ANDREW GORCZYCA – Reflections – An Act Of Glass

A rather peculiar album is this work of Andrew Gorczyca, because he cannot participate in this album, which is the reason why it is called The Music Of Andrew Gorczyca. Andrew passed away several years back in 2004, but his brother Chris, a dedicated musician, felt compelled to pick up the pieces of Andrew’s musical legacy and to put together the bits and parts. He invited one and a half dozen well known musicians, mostly from the Prog side of life, and over the course of over three years and in different studios this album came to be.

The list of collaborating musicians is certainly what will attract the eyes and ears of music lovers first, because many a illustrious name is among it. First, there is Ted Leonard of Enchant and singer and guitarist Adrian Belew from King Crimson, then a whole bunch of boys from Spock’s Beard: Nick D’Virgilio, Dave Meros and Ryo Okumoto,  and also Mike Keneally who played guitar for Zappa, the American songwriter and guitar player Phill Keaggy and several professional studio musicians like Bryan Beller and Randy George, just to name a few. Big names, are they not? Especially great because Nick and Ted are two of the best singers in Prog, who lend their voices to several tracks. But Andrew Gorczyca himself is also audible on one song. His brother was able to use a demo recording so that Andrew’s own voice sings on “All Fixed (Predestination)”. One does notice because the quality of the recording is definitely less good than the rest, but still okay.

Generally, the list of musicians could lead to the assumption that this was a Prog record, which it is not. It is much closer to Melodic Rock, Stadium Rock, AOR, or the 80’s way of Progressive Rock, dominantly with a heaviness comparable to Saga or Night Ranger, obvious in tracks like “The Tell Tale Heart” or “How Can We Go On This Way”. Pop Rock, well done, catchy, radio worthy and with an eye for melody. Only “Curiosity Song (I Only Want To Know)” is a bit too mellow and lacks some interesting variation, the other tracks are a convincing document of the songwriting abilities of the late Andrew Gorczyca, and those of his brother Chris, who also managed to give it a clear and contemporary sound and by this, sets it apart from the old AOR times.

The highlights are the two songs sung by Ted Leonard, the Enchant-y “Peasant Under Class” and “Give It Time” which sounds a lot like Canadian superstars Rush. The latter alone notches the score up one point! This may not be a band, but in Prog and Melodic Rock most people listen to that stuff at home anyway, so it is not a huge drawback. Chris did a very good job releasing his brother’s legacy, although one is tempted to ask if eight songs with 40 minutes were all that could be retrieved. If there is more stuff to find, a recommendation must be made to Chris to continue and release whatever seems worthy, as Andrew was as good a songwriter as many others in the genre, without a doubt.

For people who like good AOR or mellow Prog this is a nice record to have, just don’t let the label name lead you astray. It is a sad reason for which this album saw the light of day, but now that it did, it is worth being discovered.