On Air

ON AIR contains a standard audio program on one CD and a multi-media portion on a separate CD-ROM. Personnel: Alan Parsons (keyboards); Andrew Powell (conductor); Eric Stewart, Neil Lockwood, Steve Overland, Christopher Cross, Graham Dye (vocals); Ian Bairnson (acoustic guitar, guitar, synthesizer); Richard Cottle (saxophone, keyboards); Gary Sanctuary (piano, keyboards); Stuart Elliot (keyboards, drums, drum programming, bongos); John Giblin (bass); Peter Beckett (background vocals); The Philharmonia Orchestra. Recorded at Parsonics, London, England between December 1995 and June 1996. This is a DTS CD, which features DTS 5.1 Surround Sound technology and is playable on a DTS-capable 5.1 Surround Sound system. Personnel: Alan Parsons (keyboards); Andrew Powell (conductor); Eric Stewart, Neil Lockwood, Steve Overland, Christopher Cross, Graham Dye (vocals); Ian Bairnson (acoustic guitar, guitar, synthesizer); Richard Cottle (saxophone, keyboards); Gary Sanctuary (piano, keyboards); Stuart Elliot (keyboards, drums, programming, bongos); John Giblin (bass); Peter Beckett (background vocals); The Philharmonia Orchestra. Recorded at Parsonics, London, England between December 1995 and June 1996. Though the title may lead you to believe that On Air is a live radio broadcast from the Alan Parsons project, that is simply not the case. Instead, On Air is a rumination about man's desire to fly, and the album's soaring synthesizers and floating soundscapes accurately convey the blissful sadness of a wish that can never happen. Parsons' grasp of his material is so strong that even a pop vocalist like Christopher Cross adds to the music's richness. Furthermore, his vision is so deep, that it is extended to the bonus CD-ROM disc, which captures the music's bristling emotions through videos and literature. On Air a welcome, and overdue, return-to-form from Alan Parsons, proving that his project shouldn't be put to rest just yet. ~ Daevid Jehnzen