Track Listing

1. A Rainbow In Curved Air
2. Poppy Nogood And The Phantom Band

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #32735 in Music
• Released on: 1990-10-25
• Number of discs: 1

Amazon.com
Riley is one of the granddaddies of Minimalism. His early music, In C and the two works on this disc, brought to light the musical possibilities of rapid-fire notation and shifting sonic textures to a new form of music. Riley has done this primarily through electronic keyboards and computer technology. The composer plays all the instruments on this extraordinary disc: electric organ, electric harpsichord, "rocksichord," dumbec, tambourine, and soprano saxophone. The music is spooky and hypnotic and is an early masterpiece in the genre. It belongs in the collections of anyone interested in late 20th century American music. --Paul Cook

Customer Reviews

Terry Riley -'Rainbow In Curved Air' (Sony)
Originally released in 1967, looks to be Riley's very first record. This is my first exposure to the minimalist. I've heard his name mentioned several times before from fellow krautrock, progressive and experimental patrons. Was this electronic musician guru ahead of his time or what? Riley had managed to practically invent the 'minimalist' genre. Liked what I heard here, I need to seek out other titles from Mr. Riley. Really got sort of soaked right into the highly improvised title cut - "A Rainbow In Curved Air" (18:39) and the rather intriguing (make that out-standing) "Poppy Nogood And The Phantom Band" (21:38). The man makes such brilliant use of his keyboards, organ and synthesizers in this work. Unlike any other CD I've heard before. Should do plenty for fans of Tangerine Dream, Steve Reich, Escapade and possibly Fifty Foot Hose. Highly recommended.

Meditative, with a subtle rhythmic element
I found my first exposure to the music of American minimalist composer Terry Riley (and minimalism as a genre), to be extremely rewarding. As a fan of 1970s progressive rock and electronica, I am a little surprised that I did not explore the genre sooner, given that there is so much overlap between audiences of progressive and minimalism...well, at least there was overlap back when both styles formed part of a "popular avant-garde". At any rate, this 1969 album is excellent and sounds (to my ears) as exciting and innovative now as I am certain it did upon its release.

Terry Riley plays quite an assortment of instruments on this album including electric organ, RMI electric harpsichord, rocksichord, dumbec (finger drum), and tambourine. The electric organ however, which is heavily treated at times, dominates the soundscape. There is also heavily electronically altered soprano saxophone in the mix too. Quite honestly, this is some of the strangest and most eerie saxophone playing I have ever heard - very long sustained tones, with only incremental changes.

The music on this album is characterized by a series of what musicologists refer to as "ostinato networks". These networks are comprised of layers of interlocking and repeated melodic patterns that gradually unfold over long periods of time (A Rainbow in Curved Air = 18'39"; Poppy Nogood and the Phantom Band = 21'38") with only very subtle changes over the course of each piece. There is however, a subtle rhythmic element, which is nicely demonstrated on the first piece. Evidently, this is a tendency borrowed from American jazz styles.

In large part however, the music on this album is deeply meditative, and at times borders on the hypnotic. The droning organ does a great job of achieving this and reflects a structural aspect borrowed from eastern music, particularly Indian classical music. One interesting fact that I read during my fact-finding session on minimalism was that the sheer length of each piece and the meditative quality of the music deliberately tried to reproduce the sense of timelessness induced during an acid trip. The second piece is a good example of this and seemed to at least partially suspend time - I got very caught up in the meditative aspects of the music and (for once) was not aware of time.

This is fantastic stuff and I am well on my way to exploring other works by Terry Riley including his masterwork "In C", in addition to other minimalist composers such as Steve Reich, LaMonte Young, and Philip Glass. Very highly recommended to my fellow proggers.

Pete Townshend's Turntable
Ok, this LP must have been on Pete Townshend's turntable day and night. Listen to the first track and you'll hear where "Baba O'Riley" and "Won't Get Fooled Again" came from. In fact, the Riley in "Baba O'Riley" IS Terry Riley.

- Vincent G. Marino