Season of Lights
Season of Lights is the first live album by New York singer, songwriter, and pianist Laura Nyro.
| Season of Lights | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Live album by | ||||
| Released | June 1977 | |||
| Recorded | various locations, 1976 | |||
| Genre | Pop | |||
| Length | 69:39 | |||
| Label | Columbia (UK) Columbia (US) | |||
| Producer | Laura Nyro | |||
| Laura Nyro chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   link |
| Christgau's Record Guide | B–[1] |
Columbia Records issued the album in the summer of 1977, taking the songs from various locations on Nyro's 1976 tour in support of her most recent studio album, Smile. Although the album had no strict producer, Nyro is credited as the "musical director." Dale Ashby was engineer and mixer, assisted by Don Pulse and Ken Robertson.
The album was originally intended to be a double-vinyl set consisting of 16 songs, and this version was sent to some outlets as a promotional copy. Instead, Columbia released a single vinyl set of ten songs, including music from her first six studio albums. Nyro played guitar, piano, and other keyboards, and was backed by a stellar cast of musicians including John Tropea on guitar and Carter Collins on percussion.
The laidback, easygoing jazz atmosphere of the album, which was to be expected following the smooth Smile. The album was not a huge commercial success, peaking at #137 on the Billboard 200 chart, then known as the Pop Albums chart. It was Nyro's penultimate US chart entry after a run of seven successive charting albums stretching back to 1968's Eli and the Thirteenth Confession. Her final chart entry would come in 1984.
Overview
The album was recorded during Nyro's 1976 tour in support of the Smile album, which had returned her to the American pop charts. The album documents Nyro's very first full-band tour, with esteemed backing musicians. Nyro accompanied her voice on guitar and piano.
The atmosphere of the album is laidback, smooth, and jazz-inspired. It is musically similar to the explorations on Smile, and Nyro skillfully re-arranges many songs so that they fit her new band sound rather than copying album versions, such as slowing down "Sweet Blindness" considerably or making "And When I Die" funkier.
The original vinyl LP was planned to be a double-set but a single vinyl LP was released instead. There is a Japanese import version of the full album, which features 16 songs as opposed to the standard version's ten songs.
Reissue imprint Iconoclassic Records released a remastered version of Season of Lights, including all sixteen songs plus a bonus solo version of "Timer," on CD in August 2008.
Track Listing (Standard Single Vinyl Version)
All tracks composed by Laura Nyro
| Track | Length | Original album |
|---|---|---|
| "The Confession" | 3:11 | Eli and the Thirteenth Confession (1968) |
| "And When I Die" | 4:03 | More Than A New Discovery (1967) |
| "Upstairs By A Chinese Lamp" | 4:56 | Christmas and the Beads of Sweat (1970) |
| "Sweet Blindness" | 3:47 | Eli and the Thirteenth Confession (1968) |
| "Captain Saint Lucifer" | 5:55 | New York Tendaberry (1969) |
| "Money" | 6:04 | Smile (1976) |
| "The Cat Song" | 4:22 | Smile (1976) |
| "When I Was a Freeport and You Were the Main Drag" | 3:42 | Christmas and the Beads of Sweat (1970) |
| "Timer" | 6:15 | Eli and the Thirteenth Confession (1968) |
| "Emmie" | 3:56 | Eli and the Thirteenth Confession (1968) |
Track Listing (Original Double-Vinyl Version and Iconoclassic 2008 CD remaster)
| Track | Length | Original album |
|---|---|---|
| "Money" | 6:04 | Smile (1976) |
| "Sweet Lovin' Baby" | 2:20 | New York Tendaberry (1969) |
| "And When I Die" | 4:03 | More Than A New Discovery (1967) |
| "The Morning News" | 2:32 | previously unreleased |
| "Upstairs By A Chinese Lamp" | 4:56 | Christmas and the Beads of Sweat (1970) |
| "I Am the Blues" | 7:00 | Smile (1976) |
| "When I Was a Freeport and You Were the Main Drag" | 3:42 | Christmas and the Beads of Sweat (1970) |
| "Captain Saint Lucifer" | 5:55 | New York Tendaberry (1969) |
| "Smile" | 4:07 | Smile (1976) |
| "Mars" | 3:24 | Smile (1976) - coda to "Smile" |
| "Sweet Blindness" | 3:47 | Eli and the Thirteenth Confession (1968) |
| "The Cat Song" | 4:22 | Smile(1976) |
| "Emmie" | 3:56 | Eli and the Thirteenth Confession (1968) |
| "The Confession" | 3:11 | Eli and the Thirteenth Confession (1968) |
| "Timer" | 6:15 | Eli and the Thirteenth Confession (1968) |
| "Midnite Blue" | 4:05 | Smile (1976) |
Personnel
- Laura Nyro - vocals, piano, musical director
- John Tropea - electric guitar
- Richard Davis - bass
- Andy Newmark - drums
- Carter "C.C." Collins - percussion
- Nydia Mata - congas
- Mike Mainieri - clavinet, marimba, vibraphone
- Jean Fineberg, Jeff King - saxophone
- Ellen Seeling - trumpet
- Technical
- Recorded by Dale Ashby
- Mixed by Don Puluse and Ron Johnsen
- Cover painting by Rokuro Taniuchi
References
- Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: N". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved March 8, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.