Introduction
In December 1977 Vangelis released “Spiral”, his third studio album for RCA Records. As with the first two albums for RCA, “Heaven And Hell” (1975) and “Albedo 0.39” (1976), the music for this album was recorded in Vangelis’ own Nemo Studios in London.
The music on Spiral is inspired by Taoism, as is indicated by a quote of the Chinese ancient text 'Tao Te Ching' printed on the front cover: ‘Going on means going far. Going far means returning’. At the same time the album contains references to a more cosmic theme, with track titles such as ‘Spiral’ and ‘Dervish D’, the latter explained on the sleeve as ‘inspired by the Dervish dancer who by his whirling realises the spiralling of the universe’.
Spiral is the first album where Vangelis extensively uses sequencers, as well as the Yamaha CS-80 synthesizer, at the time a revolutionary instrument that would become his signature instrument during the following years.
To promote the album the track ‘To The Unknown Man’ was released on a 7" single in many countries, with the non-album track ‘To The Unknown Man part 2’ on the flipside. The single picture sleeve varies in different countries which is interesting for advanced collectors. ‘To The Unknown Man’ became one of the best known tracks on the album when it was used as a theme on several television shows, for instance by the BBC in their “Frame Of The Day” snooker coverage. Also the title track ‘Spiral’ and ‘Dervish D’ have been widely used as themes for radio and television programmes.
Spiral is widely recognised as a classic Vangelis album and a milestone of electronic progressive music, and in 1978 the track ‘To The Unknown Man’ received the International Instrumental Award from the MIDEM organisation.
In 2013 Spiral received a re-release which was personally remastered by Vangelis. Due to the added reverb on several tracks this version is a different listening experience compared to the original release, and for that some may prefer the original master of the album. Even though the remastered version is missing 11 seconds of the title track, the CD is well worth finding, if only for the bonus track ‘To The Unknown Man part 2’ which is otherwise only available on the B-side of the 7” single.
Tracklist and credits
- Spiral
- Ballad
- Dervish D
- To The Unknown Man
- 3 + 3
- Composed, arranged and produced by Vangelis.
- All instruments performed by Vangelis.
- Recording engineer: Keith Spencer-Allen
- Assistant engineer: Marlis Duncklau
- Photography by Micheal Plomer and Veronique Skawinska.
- Sleeve design by Vangelis.
Discography
LP
- 1977 RCA, released worldwide.
- 1978 Polydor 2421 118 Greece
- 2020/2022 Music On Vinyl MOVLP2600 Europe (Limited Edition)
CD
- 1989 RCA ND 70568 Europe / UK / US
- 1990 RCA BVCP-5026 Japan “Rock Spirits”
- 1991 RCA V.130.021 Brazil
- 1993 RCA 07863-52627-2 Canada
- 1997 Windham Hill Records 01934-11230-2 US
- 1998 BMG Ariola 01934-11230-2 Argentina
- 2006 RCA BVCM-37680 Japan (Papersleeve edition)
- 2008 RCA 88697-38936-2 Japan (SHM-CD)
- 2022 RCA – SICP 31559 Japan “Sony Music Progressive Rock Paper Sleeve Collection”
- 2013 Esoteric Recordings ECLEC 2423 UK/Europe (remastered by Vangelis) includes 'To The Unknown Man part 2'.
7” single
- 1977 To The Unknown Man / To The Unknown Man part 2 (RCA PB 5064) France / West-Germany / UK / The Netherlands / Spain. Also released in the US, Canada and Australia.
- 1977 Dervish D / 3 + 3 (RCA PB 5087) France
- 1980 Spiral / Bacchanale (RCA 101.7146) Brazil “Vinhete musical da novela Coraçăo Alado”
Recording studio
The album was recorded in Vangelis’ Nemo Studios in London.
More
- In 2025 a recording surfaced from a lost cassette where Vangelis plays several early versions of tracks that we now know ended up on the Spiral album, a.o. ‘Ballad’, ‘Dervish D’ and ‘3 + 3’. A unique recording, incredible this tape escaped the recording is now available for us to hear!
Links
