Listening to Aphrodite's Child: 666 (Part 1)

[@paganpoet3]

One of the band members was Vangelis. Vangelis later became one of the most famous film composers. He wrote the soundtracks for Blade Runner, Chariots of Fire and 1492: Conquest of Paradise, collaborated with Jon Anderson of Yes for some hit singles. He made the powerful Yamaha CS-80 synthesizer (a 220 lb monster) famous with his electronic compositions for Blade Runner.

[@albarton7189]

Great album. One of my all time favorites. First time I heard this was back in the early 70’s. We were tripping, totally lost, driving my car like a maniac down a dark deserted dirt road late at night in the southern New Mexico desert, sand flying everywhere, on our way to a seedy Juarez bar, and someone popped in this 8track. Life was never the same afterwards.

[@alexgram1276]

Aphrodite's Child is great, really ahead of its time especially in Greece

[@rudolfbecker4313]

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[@RobFieldFlorida]

Weren't they still under a brutal military dictatorship when recording it in '70 and '71?

[@TheReaperMan275]

Vangelis was the keyboardist and percussionist of the band.

[@fuegoranou9705]

excellent album, merci, irène from france

[@allex_p]

What a gem! I was listening this on tape during my high school years (93 to 97), while being a Vangelis fan and looking into everything I could find related to him. I loved it and always happy to hear it again. If any Romanians in here, I was able to find it at Lemy (if I remember correctly) at Romana subway station. A legendary spot in the 90's in Bucharest.

[@rudolfbecker4313]

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[@mobolocomoboloco1274]

Lucas Sideras. The drummer of this super group.

[@dorenaverne1059]

Best Prog-Album ever... 🥰

[@rudolfbecker4313]

I'm afraid, you don't find many people, who share your opinion. I personally have a problem with the word best in connection with music. There is lots of very good, but I would never lift just one record or artist above the others .... it changes weekly 😆please join the vote in my comment, thank you 🤘

[@womblemartin]

@dorenaverne1059 you are correct in your assessment of this unique and truly awesome album, one of the greatest works of art in any genre of the 20th century.

[@Timothius-h1b]

I think it's one of the most underrated albums of all time. Vangelis BTW also needed up having to play most of the instruments (including drums) in France because his co-members were drafted into the Greek Army Coup.

[@guidojansen6720]

There's been a small club (we called it disco back then) in Lippstadt, North Rhine Westphalia, Germany called Don Quijote that played this song around 1 am every time they were opened and the dancefloor was always packed with people of all ages. It doesn't exist anymore though. Those were the days

[@Sthunderrocker]

It's also worth mentioning that intentionally or accidentally the original Greek pressing has an Extended Cut of the album. It can be found on KZbin as well if you look.

[@IllumeEltanin]

Thank you for mentioning this. I haven’t found the full extended Greek LP on KZbin, but I did find this upload of The Four Horsemen. Great fidelity and I love the slightly extended chimes at the beginning. kzbin.info/www/bejne/rp20lp9mmciNh7ssi=Iil76lwn7xubx1_Y

[@rudolfbecker4313]

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[@JimNewstead]

Extended???? …. Jeez!!!!

[@Sthunderrocker]

​@@JimNewsteadonly about 5 minutes. Some of the crossfades go away and the natural endings of the tracks happen for instance.

[@forwhomthebelltolls]

4:57 Vangels injecting some ominous Blade Runner-esque swoops in an upbeat tune about Babylon Falling while crowds cheer in the backgound. What a trip.

[@AKV3339]

thanks to the music of Vangelis, Demis Roussos sang beautifully in some tracks

[@stevetrow8989]

Never heard of Aphrodites Child before, good stuff. Some guitar bits sounded like The Verve.

[@JimNewstead]

Glad to introduce you to something new!

[@andrewhaines3259]

I think you'll find The Verve guitar sounds a bit like this as this came out quite a bit before them!

[@Tityretupatulae]

I mean, its the other way around

[@michaelstewart9188]

This was often hailed as the Holy Grail to us youngsters in the 70s usually by older heads who had tales of psychedelic journeys with this as the soundtrack! Eventually tracked a copy down in Reckless Records for a pittance on the original Vertigo label many, many years ago. Always loved the ambient sensibility of this one in addition to the sound effects courtesy of Vangelis and Demis on the bass before the Kaftans captured him over to Housewives Choice territory a few years later. The Verve pay homage on The Rolling People, Beck on Chem Trials, Enigma borrowed some of it on their first album and the Four Horsemen was used for some football event many years ago on television so maybe not as cult as once thought but still a gem. Thanks for sharing this one Jim ...

[@JimNewstead]

And thanks for commenting!

[@gazric]

Had the vinyl before it got banned...the first cd edition was german, in '89 I think, which is how Enigma got clean samples for 1990. That album is full of uncredited samples, even down to the breaths on sadness part 1

[@Nebuloid1]

This album has been on my rotation for almost 20 years, haven't heard in a while though. Thanks for the heads up !

[@2wayplebney]

Oh, Boy! I remember listening to this in Jackie's Music Bar in Stafford in the 70's. I bought it after Side 1. Both The Four Horsemen and Break were hits of sorts (on Radio Luxembourg.) I was not prepared for the weirdness of "Do It" and the one with the infinity symbol (it is totally nuts) and the reruns on the last side, but there is so much greatness here that none of that matters. Both Vangelis and Demis went on to great success, and I wonder what happened to Silver, who is more than decent on lead guitar here. The backing vocals are really great, and whoever played the thing that may well be a bouzouki on The Lamb does a good job. Drums and bass are solid too. Irene Papas does stuff I did not know you could do on a record. Stick with it until you get to "Break", Jim. It is the perfect ending to the madness.

[@rudolfbecker4313]

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[@JimNewstead]

Irene does have certain talents!

[@Zomby_Woof79]

Nice one Jim! This is a wild album with some excellent instrumental sections. The four Horsemen used to be my bands "about to play moment" as soon as the chimes started we would start getting pumped to hit the stage :)

[@rudolfbecker4313]

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[@JimNewstead]

The Four Horsemen is fantastic!

[@conkerman01]

This reminds me somewhat as a school production. It definately has its moments.

[@Sthunderrocker]

It certainly was overreaching the abilities of the studio in which it was recorded. But you also have to keep in mind this is hippie music.

[@rudolfbecker4313]

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[@tonygrinney7115]

It's a good album! Just JP did a first reaction on his channel of this album some time ago, so it will be interesting to hear your viewpoint on the album.

[@rudolfbecker4313]

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[@tonygrinney7115]

Done Rudi!

[@Sthunderrocker]

Been caught stealing by Jane's Addiction always reminded me of the Four Horsemen

[@rudolfbecker4313]

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[@JimNewstead]

Tune!

[@dangabbert3944]

This LP came out when I was in high school. I knew nothing about the band, but was intrigued by the concept. I played it a lot at first but , while it has great moments, there is too much filler, for me. I applaud the effort. It was a very ambitious project.

[@JimNewstead]

I pretty much agree. Too much for single listen, and lofty aspirations but of weirdness too.

[@Retexid]

Jim, I highly recommend you check out the band Daughters, in case you haven't heard of them. Especially their album "You Won't Get What You Want" which is an absolutely davastating piece of music.

[@rudolfbecker4313]

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[@TheKaelleb]

That is one of my all-time favorite albums! :-)

[@rudolfbecker4313]

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[@JohnCane147]

I bet you have never heard something like that before. BTW, that CD version is not the full version. There's a Greek vinyl version with longer tracks and fewer fade outs

[@AKV3339]

World legend Progressive Rock Band!!!

[@vinsgraphics]

‘Bout time for some Vangelis love. After AC, there’s so much to explore.

[@rudolfbecker4313]

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[@IllumeEltanin]

Oh. My. Stars… I haven’t watched this yet, but I’m so excited to see this! I hope you’re able to upload the entire album, even if you have to break up the sides. I know JustJP had to put some of it on his Patreon.

[@rudolfbecker4313]

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[@JimNewstead]

You’ll know by now I found a way to do it! “Do it!”

[@PJprog]

Must be 25 years or more since I last heard this ! Wow... better than I remember. In the depths of my collection somewhere.Will dig around , but need to get a CD copy too. Many thanks Jim. Your next episodes are on my watchlist. 😍

[@mellotronin54]

As a long time Progressive Rock lover I always meant to get this album. Thank you Jim. It is a great listen it is of is time and that is not a bad thing. Looking forward to part two.

[@rudolfbecker4313]

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[@simonal1989]

Ah wow! So looking forward to this one! The Four Horsemen is genius, and the album has some tremendous guitar work. Ahesd of it's time... Enjoy Jim!

[@pietroprogman]

Hi! This is masterpiece...it's so psychedelic, progressive, experimental and avantagarde...It's pure magic! thank you for your review! regards from italy! ciao!

[@garytverberg3253]

Yes, this has been quite interesting. Thinking it will take several listenings. Thanks Jim.

[@rudolfbecker4313]

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[@JimNewstead]

Yes it will!

[@matweb8195]

I quite enjoy this album, very funny.

[@rudolfbecker4313]

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[@dailyprognosisnick]

have this vinyl and it's gotten many a spin. Good to hear it again through a first time listener! Thanks Jim!

[@rudolfbecker4313]

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[@JimNewstead]

Thanks for listening!

[@IThinkYouLookLarvely]

New subscriber here, great review. And, thanks for reminding me Jim- I've just dug out my stylophone (sadly a 2000s remake!), and found three leaky duracells inside, so in the process of cleaning it up. I agree, the Aegean Sea keyboards are 10 years ahead of the times, but The Four Horsemen is the GOAT! (Middle-aged bloke trying to sound cool 😂)

[@palantir135]

Good evening Jim, Do I know Aphrodite’s Child. Of course I do. I know their hit single Rain and Tears for almost whole my life. I can’t remember why but I never bothered to listen to them in my teenage years although I was a big prog rock fan. Probably because they broke up before I really got into music. I think it also had to do with their music no longer being played on mainstream radio and their albums were probably only available in specialized album stores which were located in the bigger cities and I lived in a not so big town where they didn’t sell records. When I was fifteen, we travelled to Cologne in Germany where there was a big Saturn warehouse with all the music I could think of. I made up for that lack in not listening in later years because I listened to all of their music and I like it very much. Demis Roussos (you do pronounce al the s’s as far as I know) was very famous in Europa; our parents loved his solo works. I loved Vangelis of course.

[@rudolfbecker4313]

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[@palantir135]

@@rudolfbecker4313 just did.

[@rudolfbecker4313]

I'd better finish reading before placing a comment .... SATURN .... sweet, sweet memories: I did my first trip there on 2nd Feb 1979. How do I now ? I used to write the buying date on my record-inside-sleeve😆 I was there with 3 schoolmates, I had shopping lists of 4 or 5 people, I ran around for 2 (?) hours and the stack of LPs on my arm got bigger and bigger, I think it was more than 20 in the end. Later on Saturn extended all over Germany and until 20 years ago, the store in Cologne was still the same. Then the LP and CD department started shrinking and nowadays it's so poor ... We also have a big Saturn in Düsseldorf, but this one has also changed a lot in the last years ... nowaydays I think they even have more LPs than CDs ... but being under reconstruction, the space is very limited. It's located at the Königsallee, and they once had 5 stories, they even had bands giving small concerts...the only one I remember right now was Doro (Pesch) ...so sad to see the development nowadays ...

[@JimNewstead]

We don’t have Saturn in the U.K., but guess Tower Records or Virgin Megastore might have been similar…. I used to love visiting them in London when I was a kid.

[@Sthunderrocker]

In my top 10 of Prog albums.

[@rudolfbecker4313]

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[@jameswarner5809]

Love The Four Horsemen, even though I can't help thinking of Alison Steadman in Abigail's Party snapping here fingers as she extolls the virtues of Demis Roussos. The track on side three (disc 2) which is just titled as an infinity symbol will challenge you.

[@rudolfbecker4313]

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[@JimNewstead]

It was fine 🤣

[@philpeters4800]

My all time favourite album an artist

[@Lightmane]

Hi Jim. Well, this is gonna be fun 🙂

[@rudolfbecker4313]

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[@thaneco]

One of the greatest prog records with a great concept

[@chrislewis-n3v]

you seem to have a bit of whispering bob harris vibe!(which is a good thing)

[@kenl2091]

Really should be part of any prog-head's collection. Some of it is excellent. Some of it...not so much. The styles whizz all over the place and that's not a bad thing but it demands patience and understanding of when and by whom it was recorded. Would have been eye-opening at the time and remains so now. Best track is 'Four Horsemen' of course. You'll have heard 'Infinity Symbol' by now. It's one of my acid-tests of how finely-tuned your critical facilities are so don't disappoint!

[@kenl2091]

P.S. 95% sure that it wasn't a Stylophone (or even Styrofoam) but probably a 1960s organ (Farfisa??)

[@Sthunderrocker]

Obviously the four horsemen is an all-time favorite track for me, but for what it's worth I think Break is the best song on the album.

[@rudolfbecker4313]

yeah that's the problem: if the excellency is less than 50 %, I might not buy it 😆 we'll see, what part 2 and 3 have. What I definitely don't like, if there is too much spoken words on a record . Therefore I didn't like Pain of Salvation's Be and Ayreon's Transitus very much ...

[@JimNewstead]

Hmmm, don’t know what you mean 🤣😜

[@andrewhaines3259]

Infinity symbol. Come again? 😂

[@mattleppard1964]

A first listen for me too

[@michaelcapewell4811]

A lot of those tinkly keyboard sounds are very similar to US band HP Lovecraft, on their two classic late 60s lps…which of course are essential listening 👍

[@rudolfbecker4313]

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[@JimNewstead]

Thanks Mick, another as yet undiscovered band….

[@michaelcapewell4811]

@@JimNewstead btw Vangelis’ first solo lp Earth is even better than 666 imho.

[@JimNewstead]

@@michaelcapewell4811 that’s exciting! I have that a part of a box set.

[@michaelcapewell4811]

@@JimNewstead it carries on the mix of Rock and sort of Tribal chanting. More primitive than the stuff that came after like Heaven & Hell and Albedo 0.39 (which are also brilliant of course). People bang on about him being a ‘keyboard virtuoso’ but personally i think he’s a composer/producer first, instrumentalist second. I certainly think he wouldn’t have been a good replacement for Wakeman in Yes. 🤔 Btw the first Demis Roussos solo lp is well worth a listen too. Much more Proggy than his later mor glop.

[@hdgehog6]

A friend bought me this album in the mid 70s and I really did not want to listen to it. When I did it became my favorite album from that decade. Dark side of the Moon was a close second, followed by Umaguma and Uncle Meat.... Go fig? Oh, FYI, the very last second on the last track kinda pissed me off as nonsensical 70s tripe, but I can over look that.

[@johnywebb]

Looking currently the 4 colours of the horses are the flags of country's that surround the state of Israel intresting times.

[@IllumeEltanin]

I enjoyed your listen, Jim. A few things to keep in mind regarding this work. I believe it is all noted on Wikipedia, in case I get any of it wrong. Although released in 1971, it was recorded at the end of the ‘60s, i.e., 1969 into 1970 I believe. That has a lot to do with its style, versus contemporary albums of its release date. The label held up its release for something like 18 months. Apparently the original version of “∞” was something like 35 minutes long and Vangelis really resisted the idea of shortening it. Not to mention the performance of the track by the actress Irene Papas. The “rock opera” aspect is actually more apparent on the third side when you understand the libretto of the work. I’m pretty sure the vinyl I no longer owned had one included with it but I don’t know if such was included with your CD. The concept is that the album starts as what Greek theater calls a “circus” performance in a tent of The Final Days. That’s why it’s more of a lofty intellectual interpretation of The Book of Revelations. During the third side of the album, the tent walls are somehow torn down, and the audience and performers realize the actual Apocalypse is going on outside the tent. If I recall correctly, this is hinted at by the voice of “the ringmaster” sounding more and more insane. However, the album never gets heavy. I doubt I would love it as much as I do if it did. I am curious about the mix on this CD. I seem to recall the vinyl sounding much more lush. Not your fault, though. I’ll admit it was a bit strange going into Aegean Sea directly from Seven Seals. My memory is Seven Seals was the end of side one, and the silence of the record ending after hearing “silence covered the skies” was quite impactful. I feel vindicated that you hear some hints of the Blade Runner soundtrack in Aegean Sea. When Dr. Doug did his tribute to Vangelis after Vangelis’ passing, he asked for suggestions of what to listen to. I suggested Aegean Sea for an early piece, which Dr. Doug went with. Many commenters said he should have gone with The Four Horsemen, as that was the hit from the album. I felt Aegean Sea highlighted Vangelis’ contribution to Aphrodite’s Child more than The Four Horseman and I’m still glad Dr. Doug went with it. Thank you for doing 666 (The Apocalypse of John 13:18). It is of its time, especially when you realize when it was recorded versus its release date. I hope you enjoy the rest just as much.

[@rudolfbecker4313]

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[@JimNewstead]

The quality is what it is. I haven’t changed anything, it’s a lossless FLAC rip if the CD to make it easier to manage when recording the video. I’m sure vinyl would have sounded better but I don’t have it!

[@IllumeEltanin]

@@JimNewstead The cost for the vinyl, even the recent remaster (which I haven’t heard so I can’t vouch for) is insane. It’s totally understandable why you went with CD, which is pretty much what I said when you asked if the CD of “V” was acceptable when you first got it.

[@andrewhaines3259]

I agree. Aegean Sea is certainly a more Vangelis "trademark" sound. I have a vinyl copy which sounds great. Bought the red anniversary edition which sits on my shelf, still sealed. Not something I usually do, as I buy to play, but there you go!

[@rudolfbecker4313]

I write this before I listen: First time I heard AC was in 1970 with Spring, summer, winter and fall (pretty terrible for my 10 years old ears), than in 1972 Demis Roussos sang german (Goodbye my love goodbye - very terrible in my ears 😂) Then in 1980 I heard the Four Horseman for the very first time in our Rock Disco Musical Box : along with the music, they had some "disco fog", there were always girls and young women, who "danced" to each kind of music, so they looked like elves hovering over the dancefloor 😆 All this together made me like this song, but I never listened to any other AC songs, now I will: Well, after all I have to say The Four Horsemen is my favourite song So let's start a poll, since there are many songs about "the four Horsemen", here are the entries: Aphrodite's Child The Clash Gamma (feat Ronnie Montrose and Denny Carmassi) good old hardrock, as we called it back in 1980 Metallica I vote for Gamma 🤘

[@tonygrinney7115]

Aphrodite's child

[@rudolfbecker4313]

@@tonygrinney7115 thank you 😄

[@Lightmane]

I haven't heard those songs before.

[@rudolfbecker4313]

@@Lightmane not even Metallica ? If you like rock/hardrock Gamma is a must 😆

[@Lightmane]

@@rudolfbecker4313 Nope, and I've never heard of Gamma, so I'll go listen to them now.

[@IvorPresents]

Theatrical A staged presentation. big fan of VAngelellous

[@rudolfbecker4313]

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[@markdrechsler5660]

A fun album. It has its flaws, but overall worth a listen.

[@rudolfbecker4313]

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[@Andreaszilel]

🐎🐎🐎🐎👽🤣👍

[@MaraxisArcanist]

I think I'm gonna have to sit this one out. I hope you enjoy it though. 😁

[@simonal1989]

How come? Not a fan?

[@MaraxisArcanist]

@@simonal1989 Yeah, there's nothing wrong with it musically. Just not my taste at all.

[@rudolfbecker4313]

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[@JimNewstead]

See you soon on the next video, whenever and whatever that is! 🤣👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼

[@billnole2188]

Had this on album, 8-track & Cd. Wonderful although I have to be totally stoned to get past The Lamb, just too mellow.

[@rudolfbecker4313]

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[@JimNewstead]

Do you need an excuse?