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Posted: |
Jul 13, 2014 - 6:50 AM
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By: |
Compose47
(Member)
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Full review:
Lou Pecci's SPAGHETTI WESTERN THEMES ON NYLON STRING GUITAR
(a review, (c) 2012 by DamnCrazyGringo!)
Recently stumbled upon a fine li’l CD of instrumentals by Lou Pecci, SPAGHETTI WESTERN THEMES ON NYLON STRING GUITAR; it comprises a dozen cover tracks, plus one original.
Approaching Euro-Western film music, one cannot escape Ennio Morricone’s work, and most of this album draws from his oeuvre; but Pecci also covers other composers (prominent or, sadly, overlooked): Luis Enriquez Bacalov’s “Quien Sabe” (from BULLET FOR THE GENERAL), Gian Piero Reverberi’s “You'd Better Smile” (VIVA DJANGO), and Marcello Giombini’s “Hey Amigo, It's Sabata” (SABATA). Personally, it’s nice to see so many Lee Van Cleef films represented (FOR A FEW DOLLARS MORE, SABATA, DEATH RIDES A HORSE, GOOD, THE BAD & THE UGLY) – but LVC was fairly prolific in Spaghettis, so no surprises there.
Pecci arranged the tracks chronologically, according to each film’s theatrical release date...a nice gimmick, actually: it creates a theme beyond the smooth tonal transitions from one cut to another. These touches provide hidden depths that encourage listeners to play the album start-to-finish, never mind over-n-over...an uncommon trait, these days.
The Morricone pieces range from the Leone films (FISTFUL, FF$M, GBU, DUCK YOU SUCKER) to NAVAJO JOE, GREAT SILENCE, DRaH, and FIVE MAN ARMY. Pecci works in ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST, via his own tribute composition, "Once Upon A Time".
Throughout, his playing is uniformly flawless, and the overdubbing (necessary to include full notation of the songs), as well as echo and other special effects, make for an absorbing aural experience.
If this sounds intriguing to any of you, sample tracks (an’ maybe buy it!) here: http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/loupecci
Posted by DCG at 10:29 AM No comments:
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Posted: |
Feb 8, 2015 - 1:16 PM
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By: |
Compose47
(Member)
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Review from www.fistfulofpasta.com
"It's been a while since I've been sent something for a review. It's always a perk to running a site like this. My latest was an excellent CD by guitarist Lou Pecci, called Spaghetti Western Themes on Nylon String Guitar. And the album's a real treat, let me tell ya'.
Releasing albums of well-known tunes is always a risky endeavor. Often, we have these set pieces in our heads on how they sound, and it can be challenging to listen to different interpretations of them. Sometimes they work, and sometimes they fail miserably. Pecci's album, with the exception here and there, is solely played on nylon-string guitar (with overdubs), adding a bit of humility to many of these familiar, powerful themes, yet not diminishing them in any way, and is a very successful endeavor. There are 12 tunes on this self-produced album by Pecci, many of them tried-and-true classics of the genre that I was already familiar with.
The album opens up with the classic "Titoli," from "A Fistful of Dollars," easily recognizable in its first few measures. The melody is played with a nice richness (from what I could tell, due to a layering of parts, possibly double-tracked) that is a familiar technique that can thicken up a melody line. This is followed with the brief and understated "60 Seconds to What?" from "For a Few Dollars More." We are then treated to the somewhat airy main theme from "Navajo Joe," also by Morricone. The dynamic shifts back to mellow, and understated with "Padre Ramirez," from "The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly." Like "60 Seconds to What?," it's nice to hear some of the more understated, lesser-known tracks from these famous scores.
Keeping with the Morricone repertoire, the next one is one of my own personal favorites, both on the album, and in terms of spaghetti themes in general, the theme from "Death Rides a Horse." DRaH was one of the first non-Leone spaghettis I ever saw, and I distinctly remember hearing the almost frantic guitar in the background and being blown away by it. Pecci does it justice. Of course, due to the instrumentation of the recording, it doesn't have the bombast of the original, but it's nevertheless a great cut. This is followed by the pensive "Quien Sabe?," and the reflective "Journey," from "The Great Silence," a track that slowly builds, yet never loses the great flow that exemplifies the tune.
The next one is also a real treat, "You'd Better Smile," the crooned theme song from "Viva Django!" Personally, I've never been a fan of the crooned spaghetti themes; although melodically they are usually well-written, the over-the-top vocal stylings are a bit much for my tastes. Pecci does a good job, reinterpreting the vocal theme on his nylon-string, making the song very enjoyable, with none of the histronics of the original. The next track is an obscure one that I wasn't familiar with, "Wherever You Go, Death," from "Five Man Army." A gentle tune, Pecci's simple arrangement evokes images of the Mexican dessert, and would be very appropriate for a modern western.
The pace picks up with the next tune, "Hey Amigo, It's Sabata," a lively, somewhat fiery number, very enjoyable and a great contrast to the previous track. The dynamic again shifts with the next tune, an excerpt from Morricone's theme from "Duck, You Sucker," a rather breezy number. The last tune gives us a radical departure from the rest of the album, an original tune by Pecci, called "Once Upon a Time...," which uses thematic concepts from "Man With a Harmonica." Compositionally, Pecci does a fantastic job. Presentationally, it's a somewhat of a shift in tone, with Pecci using distorted electric guitar, and the Roland GR-30 guitar synth. I'm not a fan of guitar synths in most cases, but Pecci does it very tastefully, as he does with everything on the album. Of course, it's a matter of personal taste, and it does not diminish the album in any way. The composition itself is a beautiful work, and I couldn't help but wonder what it would have sounded like, had it gotten a treatment more in the style of the rest of the album.
Overall, this is a fantastic album. It's a great album to relax or do work to, as it's not overly-long, and the selections themselves are somewhat brief, being cinematic music. Fans of classical guitar will also find it very enjoyable. Sonically, it sounds very good, with the guitar sounding very rich. But, don't take that as me saying it's just background music.. that's hardly the case. Pecci's interpretations and arrangements are passionate, done with an obvious reverence and respect for the material, not to mention a great technique, as well. As he mentioned, nine of the twelve tracks are Morricone compositions (or in the case of the last tune, Morricone-inspired), and all of the selections reflect a diversity of moods and feels. It was nice that he didn't go for all of the obvious tunes - there are some familiar and welcome ones (with "Titoli" and "Death Rides a Horse" being my favorites), but there are some lesser-known ones as well. I really hope that this sells enough that Pecci decides to do a follow-up. The genre is ripe for this kind of interpretation, as the nylon string guitar is already so much of a vital part of the "spaghetti sound". I couldn't help think of how other tunes, such as the theme from "Day of Anger," would benefit from Pecci's treatment.
Highly recommended."
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Posted: |
Mar 3, 2016 - 3:48 PM
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By: |
Compose47
(Member)
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Collection of internet notices for this CD (available at links above):
1. "...this is a fantastic album...interpretations and arrangements are passionate, done with an obvious reverence and respect for the material, not to mention a great technique as well...a very successful endeavor...highly recommended." - John Ryan, review at www.fistfulofpasta.com
2. "...his playing is uniformly flawless...touches provide hidden depth that encourage listeners to play the album start-to-finish, never mind over-n-over - an uncommon trait these days...an absorbing aural experience." - AP McQuiddy, review at http://noircorral.blogspot.com/2012/03/six-strings-and-six-guns-lou-peccis.html
3. "... astonishingly subtle in the way he controls his sound and conveys his musical talent...will find frequent placement on your CD player." Grady Harp, Amazon.com - review at http://www.amazon.com/Spaghetti-Western-Themes-String-Guitar/dp/B006MHZ9D8 (5 stars)
4. "I've heard more horrible covers than I can count, and this ain't one of them. Very good choice of cues, and the style is such that they would have fit perfectly into the actual scores! My hat's off to you, Lou, for giving us a cover album that is miles above that which has done by even the biggest and the best. Bravo!" - John Nudge, Spaghetti Western Web Board
5. "...an album that brings together some of the best works of the genre..." - Ruben Franco, www.asturscore.com - Spanish website
6. "The music is great. The first track is exceptional, after that you're hooked." - M.J. Richards, Amazon.com (UK)
7. "...this guy is a very good musician ...skillful guitar playing...a very highly recommended set of re-interpretations." - Leo Nikko, Amazon.com (Finland)
8. "...great collection of music played by a talented guitarist..." - Book Reader, Amazon.com (5 stars)
9. "I am not usually one for "re-recordings" of soundtracks but sometimes the newer versions are so different from the originals that I am drawn to them. It's the case with this set of themes...a great way to hear some great new stuff " - Alan Rogers, Twitter, North Wales, UK
10. "WELL DONE !!" - Mike Bishop, Sam Peckinpah Fan Forum
11. "Very nice renditions of great songs!" - Jonny M, Spaghetti Western Web Board
12. "...well arranged...soothing." - http://ameblo.jp/alain-terence/day-20120417.html - Japan
13. "Wow...nice work, I like it." - Sargnagel, Film Maniax - Germany
14. "It sounds great." - Echoes, Dispara Gringo! - Chile
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