For years, it was a well-known fact that the Alan Parsons Project’s music has always been custom-constructed for the studio, and that the Project was strictly a studio entity. But the Alan Parsons Project just isn’t what it used to be. In some ways, this is good; in others, not quite so good. On the good side, returning for another round is Manfred Mann’s Chris Thompson, who did vocals on two of Try Anything‘s better tracks – the single “Turn It Up” and the much harder-edged “Back Against The Wall”. Not only does he do the singing duties on many of the past Project hits originally voiced by gravelly Lenny Zakatek, but he does a bloody good job of ’em. He sounds like he was born to sing “Psychobabble”. One of the album’s nice bonuses – originally the only reason I sprang for it but now one of many reasons – are three previously unreleased studio tracks, including the outstanding “You’re the Voice”, with Thompson again providing vocals; this song continues breaking new ground with unpredictable rythmic patterns, not unlike “Turn It Up” (though better). Possibly the greatest find on the album is the amazing medley of the instrumentals “Lucifer” (from the Eve album, my favorite Project of the 1970s) and “Mammagamma” (that vastly-overplayed, echoplexed, one-step-removed-from-disco instrumental you all remember from 1981’s Eye In The Sky). I never dreamed I’d hear a fresh twist on “Mammagamma” until I heard the band suddenly segue into that song’s string interlude via keyboard, whilst still retaining the light military beat of “Lucifer”. Wow! A must-hear for those who appreciate Parsons/Woolfson instrumentals. Still, there are drawbacks. No one can replace the voice on those songs which were originally sung by Eric Woolfson. Oh, they give it a game try, but it seems somehow wrong that another voice could sing those songs. It’s like trying to get past k.d. lang singing Orbison’s “Crying”, or for that matter, Bonnie Raitt trying her hand at “You Got It”. Other than that detail, though, this is one hell of an album. I highly recommend it for any Projectiles out there. The choice of songs is surprising in many places, and refreshing since it doesn’t always represent those tunes that oversaturated the radio airwaves in the late 70s and early 80s. Also surprising is that nearly every Project album is represented 
by at least one song, with only a couple of exceptions. Even a selection from the lovely 1976 Edgar Allan Poe album makes it onto stage (“The Raven”, complete with mesmerizing Vocoder-fritzed vocals). I also appreciate the audience, who seemed appropriately respectful and didn’t ruin things by clapping along (with the exception of the gleefully playful beat of “Lucifer”) or trying to sing along, two things that irritate me to no end on most live albums.
- Sirius (2:25)
- Eye in the Sky (4:55)
- Psychobabble (5:22)
- The Raven (5:39)
- Time (5:08)
- Luciferama medley of Lucifer & Mammagamma (4:56)
- Old and Wise (4:49)
- You’re Gonna Get Your Fingers Burned (4:18)
- Prime Time (5:15)
- Limelight (4:40)
- Don’t Answer Me (4:13)
- Standing on Higher Ground (5:30)
New studio tracks:
- When (4:13)
- Take the Money and Run (6:18)
- You’re The Voice (5:07)
Released by: BMG / RCA Victor
Release date: 1995
Total running time: 74:27
