The Dragon (Vangelis album)
Encyclopedia
The Dragon is a 1978 album by the Greek
artist Vangelis
.
, Vangelis wanted to relocate to London. Producer Giorgio Gomelsky
introduced him to some other musicians and put together a collaborative project which was funded by French free jazz
record label BYG records
with the intention of releasing an album . Some years later, Charly Records
took over the catalogue of the bankrupt BYG records and released the recordings as an album in 1978 without the approval of the performers. The sleeve was made by Terry Oakes. In Germany Hypothesis and The Dragon were issued together as a double album titled Portrait. Vangelis subsequently took the label to court to have both The Dragon and related album Hypothesis
taken off the market. In 2009, two tracks from the album were re-released on archive record label Finders Keepers along with another rare Gomelsky-produced Vangelis project known as 'Alpha Beta', on a limited edition Vinyl EP.
(drums). The sessions were recorded in London's Marquee Studios by Giorgio Gomelsky
. According to Gomelsky, 'The idea was to find "grooves" that could lead into long, (sufi)trance-like but evolving rhythmic patterns with a lot of improvisation on top' .
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
artist Vangelis
Vangelis
Evangelos Odysseas Papathanassiou is a Greek composer of electronic, progressive, ambient, jazz, pop rock and orchestral music, under the artist name Vangelis...
.
Background
After the break-up of Aphrodite's ChildAphrodite's Child
Aphrodite's Child was a Greek progressive rock band formed in 1967, by Vangelis Papathanassiou , Demis Roussos , Loukas Sideras , and Anargyros "Silver" Koulouris . Their band's name was derived from the title of a track from another Mercury act, Dick Campbell, from his Sings Where It's At album...
, Vangelis wanted to relocate to London. Producer Giorgio Gomelsky
Giorgio Gomelsky
Giorgio Gomelsky is a filmmaker, impresario, music manager, songwriter and record producer. He owned the Crawdaddy Club where The Rolling Stones were house band, and he was involved with their early management. He hired The Yardbirds as a replacement and managed them. He was also their...
introduced him to some other musicians and put together a collaborative project which was funded by French free jazz
Free jazz
Free jazz is an approach to jazz music that was first developed in the 1950s and 1960s. Though the music produced by free jazz pioneers varied widely, the common feature was a dissatisfaction with the limitations of bebop, hard bop, and modal jazz, which had developed in the 1940s and 1950s...
record label BYG records
BYG Actuel
BYG Actuel was a French record label specializing in free jazz. The label also released a small number of non-jazz recordings by artists such as Musica Elettronica Viva, Freedom and Gong.-History:...
with the intention of releasing an album . Some years later, Charly Records
Charly Records
Charly Records is a British record label which specialises in reissued material.-History:Among the labels whose original releases are reissued by Charly are Vee-Jay, Sun, Immediate, BYG, Tomato, and Fania. Charly Records was founded in France in 1974 by Jean-Luc Young, who had been a promoter of...
took over the catalogue of the bankrupt BYG records and released the recordings as an album in 1978 without the approval of the performers. The sleeve was made by Terry Oakes. In Germany Hypothesis and The Dragon were issued together as a double album titled Portrait. Vangelis subsequently took the label to court to have both The Dragon and related album Hypothesis
Hypothesis (album)
Hypothesis is a 1978 album by the Greek artist Vangelis. In May 1971 Vangelis had played several sessions in London's Marquee Studios, joined for some of them by violinist Michel Ripoche, bass guitarist Brian Odgers and drummer Tony Oxley, the rhythm section of the famous Extrapolation recording...
taken off the market. In 2009, two tracks from the album were re-released on archive record label Finders Keepers along with another rare Gomelsky-produced Vangelis project known as 'Alpha Beta', on a limited edition Vinyl EP.
Recording and personnell
Apart from Vangelis, the line-up consisted of long-term musical collaborator Arghiris (guitar), and session musiciansMichel Ripoche (violin), Brian Odger (bass), Micky WallerMicky Waller
Micky Waller was an English drummer, who played with many of the biggest names on the UK rock and blues scene, after he became a professional musician in 1960...
(drums). The sessions were recorded in London's Marquee Studios by Giorgio Gomelsky
Giorgio Gomelsky
Giorgio Gomelsky is a filmmaker, impresario, music manager, songwriter and record producer. He owned the Crawdaddy Club where The Rolling Stones were house band, and he was involved with their early management. He hired The Yardbirds as a replacement and managed them. He was also their...
. According to Gomelsky, 'The idea was to find "grooves" that could lead into long, (sufi)trance-like but evolving rhythmic patterns with a lot of improvisation on top' .