THE TURN OF A FRIENDLY CARD

With this amazing concept album 'The Turn of a Friendly Card', The Alan Parsons Project achieved the most accomplished expression of their own signature prog sound. While recapitulating what they had done in their four previous albums, this is Woolfson's and Parsons' finest hour as writers, arrangers, and producers; a special mention should go to Ian bairnson, whose guitar skills really shine brightly here, assuming a real starring role in order to enhance the passion of many emotional moments, or the drive of some rockier ones. The namesake suite that closes down the album is the perfect APP work: from the moving and increasingly majestic melancholy of section i and v to the classical exquisiteness of section iii, from the bitter sweet introspectiveness of section iv to the pop rock folly ambience of section ii, which is reprised in a more metallic manner in the coda of iv. But even if this is the definitive gem of the album (and IMHO, of APP's whole career), the preceeding repertoire is nothing to be dismissed. 'May Be a Price to Pay' introduces the notion of playing as an exercise in trangression with an air of symphonic solemnity in the opening bars, leading us to a lighter, somewhat poppier further development, always keeping a symphonic twist. The same notion is carried on in 'Games People Play' (one of APP's most popular singles), with an air of complicity and celebration, well portrayed in a pop-funky context. The overwhelming beauty of 'Time' (another very popular tune, perhaps their most celebrated ballad) brings a reflection upon the passing of time and the seal of fate, just before 'I Don't Wanna Go Home' presents us the notion of loss as the ludopath's unavoidable punishment. The appealing instrumental 'The Gold Bug' reprises the opening motif of 'May Be a Price to Pay' before it turns into a mixture of techno-pop and jazzy funk: this is a momentary return to the Project's early E. A. Poe days, but now this specific tale is brought to the fore in the context of the obsession for material riches. The namesake suite helps the album to state an overall fatalistic idea (not unlike 'Pyramid'): even though the pleasure of momentary gain is widely overcome by the pains of loss and bankruptcy, ludopaths who are incurably hungry for the thrill of the game do and will always return to the path of gambling and making bids. This album makes a beautiful statement about this kind of self-destructive circle, so I label it as an excellent addition to any prog collection.