Post by arenean on Dec 3, 2009 22:17:21 GMT
So sad to hear that Eric Woolfson, one 'half' of The Alan Parsons Project has passed away.....
I grew up buying and listening to the APP albums. As a teenager, I always wondered what the theme of the next album would be. Eric was an amazing composer and lyricist - I think he could take any concept and make something that people could identify with. Not many albums with a theme of, say, surveillance in society, could produce a No. 1 single in the US - but "Eye In The Sky" did!
Although most famous for his lyrics and compositions, I thought he had a really distinctive voice. Personal favourites of mine were "Time", "Eye in the Sky" and "Nothing Left to Lose".
RIP Eric...
From alanparsonsmusic.com/
PRESS RELEASE DECEMBER 2, 2009
Eric Woolfson, the co-founder, songwriter and manager of The Alan Parsons Project has died at his home in London. He was 64. He had been suffering with cancer for a number of years.
Alan Parsons has issued the following statement:
"I knew of Eric's illness, but bravely, he always asked that it not be made public."
"Eric was one of the most generous, musically gifted and knowledgeable people I ever met. He was also - and I mean no disrespect - the most stubborn individual to set foot on the planet - a trait which made him a great businessman."
"His songwriting talent speaks for itself. He not only wrote the majority of the songs we recorded together but after we had two or three albums under our belts he proved - contrary to my own opinions - that he had a singing voice that would be loved by millions. He never let me forget that I actually disliked Eye In The Sky when he first played it to me - arguably my most famous mistake."
"One newspaper rather cruelly, but nevertheless to Eric's amusement, referred to him as "The Songwriting Accountant" . It was also once said that in his music business dealings he managed to achieve the sale of the Eiffel tower and then having done it, sold it again."
"It is a regret to me that after 15 years of million-selling successes, that his decision to step from the shadows and into the limelight for his first real solo moment of musical glory - Freudiana - was so plagued with personal conflicts with his business partners. Ultimately and sadly, Freudiana was the last occasion we worked together. Speaking of Limelight - my favourite song of Eric's - was according to him no reflection on his own reaction to stardom or the lack of it. But anyone who knew him will surely agree that upon hearing Limelight's lyrics that there is a message about his feelings in his chosen profession."
"The hiccup that the Freudiana debacle caused, fortunately had no long-lasting effect and he continued in musical theatre with notable success, particularly in Germany, Austria and the Far East."
"I look back upon our times together making The Alan Parsons Projects very fondly. The legacy that Eric created as half of The Alan Parsons Project lived on with a lasting power few artists have ever enjoyed - and I will always be grateful for that."
I grew up buying and listening to the APP albums. As a teenager, I always wondered what the theme of the next album would be. Eric was an amazing composer and lyricist - I think he could take any concept and make something that people could identify with. Not many albums with a theme of, say, surveillance in society, could produce a No. 1 single in the US - but "Eye In The Sky" did!
Although most famous for his lyrics and compositions, I thought he had a really distinctive voice. Personal favourites of mine were "Time", "Eye in the Sky" and "Nothing Left to Lose".
RIP Eric...
From alanparsonsmusic.com/
PRESS RELEASE DECEMBER 2, 2009
Eric Woolfson, the co-founder, songwriter and manager of The Alan Parsons Project has died at his home in London. He was 64. He had been suffering with cancer for a number of years.
Alan Parsons has issued the following statement:
"I knew of Eric's illness, but bravely, he always asked that it not be made public."
"Eric was one of the most generous, musically gifted and knowledgeable people I ever met. He was also - and I mean no disrespect - the most stubborn individual to set foot on the planet - a trait which made him a great businessman."
"His songwriting talent speaks for itself. He not only wrote the majority of the songs we recorded together but after we had two or three albums under our belts he proved - contrary to my own opinions - that he had a singing voice that would be loved by millions. He never let me forget that I actually disliked Eye In The Sky when he first played it to me - arguably my most famous mistake."
"One newspaper rather cruelly, but nevertheless to Eric's amusement, referred to him as "The Songwriting Accountant" . It was also once said that in his music business dealings he managed to achieve the sale of the Eiffel tower and then having done it, sold it again."
"It is a regret to me that after 15 years of million-selling successes, that his decision to step from the shadows and into the limelight for his first real solo moment of musical glory - Freudiana - was so plagued with personal conflicts with his business partners. Ultimately and sadly, Freudiana was the last occasion we worked together. Speaking of Limelight - my favourite song of Eric's - was according to him no reflection on his own reaction to stardom or the lack of it. But anyone who knew him will surely agree that upon hearing Limelight's lyrics that there is a message about his feelings in his chosen profession."
"The hiccup that the Freudiana debacle caused, fortunately had no long-lasting effect and he continued in musical theatre with notable success, particularly in Germany, Austria and the Far East."
"I look back upon our times together making The Alan Parsons Projects very fondly. The legacy that Eric created as half of The Alan Parsons Project lived on with a lasting power few artists have ever enjoyed - and I will always be grateful for that."
