Manzanara Mackay Post Roxy Produce Live Magic

recorded live in Soho 2024

Following Roxy Music's epic and successful 2022 world tour, Phil and Andy decided they'd not had enough and so the two, along with original Roxy drummer Paul Thompson, went into the studio and in October 2023 released AM PM. They decided in March of 2024 to do some live shows based on the album and this is the result.

Frankly, it's reassuring to know that Andy survived the Roxy tour because he appeared to be blowing his brains out and as cosmic, remarkable and pleasurable it was listening to him at the Madison Square Garden show I attended, I feared for his red-faced life with each tune!

Good seats at that show were costly (around $600 per) and my wife couldn't believe I'd spend that but when it was over, she, not as huge a fan as I have always been said "That was worth it!!!!!!!!!" And it was.

Phil and Andy have always made great music together starting on the first Roxy album and here took elements from the AM PM album and improvised around them. If you're a Roxy fan and never heard that record you'll probably enjoy this one, recorded in a "famous screening theatre in Dean Street, in Soho, London." The place must have great acoustics because the sound on this double set is superb. It's called "All Is Joy" and is part of an arts center created from the old De Lane Lea recording studio where so many rockers from "the day" once recorded.

I didn't time sides but either they are relatively short of the improvs so immersive and enjoyable the time flew. Either way, this double set will set off brain fireworks for hard core Roxy fans—especially connoisseurs of the sides twos of the first two more experimental Roxy albums. Haha, just as I wrote that my wife came downstairs not knowing what was playing and she said "What is that? I love it!"

The liner notes explain: "Shades of early Roxy filmic conjuring and pneumatic rhythm meet jazzy Bogus Man Noir, less Armchair Theater more Chaise Longue (sp.?) Drama, Violin, flugelhorn, tube, flute and myriad treatments sprinkle leftfield magic throughout, while Manzanera and Mackay explore the unstructured freedom of a path yet unfurled".

There's as much musical beauty in the tune "CC" as in anything on Avalon and a decoupled version of "Ave Maria" worked well. While rock improvs often slog down because of rhythmic limitations, this set holds full attention over 4 sides aided by Thompson's percussion, Lucas Polo's bass, guitar and treatments and live sample mixing by engineer, co-producer Mike Boddy.

The live show, mixed in surround sound with screen projections must have been something but the three-dimensionality of this remarkably transparent two channel mix made for great listening. It's crankable for sure.

Side 4 includes 3 Roxy covers: Phil's "Out of the Blue", Andy's "Love is The Drug" and "Tara", with vocals by Sonia Bernardo, and Anna Phoebe taking the Eddie Jobson part on electric violin. And tucked in there is a cover of Jay-Z and Kanye West's "No Church in the Wild" the original of which sample's Manzanera's "K-Scope" from his eponymous 1978 album.

Manzanara says the guitar sample has earned him more money than his entire Roxy Music career. It's "the slot machine that keeps paying out", he says.

Roxy fans will enjoy this double set for music and sound.