Vulture Culture (2024 Remaster) The Alan Parsons Project

• 1 Let's Talk About Me (2024 Remaster) 04:22
• 2 Separate Lives (2024 Remaster) 05:03
• 3 Days Are Numbers (The Traveller) [2024 Remaster] 04:28
• 4 Sooner or Later (2024 Remaster) 04:26
• 5 Vulture Culture (2024 Remaster) 05:21
• 6 Hawkeye (2024 Remaster) 03:48
• 7 Somebody Out There (2024 Remaster) 04:56
• 8 The Same Old Sun (2024 Remaster) 05:24
• Total Runtime 37:48

Info for Vulture Culture (2024 Remaster)

A twist on the expression used to describe unworldly people steeped in the arts (Culture Vulture) and reflected the ever increasing ruthlessness of mankind in a world of stark economic reality.

On holiday, Eric met some people who lived in Las Vegas and who talked enthusiastically about the opportunities there for taking advantage of those who had fallen on hard times. It was apparently common that people with financial problems would be forced to sell their homes virtually overnight at ridiculously low prices, and these people would acquire such houses, redecorate them and sell them on for much higher prices.

They also had a scheme which took advantage of over-booking on aircraft. They had a friend working at Las Vegas airport who let them know when a flight was overbooked, thereupon they made a booking on the same flight, turned up at the airport and were offered money and mileage points to give up their seat which they were more than happy to do! To cap it all, they would then write to the president of the airline thanking him profusely for the courteous way they were ‘bumped’ off the flight and the president would write back with a gift of even more mileage points. In this way, they managed to travel round the world first class at virtually no cost! Bearing in mind the well known phrase ‘Culture Vulture’ used to describe a person well versed in the arts, Eric described these activities as part of a ‘Vulture Culture’ and this concept of man’s inhumanity to man (and airlines!) was the underlying theme of this album.

Around this time, there had been reports of an imposter passing himself off as Eric Woolfson and trying to obtain money from people on a scam related to luxury cars and yachts. Possibly the same individual, or another Woolfson imposter contacted a reporter at Billboard magazine and apparently gave an interview. When Eric met the reporter whom he knew, a month or so later, Eric commented that it was nice to see him again after a gap of a year or two and the reporter said ‘don’t be ridiculous, I spoke to you last month’. Around the same time, Eric met with the guitarist Al Di Meola at a record convention. Eric had never met Al before, but Al berated him for making him fly the other end of the country to make him attend a non-existent recording session. Eric apologized profusely for the inconvenience caused, which was nothing to do with him, but clearly an imposter had struck again. All of this was encapsulated in the song ‘Somebody out There’ and 20 years later in 2006, history seemed to have repeated itself when an imposter struck again.

"Vulture Culture's theme is another in which the fallacy of humankind is front and center. This time Parsons' message concerns the fact that everyone lives in a parasitic society, where it's every man for himself. Those who can't fend for themselves simply won't survive in a world where the kindness of the human spirit is rapidly deteriorating. On this album, though, the songs are weaker and are less effective in bringing out the album's complex idea. As it does have its moments, Vulture Culture lacks in cohesiveness and strength both lyrically and, to a lesser extent, musically. "Let's Talk About Me" addresses the theme in its words, but the choppy rhythm takes away the attractiveness that could have been. The instrumental "Hawkeye" adds life and contrast to the album at just the right time. The most appealing song, "Days Are Numbers (The Traveller)" with vocalist Chris Rainbow at the helm, combines simplicity with a timeless chorus making for a truly beautiful ballad. Even though Parsons' theme is revealed, it's done so with less clarity and doesn't quite hit home. Without the usual balance of absorbing lyrics and well-maintained music, Vulture Culture remains one of this band's less prolific albums." (Mike DeGagne, AMG)

Ian Bairnson, guitar
Colin Blunstone, vocals
Richard Cottle, synthesizer, keyboards, saxophone
Stuart Elliott, percussion, drums
Mr. Laser Beam, vocals, speech/speaker/speaking part
Alan Parsons, keyboards, programming, vocals
David Paton, bass, guitar, vocals
Chris Rainbow, vocals
Eric Woolfson, piano, keyboards, vocals
Lenny Zakatek, vocals

Recorded May – July 1984 at Abbey Road Studios, London
Engineered by Alan Parsons
Produced by Alan Parsons, Eric Woolfson

Digitally remastered

Please Note: We offer this album in its native sampling rate of 44.1 kHz, 24-bit. The provided 88.2 kHz version was up-sampled and offers no audible value!

The Alan Parsons Project
During the Summer of 1974, Alan Parsons met Eric Woolfson in the canteen of Abbey Road Studios. Alan had recently engineered Pink Floyd's Dark Side Of The Moon and had already produced a number of acts for EMI Records. On that day, Eric had been working as a session pianist but was also a songwriter and had already composed material for a concept album idea based on the work of Edgar Allan Poe.

Alan asked Eric to become his manager and Eric managed Alan's career as a producer/ engineer through a string of successes including Pilot, Steve Harley, Cockney Rebel, John Miles, Al Stewart, Ambrosia and The Hollies. Alan commented at the time that he felt frustrated in having to accommodate the views of some of the artists which he felt interfered with his production. Eric came up with the idea of making an album based on developments in the film business, where directors such as Alfred Hitchcock and Stanley Kubrick were the focal point of the film's promotion, rather than individual film stars. If the film business was becoming a director's medium, Eric felt the music business might well become a producer's medium.

Recalling his earlier Edgar Allan Poe material, Eric saw a way to combine their respective talents: Alan - engineer/ producer. Eric - songwriter/ lyricist/ musician. The Alan Parsons Project was born.

Eric put a proposal to 20th Century Records on these lines calling it 'The Alan Parsons Project' and the record company immediately went for the idea and decided that the proposal looked like a good group name. After the success of Tales of Mystery and Imagination, they were signed by Clive Davis to create a further nine Alan Parsons Project albums for Arista Records.

The APP was not a band in the traditional sense, it was the collaboration of two people - Alan Parsons and Eric Woolfson. They didn't tour or perform live to promote their work as Alan Parsons was the focal marketing vehicle as engineer/ producer, but not the artist, and the studio was therefore where he could reign in his role, not the concert stage.

Although the initial idea was that Alan would also contribute 50% of the music, in reality and with the time pressures involved, apart from a small number of instrumentals, he focused on the engineering, production and creative technical advance of each album, leaving Eric to write over 95% of the music and all of the lyrics as well as handling the business affairs.

Although there was no set 'group' of performers, guest artists (musicians and vocalists) were invited to participate in Project recordings. This often gave them an opportunity to display their talent without the normal pressures attached to their own recordings which could be counter-productive with their careers depending on their latest release. The artists who performed on Project albums, appreciated the freedom this gave them and enjoyed the experience. Alan often used artists with whom he had previously worked, Ian Bairnson and David Paton from 'Pilot' being two of the most regularly used musicians.

On all of the albums Eric would sing the demo lead vocal tracks which would then be recorded by other selected artists who often had very similarly styled voices to Eric's. Eventually on 'Turn of a Friendly Card' due to an impending deadline and as a last resort, Eric convinced a reluctant Alan to let him sing lead vocal on 'Time'. (Alan Parsons) 'I kept pushing him aside. I didn't think it was right that he should sing for the Project, but I was talked out of it. There he was, singing all the big hits from that point on. So I was clearly wrong'.

The Alan Parsons Project is one of the recording industry's most dynamic duos. Eric often described Alan as the foremost engineer/ producer of his day and together, he and Alan achieved over 50 million album sales, 9 Grammy Nominations, over 50 Gold and Platinum Disc awards, Top 10 hits worldwide and radio broadcasts of 2 million plus airplays in the US alone. With the new re-mastering of all ten APP albums and a wealth of bonus material exhumed from the archives, there is now a whole new perspective to their work together for people to enjoy 20 - 30 years on from when the albums were originally released.

Eric Woolfson went on to write a number of highly acclaimed and successful musicals. He died in December 2009 after a 12 year battle with cancer. Alan Parsons now performs with a band of musicians and plays largely Alan Parsons Project material.

This album contains no booklet.