Collection (Spyro Gyra album)

Collection is the fifteenth and debut compilation album by Spyro Gyra from 1991. The album showed a couple of fairies above a city with flowers.

Review

Over the years, Spyro Gyra's music has ranged from inspired and boldly creative to bloodless and unimaginative — a fact this 1991 retrospective makes abundantly clear. The band is at its risk-taking best on the haunting, Spanish-influenced "Old San Juan," the passionate, Afro-Cuban-flavored "Para Ti Latino" and the driving jazz-rock scorcher "Breakout," but disappoints bitterly on such forgettable, radio-oriented "muzak" as "Catching the Sun" and the Kenny G-ish "The Unknown Soldier." Exciting one minute and dull the next, this CD illustrates that while leader Jay Beckenstein could have taken his band to great artistic heights, he held it back artistically by so often resorting to formula.

Track listing and personnel

1. "You Can Count On Me" (Tom Schuman) - 3:27

• Jay Beckenstein: Saxophone, Wind Synthesizer
• Tom Schuman: Keyboards
• Dave Samuels: Vibes, marimba
• Julio Fernandez: Guitars
• Oscar Cartaya: Bass
• Joel Rosenblatt: Drums
• Marc Quinones: Percussion

2. "What Exit" (Julio Fernandez) - 3:40

• Jay Beckenstein: Saxophones
• Tom Schuman: Keyboards
• Dave Samuels: Marimba
• Julio Fernandez: Guitars
• Oscar Cartaya: Bass
• Joel Rosenblatt: Drums
• Marc Quinones: Percussion

No Sweat Horns

• Barry Danelian: Trumpet, flugelhorn, horn section arrangement
• Randy Andos: Trombone
• Scott Kreitzer: Tenor Saxophone

3. "Nu Sungo" (Manolo Badrena) - 4:10

• Jay Beckenstein: Saxophones
• Tom Schuman: Keyboards
• Dave Samuels: Vibes, Marimba
• Julio Fernandez: Guitar
• Richie Morales: Drums
• Roberto Vally: Bass
• Manolo Badrena: Percussion

4. "The Unknown Soldier" (Jay Beckenstein) - 5:16

• Jay Beckenstein: Saxophone
• Tom Schuman: Keyboards
• Dave Samuels: Vibes, marimba, timpani
• Richie Morales: Drums
• Oscar Cartaya: Bass

5. "Morning Dance" (Jay Beckenstein) - 3:57

• Jay Beckenstein: Saxophones
• Jeremy Wall: Electric piano
• Dave Samuels: Marimba,steel drums
• John Tropea: Guitars
• Jim Kurzdorfer: Bass
• Ted Reinhardt: Drums
• Rubens Bassini: Percussion

6. "Old San Juan" (Jay Beckenstein) - 6:41

• Jay Beckenstein - Saxophone, whistle, percussion
• Dave Samuels - Marimba
• Jorge Dalto - Piano
• Rob Mounsey and Tom Schuman - Synthesizers
• Steve Love - Guitars
• Marcus Miller - Bass
• Steve Gadd - Drums
• Gerardo Velez - Percussion
• Manolo Badrena - Percussion

Horn Section:

• Jerry Hey - Horn arrangement, trumpet, flugelhorn
• Gary Grant - Trumpet, flugelhorn
• Tom Scott - Saxophone, flute
• Larry Williams - Saxophone, flute
• Bill Reichenbach - Trombone

7. "Shakedown" (Jeremy Wall) - 4:22

• Jay Beckenstein: Saxophone
• Tom Schuman: Keyboards
• Dave Samuels: Vibes, marimba
• Julio Fernandez: Guitars
• Richie Morales: Drums
• Kim Stone: Bass
• Gerardo Velez: Percussion

8. "Mallet Ballet" (Jeremy Wall) - 6:15

• Jay Beckenstein: Saxophone
• Tom Schuman: Keyboards
• Chet Catallo: Guitar
• Eli Konikoff: Drums
• Jim Kurzdorfer: Bass
• Gerardo Velez: Percussion

9. "Catching the Sun" (Jay Beckenstein) - 4:41

• Jay Beckenstein: Saxophone
• Tom Schuman: Electric piano, synthesizers
• Dave Samuels: Marimba,steel drums
• John Tropea - Guitar
• Hiram Bullock - Guitar
• Eli Konikoff - Drums
• Jim Kurzdorfer - Bass
• Jeremy Wall: Synthesizers
• Gerardo Velez - Percussion
• Rubens Bassini - Percussion
• Randy Brecker - Trumpet

10. "Para ti Latino" (Oscar Cartaya) - 4:15

• Jay Beckenstein - Saxophone
• Tom Schuman - Keyboards
• Dave Samuels - Vibes, marimba
• Jay Azzolina - Guitar
• Richie Morales - Drums
• Oscar Cartaya - Bass

(Marc Quinones - Percussion

No Sweat Horns:

• Barry Danielian - Trumpet, flugelhorn, horn section arrangements
• Randy Andos - Trombone
• Scott Kreitzer - Tenor saxophone

11. "Incognito" (Tom Schuman) - 5:56

• Jay Beckenstein - Saxophone
• Tom Schuman - Keyboards
• Dave Samuels - Marimba
• Steve Love - Guitars
• Hiram Bullock - Guitars
• Rob Mounsey - Synthesizers,Vocorder
• Marcus Miller - Bass
• Steve Gadd - Drums
• Manolo Badrena - Percussion

12. "Harbor Nights" (Jay Beckenstein) - 6:52

• Jay Beckenstein - Saxophone
• Tom Schuman - Keyboards
• Dave Samuels - Vibes,marimba
• Eli Konikoff - Drums
• Kim Stone - Bass
• Chet Catallo - Guitar
• Gerardo Velez - Percussion

13. "Limelight" (Dave Samuels) - 4:27

• Jay Beckenstein - Saxophones
• Tom Schuman - Keyboards
• Dave Samuels - Vibes, Marimba
• Julio Fernandez - Guitars
• Richie Morales - Drums
• Oscar Cartaya - Bass

14. "Breakout: (Jeremy Wall) - 4:37

• Jay Beckenstein - Saxophone
• Tom Schuman - Keyboards
• Dave Samuels - Vibes,marimba
• Julio Fernandez - Guitar
• Richie Morales - Drums
• Kim Stone - Bass
• Manolo Badrena - Percussion