Noel Soto - Alfa y Omega (Polydor, Spain, 1975)

An outstanding effort by the Nador-born though Spanish resident singer/songwriter.

Noel Soto was pioneer in the introduction of the conceptual album in Spain and his second LP, topic of today’s entry, called “Alfa y Omega” is often credited as the first opera rock published in that country.

An unusual and risky project it was –especially for a neophyte in the genre- yet the results are incredible. Thought not selling properly in the release, the album has gained deserved cult status and is considered one of the pinnacles of the progressive pop edited in the Iberian Peninsula.

The musicianship behind this record is praiseworthy. There’s a good dose of majestic organ and mellotron, delightful flutes and great guitar work which match so well with Noel caressing voice. And stunning large instrumentals can be heard here and there, thing that enriches a lot the experience.

The song assortment is very well balanced. There’s absolutely nothing left in the eight tracks that compose the LP but it is so addictive and is so well made you will certainly stand wanting for more. There’s time for progressive instrumentals in the introductory “obertura alfa”, for rocking in “vamos a hacer el amor”, for smoth-jazz vibes in “nos falta comunicación”, some delightful moody pop in “ahora que somos dos” and “tu” or even prophetic progressive experimentations in “misere nobis omega”. References to “Lucy in the sky with diamonds” and to “I can’t get enough (Satisfaction)" can be heard in “flechas en el aire”, which is always a good thing.

I have decided to preserve the original conception of the record consisting in no time separations between cuts, so I fussed all the songs in two major files: side A and side B.   

Man, it’s a shame the author has taken literally the meaning of the album title, not releasing more marvelous material like that!

Tracks

A1. obertura alfa (J.L. de la Fuente; J.L. Izaguirre; L. Forner)

A2. ahora que somos dos (J.L. de la Fuente; J.L. Izaguirre; M.E. Soto)

A3. vamos a hacer el amor (M.E. Soto)

A4. tu (M.E. Soto)

B1. nos falta comunicación (M.E. Soto)

B2. flechas en el aire (M.E. Soto)

B3. sueños de cristal (J.L. de la Fuente; J.L. Izaguirre; M.E. Soto)

B4. miserere nobis omega (J.L. de la Fuente; J.L. Izaguirre; L. Forner; M.E. Soto)

Personnel

Produced by Angel Velázquez; Izaguirre Jr.

Get it here