael and John Parsons re-recording two of the tracks with a country and western style backing.
Acoustic Alchemy
Acoustic Alchemy is an English contemporary instrumental and smooth jazz band formed in England in the early 1980s , originally fronted by acoustic guitarists Nick Webb and Simon James...
, and marked a turning point in the career of guitarist Greg Carmichael
Greg Carmichael
Greg Carmichael , is a long standing member of contemporary jazz group Acoustic Alchemy. His primary instrument is the nylon string acoustic guitar....
.
This album was the first without founding member Nick Webb
Nick Webb (musician)
Nicholas "Nick" Webb was an English acoustic guitarist, composer, and co-founder of contemporary jazz group Acoustic Alchemy...
, who had died two years previously due to pancreatic cancer; duties on steel string guitar were now filled by understudy Miles Gilderdale
Miles Gilderdale
Miles Gilderdale is a member of smooth jazz group Acoustic Alchemy and plays the steel-string acoustic guitar and electric guitar....
, who remains in the post to this day.
The album came as a stark change to fans of the group. Glossy production and radically different songwriting brought about a new 21st century sound, completely adverse to the style built up over a decade and a half up until this point.
Experimentation was certainly a prominent factor in "The Beautiful Game". Tracks like "The Last Flamenco" brought drum and bass
Drum and bass
Drum and bass is a type of electronic music which emerged in the late 1980s. The genre is characterized by fast breakbeats , with heavy bass and sub-bass lines...
style synthesised loops, whilst "Kidstuff" employed a repeated sample of a baby giggling.
One of the band's longer efforts, the album lasts over an hour including two bonus tracks, featuring Greg Carmichael and John Parsons re-recording two of the tracks with a country and western style backing.
Track listing
| # | Title | Writers | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Angel Of The South" | Carmichael/Gilderdale | 6:41 |
| 2 | "The Panama Cat" | Carmichael/Gilderdale/Felix | 5:04 |
| 3 | "Trail Blazer" | Carmichael/Gilderdale/Parsons | 5:00 |
| 4 | "The Beautiful Game" | Carmichael/Disley | 5:16 |
| 5 | "Hats Of Magic" | Carmichael/White | 5:03 |
| 6 | "Tête à Tête" | Carmichael/Disley | 4:43 |
| 7 | "The Last Flamenco" | Carmichael/Parsons/White | 4:20 |
| 8 | "Kidstuff" | Carmichael/White | 4:19 |
| 9 | "Big Sky Country" | Carmichael/Gilderdale/Parsons | 4:34 |
| 10 | "Hold On To Your Heart" | Carmichael/Parsons | 4:11 |
| 11 | "Jubilation" | Carmichael/Parsons | 4:39 |
| 12 | "Big Sky Country (Nashville version)" | Carmichael/Gilderdale/Parsons | 4:17 |
| 13 | "Trail Blazer (Nashville version)" | Carmichael/Gilderdale/Parsons | 4:41 |