Patrick Gauthier-Bébé Godzilla,LP,1980,France

Gauthier was, of course, a keyboardist in Weidorje, that mystical Magma spinoff that recorded one album and vanished. In fact he was briefly a member of Magma as well, but he is probably best known for his tenure with Pinhas/Heldon. Bebe Godzilla is a potent mixture of electronics, powerful zeuhl, and jazz-rock, with a touch of classical creeping in from time to time. Naturally, as one might expect, the mix is dominated by keyboards, yet Gauthier spared no effort on assembling an outstanding cast of support musicians. The guest list is like an index of the best and most creative musicians France has to offer: Richard Pinhas, Didier Batard, Alain Bellaiche and Francois Auger from Heldon; Benoit Widemann, Bernard Paganotti and Christian Vander from Magma; Michel Ettori, Kirt Rust and Jean-Phillipe Goude, as well as brothers Alain & Yvon Guillard - all ex-members of Weidorje; Cooky Rhynoceros from Hydravion; David Rose from Transit Express. The list goes on, I think you get the picture. Musically, the project comes off shining and powerful, comparable to Jean-Philippe Goude's Drones, but a bit more jazz oriented. All considered, this one's a monster, and a must-have for anyone into the sound of Pinhas or Magma, or any points in between. Highly recommended for anyone with an ear for some essential and spirited keyboard based jazz-rock.Recorded at the end of 1980, BEBE GODZILLA, the first album by Patrick GAUTHIER contains instrumental music directly inspired by his diverse musical experiences of the 1970s. Bearing in mind that he first of all participated in HELDON at the side of Richard PINHAS, that he next joined Christian VANDER's group MAGMA, and ended the decade in WIERDORJE in the company of Bernard PAGANOTTI, one gets an idea of the musical richness and energy of this first opus. When you also understand that all the musicians who participated in these three related musical families joined in the fun, there can be no doubt that this is a `must hear' album.

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