


Digitally remastered and expanded edition of the 1985 album from the German Electronic pioneers. Edgar Froese, Chris Franke and Johannes Schmoelling recorded this inspiring work in Vienna, Berlin and London, utilizing the services of guest vocalists Clare Torry on 'Yellowstone Park' and Katja Brauneis on 'Zen Garden'. The album's title track, subtitled "L.A. - Streethawk", was a reworking of Tangerine Dream's theme to the US TV series Streethawk. This edition includes a bonus track of the rare 12-inch radio mix of "Le Parc (L.A. - Streethawk)", never before released on CD. The reissue fully restores the original album artwork and includes a lavishly illustrated booklet with new essay. Review: Le last Schmoelling - Expect the distinct Schmoelling sound with his instruments much like the previous albums but now shorter with 9 tracks and more commercial but still drilling. JS last studio album with EF and CF. The Esoteric release comes with a lavish booklet, photos, story line and a cd jewel case in a box. I already have the jive electro release and bought this solely for the booklet which the Jive does not have. The bonus track is a radio mix of LA streethawk and slightly different from the original. Sound quality is hard to tell whether it's far superior to the Castle or Jive releases but surely remastered as claimed. I bought this since there is nothing new worth buying from TD and also for the price under 13 bucks this is a good deal. So if you want to complete your TD Esoteric catalogue buy this but if you are happy with your Relativity, Castle and Jive releases,this reissue can wait. Review: Wonderful - Wonderful! Quick delivery and was the perfect gift.
S**R
Le last Schmoelling
Expect the distinct Schmoelling sound with his instruments much like the previous albums but now shorter with 9 tracks and more commercial but still drilling. JS last studio album with EF and CF. The Esoteric release comes with a lavish booklet, photos, story line and a cd jewel case in a box. I already have the jive electro release and bought this solely for the booklet which the Jive does not have. The bonus track is a radio mix of LA streethawk and slightly different from the original. Sound quality is hard to tell whether it's far superior to the Castle or Jive releases but surely remastered as claimed. I bought this since there is nothing new worth buying from TD and also for the price under 13 bucks this is a good deal. So if you want to complete your TD Esoteric catalogue buy this but if you are happy with your Relativity, Castle and Jive releases,this reissue can wait.
R**Y
Wonderful
Wonderful! Quick delivery and was the perfect gift.
M**L
Five Stars
As described and fast shipping
R**.
Five Stars
Great seller/arrived quickly and as described.
K**H
Four Stars
Love tangerine dream.
D**Z
Five Stars
Great
A**R
Most dynamic TD album of the period - the mid 80s are in full swing
Le Parc(1985). Tangerine Dream's 20th(?) studio album. Although Germany-based electronic music group Tangerine Dream has been around since the late 60s, their career can technically be divided into several different periods. Not by the decades per se, but rather by their tenure with certain record companies throughout the years. For instance, the first several albums from the late 60s until 1973 all came from what is known as the "Pink years". This was when TD were exploring what kind of sound that they wanted to perform, highlighted with albums like Alpha Centauri(1971) and Zeit(1972). In 1973 they signed a ten year contract with Virgin Records and went through the "Virgin years" phase, considered to be their most popular period, starting with Phaedra(1975) and ending with Hyperborea(1983). 1984 was a low profile year for TD, seeing as they were involved with many soundtracks at the time. However, they managed to sign another contract which resulted in the "Blue years". It's not their most well known period, and it only lasted a few albums, but it was the last really important phase to date, and churned out a few masterpieces of instrumental synth-score work. This is where Le Parc comes in. By the mid 80s, keyboard and synthesizer technology had advanced far enough to incorporate a wide variety of soundscapes which had drastically improved from the beginning of the decade. Afterall, pop music groups were (attempting to) utilize this technology in their own ways, although very few could pull it off well. Thank god for TD to show the rest how it's done. Le Parc is somewhat of a departure from previous TD works, the most noticeable differences being in that the dark atmosphere of albums like Exit(1981) and Hyperborea is pretty much gone and the tracks are now all shortened in length and quite numerous. Nine tracks on an album was literally unheard of for TD up to that point. Of all the 80s albums that came out, I can see Le Parc being the one that might put off the older fans the most. However if you follow me, you'll see that this change isn't necessarily a bad one. In fact, the results are actually quite astonishing. Le Parc draws its inspiration from various natural and unnatural locale settings from around the world, being sort of a concept album. They had already done "theme-based" concept albums in the past, but this is probably the first one with a specific idea in mind. The music here is very accessible, yet layered enough for listeners to find new things in the music each listen. At first, only a few of the tracks caught my attention and I wasn't thoroughly convinced, but since then repeated listens have opened up the rest of the songs, and now I love Le Parc. Yes, it is definitely very mid-80s sounding (you know what I'm talking about), and there are no broodingly trippy passages from their 70s albums in sight, but you'll find that TD know how to incorporate a rich keyboard array with various instruments from time to time. Onto the tracks... 'Bois De Boulogne (Paris)' begins the album on a light note and slowly introduces the new sound that is employed on the album. Flutes are used in small parts. Then 'Central Park (New York)' picks up the pace to a more exciting, upbeat, and rhythm driven theme, clearly reminding you of being in a bustling city. One thing TD definitely kept intact from earlier releases was its ability to make you imagine all sorts of settings - very cool. 'Gaudi Park (Guell Garden Barcelona)' picks up the pace even more and manages to pulsate with a very memorable melody. Then the album takes a more relaxing turn with the next two tracks: 'Tiergarten (Berlin)' and 'Zen Garden (Ryoanji Temple Kyoto)'. The former is a brief and peaceful piano-based theme, whereas the latter abandons the rhythm structure altogether for a moody fusion of bass synth and Asian instruments. After it fades out, 'Le Parc (LA - Streethawk)' blazes in with full force and brings the pace back up to the top. 'Hyde Park (London)' is mostly lightweight, but is backed by a powerful melody as the song builds up. 'The Cliffs Of Sydney (Sydney)' feels much like a simple dance number, though it does have a nice melodic bridging section. Finally, the album ends with a glorified winner in 'Yellowstone Park (Rocky Mountains)'. Kicking off and ending with a symphony warming up, inbetween them is a somber theme with many different instrument usages. There is even a female vocalist in there, but there are no words and her voice is used more as one of the instruments, flowing in and out of the other instruments with ease. Replayability: medium. Gets better over time. Le Parc is a bit of a blacksheep in the massive TD discography, but it shines in its own ways and after many listens I am thoroughly impressed. I wouldn't start new fans off with this one because of its differences, though it is very good for those who take the time to get used to it. It's just a bit under 40 minutes, but the variety of tracks here keeps the rating locked at 5 stars. I would actually look into the next album Underwater Sunlight(1986) as the first Blue Years release to get before looking into any of the other three. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. NOTE: There is very little difference between the old and remastered editions, being both the price, sound quality, and availability. So any edition works. Good luck finding them in a non-online store, though. Other Blue Years material: -Poland(1984), Firestarter soundtrack(1984), Green Desert(1973), Underwater Sunlight(1986), and Tyger(1987).
F**W
They have better albums
As a huge TD fan, this album was disappointing when released decades ago. The concept was cool: craft songs about the world's most famous parks. However, the short tracks and lackluster creativity would put this disc in the lower half of TD albums. If you have to have every TD album then buy it, but this would not be my first choice.
羽**益
ストリートホーク
日本国内では、知っている方は少ないと思いますが、ストリートホークのテーマが収録されています。個人的には、気に入っています。
Y**R
Excelente
Disco precioso de Tangente Dream Etapa posterior sello Virgin
V**N
Excellent Album, Excellent Reissue
For me, Le Parc was probably the last great Tangerine Dream recording (though Optical Race has some good moments). TD wrote music here that functions at the same level as their soundtrack work (nothing longer than 6 minutes, and most under 4), but with some awesome melodies. Not only had the structure changed a bit, but the complexity of the tunes was also greatly enhanced, there's all kinds of things going on to underpin that melody, which makes listening to this reissue even better. The sound, to me, is much improved. And although it suffers a little from the dreaded "Volume jump", it's not compressed to a level that it hurts the overall sound. Indeed, there is more detail here than I recall from previous releases, enhancing an already steller disc. As it happens, I own the Relativity CD of this one, and really, this one is better. Not only is the sound great, but as usual with these TD reissues, the booklet is just fantastic. Even the little details, like finally we get the names of the two ladies who provided vocals (along with the Pink Floyd connection). We also learn that the band were on the verge of breaking up when this was made, along with some great shots inside the studio at Spandau. The booklet runs to 16 pages. Finally, we have a bonus track here - the 12 inch version of LA Parc (LA Streethawk), now called simply Streethawk. It's a jaunty, electro version - tied of course to the TV Show for which is provided the theme. Still, it's certainly different enough to suggest it's more of a part II than a simple rehash (I prefer the original, but it's sure nice to be given the oppotunity to make that choice!) All in all, great sound, great booklet, and a bonus track - all at a reasonable price. My only worry is that this TD reissue program will end here. I had this pre-ordered, and I'd be mightly tempted to do the same should Optical Race see the light of day. Well done everyone involved! Enjoy!
A**R
Buing Tangerine Dream Le Parc (Vinyl LP)
The Vinyl LP arrived in time, save and in good condition.
B**A
street hawks
j'ai acheté ce CD essentiellement pour retrouver le titre du générique de la série Tonnerre mécanique mais je dois dire que j'ai été agréablement surprise par les autres titres de l'album . C'est super et il est fort possible que je me procure d'autre albums de Tangerine Dream, donc je recommande vivement cet article
Trustpilot
4 days ago
2 weeks ago