Eumir Deodato de Almeida, also known as Eumir Deodato, is a Brazilian pianist, composer, record producer and arranger, primarily based in the jazz realm but who historically has been known for eclectic melding of big band and combo jazz with varied elements of rock/pop, R&B/funk, Brazilian/Latin, and symphonic or orchestral music.
Prior to Prelude, Eumir Deodato was primarily known, if at all, as a tasteful, lyrical, bossa nova-based sometime arranger for the likes of Antonio Carlos Jobim, Frank Sinatra, Wes Montgomery, and others. Enter Creed Taylor, who gave Deodato a chance to step out on his own as a pianist/leader, doing a few tunes of his own plus a healthy quota of CTI-patented jazz interpretations of classical pieces by Richard Strauss ("Also Sprach Zarathustra (2001)"), Debussy ("Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun"), and bowdlerized Borodin ("Baubles, Bangles and Beads"). Well, "2001" -- a clever, up-tempo Latin-groove takeoff on the opening measures of Strauss' tone poem suddenly exploded and became an improbable hit single. In its wake, Prelude soared to number three on the pop LP charts, and Deodato was propelled out of the arranger-for-hire business. Though overshadowed by "2001," the other tracks also hold up well today, being mostly medium-tempo, sometimes lushly orchestrated, conga-accented affairs that provide velvety showcases for Deodato's lyrical electric piano solos. The record also made a temporary star out of John Tropea, whose electric guitar has a lot of rock & rolling zip and fire, and Hubert Laws, Stanley Clarke, and Marvin Stamm each get a little solo room too. This would be the biggest hit Deodato and CTI ever had, and though short on playing time (32 minutes), it still makes enjoyable listening. Richard S. Ginell
Tracklist :
1 Also Sprach Zarathustra 9:01
Arranged By, Adapted By – Eumir Deodato
Electric Guitar [Solo] – John Tropea
Written-By – Richard Strauss
2 Spirit Of Summer 4:14
Guitar [Solo] – Jay Berliner
Written-By – E. Deodato
3 Carly & Carole 3:41
Written-By – E. Deodato
4 Baubles, Bangles And Beads 5:20
Electric Bass – Ron Carter
Electric Guitar [Solo] – John Tropea
Written-By – A. Borodin, G .Forrest, R. Wright
5 Prelude To The Afternoon Of A Faun 5:13
Arranged By, Adapted By – Eumir Deodato
Flute [Solo] – Hubert Laws
Trumpet [Solo] – Marvin Stamm
Written-By – C. Debussy
6 September 13 5:56
Electric Guitar [Solo] – John Tropea
Written-By – B. Cobham, E. Deodato
Credits :
Arranged By, Conductor, Electric Piano, Piano – Eumir Deodato
Bass – Ron Carter
Cello – Charles McCracken, Harvey Shapiro, Seymour Barab
Congas – Ray Barretto
Drums – Billy Cobham
Electric Bass – Stanley Clarke
Electric Guitar – John Tropea
Engineer – Rudy Van Gelder
Flute – George Marge, Hubert Laws, Phil Bodner, Romeo Penque
French Horn – Jim Buffington, Peter Gordon
Guitar – Jay Berliner
Percussion – Airto
Producer – Creed Taylor
Trombone – Bill Watrous, Garnett Brown, George Strakey, Paul Faulise, Wayne Andre
Trumpet – Joe Shepley, John Frosk, Marky Markowitz, Marvin Stamm
Viola – Al Brown, Emanuel Vardi
Violin – David Nadien, Elliot Rosoff, Emanuel Green, Gene Orloff, Harry Lookofsky, Max Ellen, Paul Gershman
