Stereotomy
Encyclopedia
Stereotomy is the penultimate album by The Alan Parsons Project
.
Although generally considered better musically than its predecessor, Vulture Culture
, it was not as successful commercially, perhaps due to much fewer vocals from Eric Woolfson
(he only appears on a small section of the title track). The album is structured differently from earlier Project albums, containing three lengthy tracks (one the longest instrumental the Project ever made) and two minute-long songs at the end. It is a full digital production and both the LP and CD releases was encoded using the two-channel Ambisonic UHJ format
.
The original vinyl packaging of the album was different from all the reissues: it featured somewhat more elaborate artwork of the paper sleeve supplied with a special color-filter oversleeve. When inserted, the oversleeve filtered some of the colors of the sleeve artwork, allowing four different variations (2 per side) of it. That was supposed to symbolize visual stereotomy. In the reissues, only one variant remained.
The word "stereotomy" is taken from "The Murders in the Rue Morgue
" by Edgar Allan Poe
. It refers to the cutting of existing solid shapes into different forms; it is used as a metaphor for the way that famous people (singers, actors. etc.) are often 'shaped' by the demands of fame.
Despite its commercial underachievement, Stereotomy earned a grammy nomination in 1987 for Best Rock Instrumental Performance - Orchestra, Group, or Soloist for the track "Where's the Walrus?"
Stereotomy was remastered and reissued in 2008 with the following bonus tracks:
's work Murders in the Rue Morgue:
The titles of "Urbania" and "Where's the Walrus?" can be attributed to Lee Abrams, a (then) radio programmer for WLUP Radio (Chicago, IL) and friend of Parsons and Woolfson. Eric Woolfson remembers:
Abrams is frequently credited on Project recordings as "Mr. Laser Beam" ("laser beam" being an anagram
of Lee Abrams).
when Maude tells The Dude to look through her LPs.
The Alan Parsons Project
The Alan Parsons Project was a British progressive rock band, active between 1975 and 1990, consisting of singer Eric Woolfson and keyboardist Alan Parsons surrounded by a varying number of session musicians....
.
Although generally considered better musically than its predecessor, Vulture Culture
Vulture Culture
Vulture Culture is an album by The Alan Parsons Project.The first side of the LP consists entirely of four-minute pop songs, and the second side varies widely, from the subdued funk of the title track to the bouncing, desert-like "Hawkeye".At the beginning of 1985, the lead single "Let's Talk...
, it was not as successful commercially, perhaps due to much fewer vocals from Eric Woolfson
Eric Woolfson
Eric Norman Woolfson was a Scottish songwriter, lyricist, vocalist, executive producer, pianist, and creator of The Alan Parsons Project. He has sold over 50 million albums world-wide....
(he only appears on a small section of the title track). The album is structured differently from earlier Project albums, containing three lengthy tracks (one the longest instrumental the Project ever made) and two minute-long songs at the end. It is a full digital production and both the LP and CD releases was encoded using the two-channel Ambisonic UHJ format
Ambisonic UHJ format
Ambisonic UHJ format is a development of the Ambisonic surround sound system designed to allow Ambisonic recordings to be carried by mono- and stereo-compatible media. It is a hierarchy of systems in which the recorded soundfield will be reproduced with a degree of accuracy that varies according to...
.
The original vinyl packaging of the album was different from all the reissues: it featured somewhat more elaborate artwork of the paper sleeve supplied with a special color-filter oversleeve. When inserted, the oversleeve filtered some of the colors of the sleeve artwork, allowing four different variations (2 per side) of it. That was supposed to symbolize visual stereotomy. In the reissues, only one variant remained.
The word "stereotomy" is taken from "The Murders in the Rue Morgue
The Murders in the Rue Morgue
"The Murders in the Rue Morgue" is a short story by Edgar Allan Poe published in Graham's Magazine in 1841. It has been claimed as the first detective story; Poe referred to it as one of his "tales of ratiocination". Two works that share some similarities predate Poe's stories, including Das...
" by Edgar Allan Poe
Edgar Allan Poe
Edgar Allan Poe was an American author, poet, editor and literary critic, considered part of the American Romantic Movement. Best known for his tales of mystery and the macabre, Poe was one of the earliest American practitioners of the short story and is considered the inventor of the detective...
. It refers to the cutting of existing solid shapes into different forms; it is used as a metaphor for the way that famous people (singers, actors. etc.) are often 'shaped' by the demands of fame.
Despite its commercial underachievement, Stereotomy earned a grammy nomination in 1987 for Best Rock Instrumental Performance - Orchestra, Group, or Soloist for the track "Where's the Walrus?"
Track listing
All tracks written by Alan Parsons and Eric Woolfson- "Stereotomy" (lead vocal John MilesJohn Miles (musician)John Miles is an English rock music vocalist, songwriter, guitarist and keyboard player, best known for his 1976 Top 3 UK hit single, "Music".-Career:...
backing vocal Eric WoolfsonEric WoolfsonEric Norman Woolfson was a Scottish songwriter, lyricist, vocalist, executive producer, pianist, and creator of The Alan Parsons Project. He has sold over 50 million albums world-wide....
) – 7:18 - "Beaujolais" (lead vocal Chris RainbowChris RainbowChris Rainbow is a Scottish rock singer and musician who had two minor hit songs, "Give Me What I Cry For" and "Solid State Brain" in the 1970s....
) – 4:27 - "Urbania" (instrumental) – 4:59
- "Limelight" (lead vocal Gary BrookerGary BrookerGary Brooker, MBE, is an English singer, songwriter, pianist and founder of the rock band Procol Harum. Brooker was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire in the Queen's Birthday Honours on 14 June 2003, in recognition of his charitable services.-Early life:Brooker was born in...
) – 4:39 - "In The Real World" (lead vocal John Miles) – 4:20
- "Where's The Walrus?" (instrumental) – 7:31
- "Light Of The World" (lead vocal Graham Dye, backing vocal Steven Dye) – 6:19
- "Chinese Whispers" (instrumental) – 1:01
- "Stereotomy Two" (lead vocal John Miles) – 1:21
Stereotomy was remastered and reissued in 2008 with the following bonus tracks:
- "Light Of The World" (backing track)
- "Rumour Goin' Round" (demo)
- "Stereotomy" (Eric Woolfson guide vocal)
- "Stereotomy" (backing rough mix)
Charts
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | The Billboard Billboard (magazine) Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis... 200 |
43 |
| 1986 | Canada | 32 |
Inspirations
The track "Chinese Whispers" is based on the game of Chinese whispers. It has some snippets of dialogue, but they are in English (not Chinese, as the song title implies) and heavily overlaid on top of each other. The words are taken from Edgar Allan PoeEdgar Allan Poe
Edgar Allan Poe was an American author, poet, editor and literary critic, considered part of the American Romantic Movement. Best known for his tales of mystery and the macabre, Poe was one of the earliest American practitioners of the short story and is considered the inventor of the detective...
's work Murders in the Rue Morgue:
"...The larger links of the chain run thus -- Chantilly, Orion, Dr. Nichol, Epicurus, Stereotomy, the street stones, the fruiterer."
The titles of "Urbania" and "Where's the Walrus?" can be attributed to Lee Abrams, a (then) radio programmer for WLUP Radio (Chicago, IL) and friend of Parsons and Woolfson. Eric Woolfson remembers:
"He was really quite inspirational in this album [Stereotomy] in telling us what we'd been doing wrong, in his view, on the previous albums... `Urbania’ was one of the words he came out with during the course of a long conversation. Another title he's responsible for... is `Where's the Walrus,’ the other instrumental, 'cause he was really giving us a hard time, I must tell you: 'Your guitar sounds are too soft, and your whole approach is, you know, slack, and your lyrics—there’s no great lyrics anymore! I mean, where's the walrus? I don't hear the walrus!' Referring, of course, to John Lennon's `I am the Walrus’..."
Abrams is frequently credited on Project recordings as "Mr. Laser Beam" ("laser beam" being an anagram
Anagram
An anagram is a type of word play, the result of rearranging the letters of a word or phrase to produce a new word or phrase, using all the original letters exactly once; e.g., orchestra = carthorse, A decimal point = I'm a dot in place, Tom Marvolo Riddle = I am Lord Voldemort. Someone who...
of Lee Abrams).
- The song Limelight was used by NBC Sports at the close of the 1986 World Series1986 World SeriesThe 1986 World Series pitted the New York Mets against the Boston Red Sox. It was cited in the legend of the "Curse of the Bambino" to explain the error by Bill Buckner in Game 6 that allowed the Mets to extend the series to a seventh game...
.
In Popular Culture
A copy of Stereotomy can (very) briefly be seen in The Big LebowskiThe Big Lebowski
The Big Lebowski is a 1998 comedy film written and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. Jeff Bridges stars as Jeff Lebowski, an unemployed Los Angeles slacker and avid bowler, who is referred to as "The Dude". After a case of mistaken identity, The Dude is introduced to a millionaire also named...
when Maude tells The Dude to look through her LPs.