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Spyro Gyra

Three Wishes

Review by Gary Hill

This classic set from Spyro Gyra doesn’t have a lot of surprises. When you get into an album from these guys, you kind of know what to expect. The music here ranges from jazz to fusion. It’s all classy and all instrumental. I’m not sure if this is one of their best albums, but it’s got to be up there. I should say that we generally put in fusion in under progressive rock, and this is no exception.

This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2015  Volume 5 at lulu.com/strangesound.

Track by Track Review
Pipo's Song

Percussion brings this in and they launch out into quite a tasty, Latin inspired bit of fusion. There is some great acoustic guitar on this.

Introduction to Breathless
This minute plus a few seconds piece is a piano solo. It’s quite pretty and melodic.
Breathless
The rhythm section starts things here. The jazz jam that builds out is melodic and powerful. I really like the piano soloing on the track a lot.
Introduction to Real Time
This vibe solo is less than thirty seconds long.
Real Time
Here is another classy fusion groove. It has some definite funk in the mix. I really like some of the piano work and the saxophone here.
Jennifer's Lullaby
Speaking of piano, that instrument starts this ride. Working in classical ways, that holds the song for a while. Then acoustic guitar joins and the piece builds through the interaction of those two instruments. Saxophone rises up after a while, bringing a new element to the arrangement.
Whitewater
Now, this fusion jam is high energy and quite definitely lands in the territory of progressive rock. I love some of the keyboard sounds on this a lot. The whole piece really jams, though. There is some particularly cool bass work later, as well. This whole piece is one of the best on the disc, really.
Inside Your Love

 There is some definite funk in the bass lines here. The cut is a great jazz styled jam. It’s not a huge departure, but it oozes cool. Some of the horn soloing later gets really inspired.

Nothing to Lose
Fast paced and particularly funky, this thing really grooves like crazy. There is some awesome keyboard soloing, too. You can’t ignore the horns or the vibes, either. This is just one of the highlights of the set for sure.
Three Wishes
There are no big changes here, but overall this is a solid cut. I’m not sure I’d have made it the title track, but it is very good.
Gliding
Although overall this song isn’t a big surprise the real rocking fusion guitar soloing is different than a lot of the rest of the music here. I really like the vibe dominated section, too. This really does make you feel like you are gliding.
Cabana Carioca

 There is, appropriately, a bit of a Latin vibe to this number. It’s more of the same beyond that. When it’s this good, though, who can complain?

Rollercoaster
I love the horn section on this. The cut shifts and turns in a great energized arrangement. This is a highlight of the set for sure. I love the whole song, but I’m particularly enamored with the piano solo. There is also a smoking hot guitar solo on the number.
Three Wishes Reprise
This piece is a little over a minute and a half in length. As the title suggests, it’s a slow revisit of the themes from the title track. It’s quite pretty. It also makes for a very satisfying conclusion.
 
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