Eumir Deodato - Prelude (1972)

1. Also Sprach Zarathustra 
2. Spirit of summer 
3. Carly & Carole 
4. Baubles, Bangles and Beads 
5. Prelude to afternoon of a faun 
6. September

Musicians:
Eumir Deodato - piano, electric piano 
Ron Carter - bass, electric bass - solo on (4) 
Stanley Clarke - electric bass - solo on (1) 
Billy Cobham - drums) 
John Tropea - electric guitar - solo on (1,4,6); 
Jay Berliner - guitar - solo on (2) 
Airto Moreira - percussion 
Ray Barretto - congas 
Hubert Laws - flute - solo on (5)

Prior to Prelude, Eumir Deodato was primarily known, if at all, as a tasteful, lyrical, bossa nova-based sometime arranger for the likes of Antonio Carlos Jobim, Frank Sinatra, Wes Montgomery, and others. Enter Creed Taylor, who gave Deodato a chance to step out on his own as a pianist/leader, doing a few tunes of his own plus a healthy quota of CTI-patented jazz interpretations of classical pieces by Richard Strauss ("Also Sprach Zarathustra (2001)"), Debussy ("Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun"), and bowdlerized Borodin ("Baubles, Bangles and Beads"). Well, "2001" -- a clever, up-tempo Latin-groove takeoff on the opening measures of Strauss' tone poem suddenly exploded and became an improbable hit single. In its wake, Prelude soared to number three on the pop LP charts, and Deodato was propelled out of the arranger-for-hire business. Though overshadowed by "2001," the other tracks also hold up well today, being mostly medium-tempo, sometimes lushly orchestrated, conga-accented affairs that provide velvety showcases for Deodato's lyrical electric piano solos. The record also made a temporary star out of John Tropea, whose electric guitar has a lot of rock & rolling zip and fire, and Hubert Laws, Stanley Clarke, and Marvin Stamm each get a little solo room too. This would be the biggest hit Deodato and CTI ever had, and though short on playing time (32 minutes), it still makes enjoyable listening. --- Richard S. Ginell

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