The Alan Parsons Project’s The Sicilian Defence is finally seeing the light of day after being lost in contractual negotiations with Arista Records in 1981. The 10-track disc applies an odd alphanumeric nomenclature to its song titles, while the songs themselves comprise little more than a collection of unfinished, atonal soundscapes purposely recorded to fulfill Parson’s obligation to Arista at the time.
The bigger story, of course, is that this is part of the 11-CD The Complete Albums Collection, which covers the APP’s history from 1976-1987. The set includes titles previously reviewed on Vintage Rock, including I Robot, Eye In The Sky, Pyramid, Eve, The Turn Of A Friendly Card, Ammonia Avenue, Stereotomy and Gaudi.
The Sicilian Defence, the notorious never-released fifth APP album, takes its name from a series of opening chess moves. It was recorded over a three-day marathon session at Super Bear Studios in France and delivered to Arista in March 1981 where it stayed locked in the vaults, away from public consumption.
While the songs are somewhat incomplete and fractured, I feel “Kt-QB3” is the one that could have become a possible big Alan Parsons Project hit. The late Eric Wolfson plays a veritable bouncy piano with lots of cool breaks that truly reveal what the Alan Parsons Project was about at the best of their output.
Parsons has said over the years he didn’t want The Sicilian Defence to see the light of day, but apparently felt its inclusion in The Complete Albums Collection would be a good way to reveal its mysterious whereabouts after three decades. Judge for yourself.
~ Ralph Greco, Jr.
