The Penguin Café Orchestra (PCO) was a group of eight or nine musicians led by the late Simon Jeffes who died of a brain tumour a few years ago. The instrumention is basically classical and acoustic and their music some of the most uplifting and relaxing sounds that you will hear. Probably Jeffes most famous piece of orchestration was the string arrangement on Sid Vicious' "My Way" but just let that go.
This album is their "live" album from a concert at the Royal Festival Hall on the 9th July 1987. It is essentially a greatest hits package. Many of the titles seem very pretentious but they are very listenable, based on almost hypnotic three, four and five note motifs (I know nowt about music , so bear with me).
The opening track is Air a Danser, two tracks later you get "Cutting Branches for a Temporary Shelter", see what I mean. "Telephone and a Rubber Band" was used for the Orange advert, and you will love "Beanfields" that is led by Jeffes on ukelele. "Music for a Found Harmonium" is probably the PCOs signature tune, and was composed on a hamonium that Jeffes found on a rubbish tip in Japan.
They are fond of songs with Yodel in the title , but there is no yodelling.
The album closes with "Giles Farnaby's Dream based on a 15th century tune by...you guessed it..Giles Farnaby. This bears more than a passing resemblance to an instrumental La Bamba.
The instruments used on this album consist of percussion , bass, apparrent electric guitars , violin, accoustic guitars, viola, cuatro, cello , harmonium and more.
If you've never heard them buy this album or "Preludes and Yodels" which is a best of with a remix of "Music for A Found Harmonium" by the Orb,
and a version by Patrick Street.
Well worth a listen
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