Focus 8
Encyclopedia
Focus 8 is a 2002 studio album by the band Focus
. The album marks a return of the progressive rock
style that dominated the band's work with Jan Akkerman
. The poppier, often disco
influenced style the band started to play on the Mother Focus
album is still there.
Focus (band)
Focus is a Dutch rock band which was founded by classically trained organist/flautist Thijs van Leer in 1969, and is most famous for the instrumental pieces "Hocus Pocus" and "Sylvia"...
. The album marks a return of the progressive rock
Progressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
style that dominated the band's work with Jan Akkerman
Jan Akkerman
Jan Akkerman is a Dutch guitarist. Akkerman is a distinctive guitarist, constantly experimenting with new equipment and guitars. Akkerman's distinctive guitar sound is characterised by his pioneering use of volume swells which produce a smooth, fluty, sustained tone, and other complex techniques...
. The poppier, often disco
Disco
Disco is a genre of dance music. Disco acts charted high during the mid-1970s, and the genre's popularity peaked during the late 1970s. It had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, gay, psychedelic, and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and...
influenced style the band started to play on the Mother Focus
Mother Focus
Mother Focus is the fifth studio album by the band Focus, released in 1975. The album marks a departure from the progressive rock style that dominated the band's prior work, to a poppier, often disco influenced direction.- Side one :...
album is still there.
Track listing
- "Rock & Rio" (Thijs van LeerThijs van LeerThijs Van Leer is a Dutch musician, singer and composer, best known for heading the Dutch progressive rock band, Focus, as primary vocalist, Hammond organ player, and flautist. He also yodels and whistles...
) – 3:27 - "Tamara's move" (Jan DuméeJan DuméeJan Dumée is a Dutch rock/jazz guitar player, composer and record producer.-With Focus:*Focus 8 *Live in the USA *Live in South America -External links:* * * * *...
) – 5:17 - "Fretless love" (van Leer) – 6:08
- "Hurkey Turkey" (T. van der Kaaij, van Leer) – 4:15
- "De ti o de mi" (Bobby Jacobs) – 6:30
- "Focus 8" (van Leer) – 6:19
- "Sto ces raditi zwota" (Dumée) – 5:26
- "Neurotika" (van Leer) – 3:47
- "Brother" (Peters, van Leer) – 5:39
- "Blizu tebe" (Dumée) – 6:38
- "Flower Shower" (Dumée, Jacobs, Bert Smaak, van Leer) – 5:41
Personnel
- Thijs van LeerThijs van LeerThijs Van Leer is a Dutch musician, singer and composer, best known for heading the Dutch progressive rock band, Focus, as primary vocalist, Hammond organ player, and flautist. He also yodels and whistles...
– keyboardsKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
, fluteWestern concert fluteThe Western concert flute is a transverse woodwind instrument made of metal or wood. It is the most common variant of the flute. A musician who plays the flute is called a flautist, flutist, or flute player....
, vocals - Jan DuméeJan DuméeJan Dumée is a Dutch rock/jazz guitar player, composer and record producer.-With Focus:*Focus 8 *Live in the USA *Live in South America -External links:* * * * *...
– guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, vocals - Bobby Jacobs – bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
- Bert Smaak – drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....