Gandharva

Beaver & Krause | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (May 16, 2006)
• Original Release Date: 2006
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Collector's Choice
• ASIN: B000E112RU
• Also Available in: Vinyl
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #316,774 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Soft/White

2. Saga of the Blue Beaver

3. Nine Moons in Alaska

4. Walkin'

5. Walkin' by the River

6. Gandharva

7. By Your Grace

8. Good Places

9. Short Film for David

10. Bright Shadows

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Trippy, and I mean that as a compliment, March 6, 2007

By 

Anthony M. Kaczynski (Boston, MA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Gandharva (Audio CD)

I had limited exposure to one cut from this record, "Walkin' By The River," which was included on "Hot Platters," one of those great $2.00 LP samplers that Warners used to put out back in, well, the '70s. It's basically a gospel number sung convincingly by Clydie King, but in no way prepares one for the rest of the contents of this disc, which range from a somewhat off-kilter blues jam that kicks off the proceedings featuring Mike Bloomfield and Ronnie Montrose, to the completely gorgeous second side of the album, (tracks 6-10) which was recorded pristinely in the Grace Cathedral, whose acoustics are used to the fullest and act as another musical instrument. A rather pioneering disk, this; fusion of the best sort. Early analog synthesizer experiments (no cheese factor, by the way; these guys knew what they were doing) that are organically paired with the marvelous saxophone work of Gerry Mulligan and Bud Shank. Ruminative, contemplative, achingly beautiful, and recommended.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Music is awesome but the last note is cut off!, October 26, 2008

By 

Jim Brant - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Gandharva (Audio CD)

This is a lousy and careless budget reissue on the Collectors Choice label of the classic album Gandharva by Paul Beaver and Bernie Krause, originally released by Warner Bros. in 1971. Side 2 of this album was recorded live at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco, and the ambience audible in the original release is chopped out here between each track due to careless editing. To make matters worse, the album gradually fades out to a climax during "Bright Shadows" to a final sustained note - which is cut off on this reissue! A beautiful recording was just plain ruined by the editing hatchet job done to this album.

Gandharva, and its predecessor In A Wild Sanctuary, were first released together on a single CD by Warner Bros. in 1994, and they got it right. Unfortunately, it is now out of print. Try and find the original Warner CD containing both albums if you can. It's a pity that Collectors Choice didn't take the time to do this album right.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Electronic pioneers, March 22, 2010

By 

Juan el Americano "neverneverrand" (Greensburg, Ky United States) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Gandharva (Audio CD)

While there are what might be considered "dated" segments on this album, this CD is well worth having not only for the historic interest but also for some seriously moving musical experience that holds up today and probably always will. Granted, I spent many moments spacing to this album during the days when it was a new release and have many nostalgic associations with it, but it is in my unbiased opinion a genuine work of music worthy of many listens. Tracks 1 and 3 are my least favorite; track 2 is jammin' groovy in a bluesy kind of way - not so much electronic. From there, it's pretty much as the album title, "Gandharva", suggests - celestial musician.
Walkin' and Walkin' by the River constitute a pair with the same theme from different approaches - spatial spiritual segueing into gospel spiritual. The title track is a bit weak for me, but short. After that, settle in for a transcendental glide of incomparable beauty. There's no mistaking the tracks recorded in Grace Cathedral by the deep, rich atmospheric sound. All in all, a listen everyone should experience during their life. Note: If you don't like sax, you may want to disregard my previous comments for the second half of the CD - there are two of them in a delightful interplay.