Gaudi (The Alan Parsons Project album)

Gaudi is the tenth album by The Alan Parsons Project, released in 1987. Gaudi refers to Antoni Gaudí, the Catalan Spanish architect, and the opening track references what is probably Gaudí's best known building, the Sagrada Família.

Project regular David Paton was unable to undertake bass duties on this recording due to a prior touring commitment with Elton John. Saxophonist-keyboardist Richard Cottle's brother, Laurie, was recruited to play bass. The album was recorded at the Grange in Norfolk and Mayfair Studios in London using a pair of Sony 3324 DASH digital tape recorders and mixed to a digital master.

This was the final canonical Alan Parsons Project studio album, as well as vocalist Lenny Zakatek's final contribution to any Parsons album. Although the album The Sicilian Defence was released in 2014, it was originally recorded in 1979 and was never intended to be heard by the public.

During the writing of what would have been the follow-up, Eric Woolfson turned that album into a rock opera, eventually released as Freudiana in 1990. Alan Parsons continued as a solo artist in 1993 with Try Anything Once, an album which completes the musical evolution that started with this album.

A musical by Woolfson with the same name, and based on the songs of this album, was released in 1993 in Germany with the songs sung in English.

Use on television
The songs "Closer to Heaven" and "Money Talks" were used in an episode of the third season of the TV series Miami Vice; an instrumental version of "Standing on Higher Ground" was used as background music in some scenes of an episode of the sitcom "Roomies."

Personnel

 * Eric Woolfson – pianos, keyboards, vocals
 * Alan Parsons – synthesizer, programming, producer, engineer
 * Ian Bairnson – guitars
 * Laurie Cottle – bass
 * Stuart Elliott – drums, percussion
 * Richard Cottle – synthesizers, saxophones
 * John Miles - vocals
 * Lenny Zakatek - vocals
 * Geoff Barradale – vocals
 * Chris Rainbow – backing vocals
 * Andrew Powell – orchestral arrangements
 * John Heley – cello on "La Sagrada Familia"
 * David Cripp – horns conductor on "La Sagrada Familia" and "Paseo de Gracia"
 * Bob Howes – The English Chorale conductor, timpani on "La Sagrada Familia" and "Paseo de Gracia"

Musical
Gaudi was Eric Woolfson's second foray into the world of musical theater. It debuted in Aachen in June 1993. In 1995, a musical cast album was released on CD which, however, omitted a few tracks.

In 2021, a download version of the musical has been released featuring differing versions to the CD release and three more tracks.

The three bonus tracks, which are all instrumental, were originally played between the vocal numbers. Due to a mastering error, the first note of "Standing on Higher Ground" is actually at the end of "Las Ramblas/It Isn't Funny If It Happens To You", indicating that this track, which incorporates "Paseo de Gracia" from the original Alan Parsons Project album, originally preceded "Standing on Higher Ground". A vocal version of "It Isn't Funny...", again preceding "Standing on Higher Ground", was performed during the ZDF broadcast, but isn't on any audio release. The same broadcast also includes "Garden of the Warriors" following "Closer to Heaven". According to the Scene by Scene overview, "Gaudi Visions" (which is not included in the broadcast) opened the second act, preceding "Inside Looking Out".