Spyro Gyra

Spyro Gyra(螺旋藻）是近20年來活躍于西方的一支重量級現(xiàn)代融合爵士樂隊，這支樂隊的名字有趣而較為難理解，據(jù)說樂隊初創(chuàng)時原本想用Spirogira作自己的名字，這是一種藻類植物，卻因為誤寫而將錯就錯。這支Fusion爵士的超級樂隊1975年成立于紐約州的水牛城，創(chuàng)始者Jay Beckenstein是一位當?shù)匦∮忻麣獾乃_克管手，他邀約了另一位鍵盤手Jeremy Wall在當時組成了這支毫無商業(yè)價值的樂隊，并在次年發(fā)表了他們第一張同名專輯。1978年該樂隊加入了吉他手Chet Catallo、貝斯手David Wolford與鼓手Eli Konikoff等樂手，實力大增，也讓音樂更富有了變化，曲風(fēng)中融入了許多拉丁音樂元素，因而當他們的第二張專輯Moring Dance推出后，便引起了轟動。
經(jīng)歷
1978年該樂隊加入了吉他手Chet Catallo、貝斯手David Wolford與鼓手Eli Konikoff等樂手，實力大增，也讓音樂更富有了變化，曲風(fēng)中融入了許多拉丁音樂元素，因而當他們的第二張專輯Moring Dance推出后，便引起了轟動。由于音效超級，該碟更讓當年的音響發(fā)燒友群起而搶之。接著，Cathing The Sun、Carnival在1980年發(fā)行，前者的樂風(fēng)與封面設(shè)計如同前一張Moring Dance般洋溢著中南美洲的浪漫風(fēng)情；而后者更邀請了許多客座樂手，尤以管樂陣容最為堅強，像Brecker brother就是參與演奏的最具知名度者。
到了1981年，Spyro Gyra的另一張著名的專輯Freetime問世，整張唱片節(jié)奏輕快，旋律優(yōu)美動聽，處處讓人零售舒暢身心之感，被樂評家列為可以與Moring Dance相提并論的，90年代以前該樂隊最好的兩張專輯唱片。
1983年后，Spyro Gyra成員有所變動，原先的吉他手由Fernandez取代，而鍵盤手則易為Tom Schuman，并加入Dav Samuels司職打擊樂器，此時的樂隊風(fēng)格更加拉丁化，同時混合了R&B、funk及巴西音樂的元素；同年他們的City Kids以及1985年的Break Out、1987年的StoriesWith Words等唱片都取得了很大的商業(yè)成績。1989年他們發(fā)行的一張頗受好評的Point of View，更是音樂造詣大于商業(yè)利益，被評為年度最佳爵士專輯。
邁入90年代，Spyro Gyra離開了原來的唱片公司MCA，轉(zhuǎn)入GRP唱片公司繼續(xù)發(fā)展。加入GRP的第一張唱片F(xiàn)ast Forward表現(xiàn)平平，音樂走向趨于另類，讓人似懂非懂，但錄音及演奏技巧仍是一流的。進入21世紀后，Spyro Gyra開始在Head Up唱片公司旗下出版唱片，2001年他們推出的In Morden Times，曾經(jīng)高居Billboard Contemporary Jazz Album Chart的第二位。
by Scott Yanow & Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Founded in 1974 by altoist Jay Beckenstein, Spyro Gyra has consistently been one of the commercially successfully pop-jazz groups of the past 20 years. Although originally a studio group, the band became a full-time venture in 1979 and has been touring ever since. Critics love to attack this bands lightweight and rarely changing music, which combines R&B and elements of pop and Caribbean music with jazz, but its live performances are often stimulating — unlike many of its records, which emphasize the danceable melodies at the expense of improvising.
The roots of Spyro Gyra lay in Buffalo, NY, in the early 70s. Beckenstein and his longtime friend, keyboardist Jeremy Wall, had been leading a group with a revolving membership; every one of the many members in the band were loosely involved in the local jazz and rock scenes. Around 1974, the group was beginning to gel and cultivate a following. A club owner who wanted to advertise an upcoming appearance by the band asked Beckenstein for the groups name. The saxophonist told him Spirogira, a word he learned in a college biology course. The owner misspelled the word as Spyro Gyra, and the band fell into place, featuring Beckenstein, Wall, electric guitarist Chet Catallo, bassist David Wolford, drummer Eli Konikoff, and percussionist Gerardo Velez. Not long afterward, the group added keyboardist Tom Schuman.
Spyro Gyra independently funded and recorded their debut album, releasing the record on the local independent label Amherst in 1976. The record slowly became a success and Amherst sold the rights to the band to Infinity Records, a division of MCA. Morning Dance, their first album for Infinity, was released in 1979. The record became a major hit, spawning a Top 40 single with Morning Dance and going platinum. In the wake of the records success, Wall retired from live performance, leaving Schuman as the groups main keyboardist; Wall stayed with the band as an assistant producer and occasional composer.
Morning Dance firmly placed Spyro Gyra as one of the most popular artists in contemporary jazz, and throughout the 80s, their popularity continued growing. Their albums were consistent best-sellers, and their concerts often sold out. In 1983, vibraphonist/marimba player Dave Samuels — who had played on several of the groups albums — became a full-fledged member of the band. Over the course of the 80s, the membership of Spyro Gyra fluctuated, but Beckenstein and Schuman remained at its core, keeping the groups signature sound intact.
In 1990, MCAs jazz roster was absorbed by GRP, so Spyro Gyra switched labels, releasing Fast Forward, their first album for GRP, later that year. In 1993, Samuels left the touring band, but he continued to play in the studio. By the late 90s, the band featured Beckenstein, Schuman, Julio Fernandez, Joel Rosenblatt, and Scott Ambush, and released Got the Magic in 1999. Two years later the band moved to the Telarc-affiliated Heads Up label and released In Modern Times in 2001, followed by Original Cinema in 2003. Drummer Rosenblatt left the band and was replaced by Ludwig Afonso for 2004s Deep End. A fourth Heads Up album, Good to Go-Go, was issued in 2007.