The Guitar As Orchestra--Difficult, Beautiful Music

For my very special birthday present, I decided to go to Adrian Belew's Website and purchase his woefully underrated album, The Experimental Guitar Series Volume 1: The Guitar As Orchestra. Right now, I am hearing it for the second time. I seriously look forward to listening to it rather deeply for an extended period of time. This album is the sort of effort that is a personal expression, and one that is clearly not meant to be mainstream.

Thank God for that. There are so many layers to this album, but not so much like an onion. Rather like the layers of atmosphere above us, these ten tracks are more breathtaking the higher one goes up in elevation. It is rather difficult for me to say that any one track is better than the others. It's not quite that sort of album. According to the artist:

To my ears The Guitar As Orchestra is best suited as a backfrop to common daily events such as reading, driving or eating. It takes time to discover its hidden melodies. I hope you enjoy it.

Ah, yes. I most certainly do enjoy this tableau of intellectually stimulating aural imagery. My only quibble is that it is far too short a collection of brilliance. Belew's technical genius is clearly apparent in his use of musical tools. Of course, not everyone is into difficult music as I am. For me, The Guitar As Orchestra is a feast that, once the last coda sounds, leaves me hungry for more. It is too bad that most music "critics" just don't get this album. Not even some of his fans "get it." It certainly takes some getting used to for most listeners, but I assure you that the challenge it creates for the listener is evolutionary in its scope and effect.

I did discover an echo of the beginning strains of his song, "May 1, 1990" (from his album, Here) in the track, "Finale." This discovery made me realize that there are no useless themes in Belew's ouevre. One musical concept inspires others. This evocation of thematic connection places Guitar As Orchestra apart from the work of his contemporaries as one would compare the works of Mozart with the middling efforts of Salieri. My hope is that--unlike Mozart--Belew's genius becomes universally appreciated while he's still here on this planet.

If you don't want your brain to be tickled, then perhaps this is not your sort of musical creation. What a regrettable state of affairs for music that such an engaging work as this is considered marginal. It is a loss for those who pass up this incredible feast for the ears, mind and soul. I'm just happy that I was able to find this gem, and it is a most precious and underappreciated gem.