Michael de Albuquerque: Stalking The Sleeper

English musician Michael de Albuquerque's solo output consisted of three albums in the early Seventies. Best known as the bass player for the Electric Light Orchestra from 1972 to 1974, he had no chance to get his own music on that band's records, so he went out his own with a blend of orchestrated soft rock, progressive rock and funk. The people at niche label Think Like a Key took upon them to create lovingly restored reissues with the help of fabled retired sound engineer Prof Stoned. With the upcoming release of Stalking The Sleeper the set is now complete.

It is De Albuquerque's most ambitious effort, with songs that go through hills and valleys. He starts out pretty straightforward with the only cover on the album, Ray Charles' I Gotta Woman, but after that the gloves come off for a sonic journey, channelling Bowie's floor filler Fame (Patience Cousin!), going all out with the widescreen The Wreckers and the subtle piano-driven pop of Tonight On The Highway. The bonus tracks - three from his band with ELO bandmate Mik Kaminski and a latter day demo with John Marcangelo - are nice to have, but they take away a bit from the flow of the original album.

Michael de Albuquerque: We May Be Cattle But We've All Got Names

English musician Michael de Albuquerque is probably best known as the bass player for the Electric Light Orchestra from 1972 to 1974. Dig a little deeper and it won't be long before his solo album We May Be Cattle But We've All Got Names will be mentioned, a jazz rock extravaganza that has been out of print since its release in the UK in 1973. Fast forward to 2024 and it gets its long overdue reissue on CD via niche label Think Like a Key. Fabled retired sound engineer Prof Stoned was in charge of the remastering of the tracks, and as per usual worked his magic on improving the overall sonic depth.

We May Be Cattle But We've All Got Names is a prime example of the cross-pollination between blues, jazz and rock that made progressive music so great around that time. De Albuquerque surrounded himself with the crème de la crème of English session players, but it is guitarist Ollie Halsall who steals the show on this album, playing baffling solos with his instantly recognizable tone. Quite a few first takes were used. This is an album for musos first, but it is accessible enough to be enjoyed as such. The obvious joy that was had during the recording sessions has spilled over to the finished product: a timeless collection of songs played by a bunch of guys who could turn on a dime without missing a beat.