PYRAMID

The Alan Parsons Project's third studio album was called Pyramid and like its predecessors has a concept or overarching theme to the album. This time it covers that 1970s fad on the supposed magical properties of pyramids. But it's more than just that. It also views yesterday through the eyes of today, whereas on I Robot, it viewed tomorrow through the eyes of today. So in some regards, Pyramid could be considered the antithesis of I Robot. Parsons and his cohort Eric Woolfson clearly spent some time developing their concepts. The only problem is, they increasingly wrote their music for a radio-friendly audience. I can't blame them for that. After all, they have bills to pay like the rest of us. It's just that Pyramid would have been much more suitable as a full-fledged progressive rock album.

Pyramid had fewer guest appearances than prior APP albums. Among the guests were Lenny Zakatek (who increasingly became an APP regular), John Miles, and Colin Bluntstone (best known as the vocalist for the Zombies). Like previous albums, Pyramid is chiefly a pop rock album with slight "progressive tendencies." APP would continue to lean in this direction throughout the remainder of its existence, but never being entirely a pop rock affair.

Musically and lyrically, Pyramid is a large notch below the quality of I Robot and because it is much more pop rock-based than I Robot and Tales, I can't possibly give it more than two stars. For collectors and fans only. I would recommend starting with their debut album.