Portsmouth Sinfonia - "Plays the Popular Classics" (1974)

Imagine if Hans Fenger and the Langley School kids did nothing but classical instrumentals. The reality was that Portsmouth Sinfonia was co-founded by English composer Gavin Bryars at The Portsmouth School of Art. None other than Brian Eno played clarinet with this ragtag ensemble of art and music students who selected instruments they had never before played or thought they were elaborate doorstops or odd furnishings for nesting newlyweds. Eno also produced this, their 1974 recording, "Plays the Popular Classics".

Track number five, "Beethoven's Fifth Symphony" inexplicably has a momentary splicing of what sounds like Chuck Berry's "Good Golly, Miss Molly"... this is the copy I'm providing, and it's the one I have until I get a sound copy. I found it on another blog. Somehow, the glitch adds character. Listen and judge on your own.

The resulting album is brash, clumsy, and gorgeous. Enjoy!

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