Surprise Surprise is the 1982 studio album of Mezzoforte on Steinar.[1] Their fourth album – originally released in Iceland as 4 with a different cover – made the band famous worldwide when, after the international release, the single "Garden Party" hit the charts.[2]
| Surprise Surprise | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1982 | |||
| Recorded | 1982 July–August PRT Studios, London | |||
| Genre | Jazz-Fusion, Jazz-Pop | |||
| Length | 49:27 | |||
| Label | Steinar | |||
| Producer | Geoff Calver | |||
| Mezzoforte chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Surprise Surprise | ||||
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Background
editEarlier in 1982, the second keyboard player, Bjorn Thorarensen who's been with them for their previous two albums, left Mezzoforte. The saxophone player Kristinn Svavarsson became a full member after playing as a guest on the band's first two albums. Surprise Surprise was recorded at PRT Studios, London in July–August 1982 and mixed at Red Bus Studios in September. It was the second time the band worked with producer Geoff Calver in London after the recording of their second album Í Hakanum – released internationally as Mezzoforte and re-released as Octopus in 1996 – in 1980. Despite gaining some popularity and playing concerts in the UK, the album was first released in Iceland in 1982 simply named 4 and then renamed Surprise Surprise for the international release.
Cover
editSurprise Surprise was originally released in Iceland as 4 with a different cover, but the record company decided to use the cover of Mezzoforte's third album – Þvílíkt Og Annað Eins, released only in Iceland – for the international release.[1][2] The 1996 remastered version was released with the slightly modified international cover. This edition has a few discrepancies:[3] Chris Hunter and Bill Eldridge are credited as trumpet and saxophone players respectively – this mistake was even present on the band's official website for a while[4] – Eirikur Ingolfsson is not credited as percussionist, and Shady Calver is credited on her maiden name: Shady Owens.[5]
"Garden Party"
edit"Garden Party" was chosen to be released as a single, even though the band wasn't sure whether to include the song on the album. It became Mezzoforte's biggest hit and charted in most European countries and Japan. After its success the band moved to England and started touring in Europe.[2] "Garden Party" has been featured in TV programs and commercials, gaining even more publicity for Mezzoforte through the years. The song was covered by Herb Alpert in 1983.
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Icelandic title | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Surprise" | Eythor Gunnarsson | Fyrsta Paragraf (a) | 1:25 |
| 2. | "Garden Party" | Eythor Gunnarsson | Sprett Úr Spori | 6:00 |
| 3. | "Gazing At The Clouds" | Kristinn Svavarsson | Spáðu Í Skýin | 6:30 |
| 4. | "Early Autumn" | Fridrik Karlsson | Undur Vorsins | 6:17 |
| 5. | "Action Man" | Eythor Gunnarsson | Fjörkálfur | 4:58 |
| 6. | "Funk Suite No.1" | Mezzoforte | Fönksvíta Nr. 1 Fyrir Trommur Og Hljómsveit | 5:49 |
| 7. | "Easy Jack" | Fridrik Karlsson | Rólegur Jakob | 4:45 |
| 8. | "Fusion Blues" | Fridrik Karlsson | Fusion Blues | 5:40 |
| 9. | "The Old Neighborhood" | Fridrik Karlsson | Tilhugalíf Í Gamla Bænum | 5:32 |
| 10. | "Surprise (Reprise)" | Eythor Gunnarsson | Fyrsta Paragraf (b) | 0:50 |
Charts
edit| Chart (1982) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK Album Chart[6] | 23 |
| Australia (Kent Music Report)[7] | 46 |
| Dutch Album Top 100[8] | 10 |
| German Top 100 Albums[8] | 33 |
| Year | Title | Chart peak positions | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK[6] | Australia (Kent Music Report)[7] | NL[9] | GER[9] | BEL[10] | ||
| 1983 | "Garden Party" | 17 | 32 | 5 | 36 | 10 |
Mezzoforte:
- Fridrik Karlsson – Guitars (Yamaha and Ibanez electric, Ramirez acoustic), Percussion
- Eythor Gunnarsson – Keyboards (Rhodes, MiniMoog, Grand Piano, OBX-A, Jupiter 8, Prophet V, Roland Vocoder), Percussion
- Johann Asmundsson – Bass Guitars (JA-Special, Yamaha, Fender fretless), Percussion
- Gulli Briem – Drums (Premier drums), Percussion
- Kristinn Svavarsson – Saxophones (Yamaha alto, Selmer MK VI '58 tenor), Percussion
Additional musicians:
- Louis Jardim – Percussion
- Eirikur Ingolfsson – Percussion
- Shady Calver – Voice
- Chris Cameron – Voice
- Steve Dawson – Flugelhorn on Garden Party
- Winston Sela – OBX programming
Horns Section:
- Chris Hunter – Alto Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone
- Bill Eldridge – Trumpet
- Martin Dobson – Tenor Saxophone
- Stuart Brooks – Trumpet
Technical:
- Ernst J. Backman: Original International Artwork
- Geoff Calver: Producer, Engineer
- Jonatan Gardarsson: Editor
- Eirikur Ingolfsson: 1996 Liner notes
- Seventh Heaven: 1996 Artwork and design
- Oskar Pall Sveinsson: 1996 Digital Remaster
| Year | Format | Label | Country | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | LP | Steinar (Steinar 062) | Iceland | Titled 4 |
| Steinar (Steinar LP02) | UK | — | ||
| MC | Steinar (Steinar STEC02) | UK | ||
| LP | Polydor (28MM0275) | Japan | ||
| Plaza Records (PZ001) | Australia, New Zealand | |||
| Polydor (811 724-1) | Germany | |||
| CD | Polydor (811 724-2) | Germany | ||
| 1983 | LP | CGD (INT 20359) | Italy | |
| CBS (S 25456) | Spain | |||
| Jump And Shout (JS 3301) | Belgium | |||
| 1989 | RCA (NL 74131) | Germany | ||
| CD | BMG (ND 74131) | |||
| 1996 | CNR Music (2002973) | Netherlands | Remastered | |
| ZYX Music (ZYX 10024-2) | Germany | |||
| Record Express (REC 255103-2) | Hungary | |||
| SPOR Records (MEZZCD04) | Austria | |||
| Steinar (CD STE 02) | Germany | |||
| 2020 | LP | Quality Vinyl Projects (GR-150) | Netherlands | Re-mastered from original analogue master tapes |
References
edit- ^ a b "Mezzoforte". Retrieved 18 September 2014.
- ^ a b c liner notes
- ^ a b as on album cover
- ^ "Surprise Surprise". Retrieved 17 July 2001.
- ^ "Shady Owens". Discogs. Retrieved 27 September 2014.
- ^ a b "MEZZOFORTE - Artist - Official Charts". Official Charts. Retrieved 18 September 2014.
- ^ a b Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 199. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
- ^ a b Steffen Hung. "Mezzoforte - Surprise Surprise". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 2014-09-18.
- ^ a b Steffen Hung. "Mezzoforte - Garden Party". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 2014-09-18.
- ^ "Mezzoforte - Garden Party". ultratop.be. Retrieved 2014-09-24.
- ^ "Mezzoforte – Surprise Surprise". Discogs. Retrieved 2014-10-01.