lockdown : vinyl find #39.

Daydream, I feel asleep amid the flowers

For a couple of hours, on a beautiful day...

As charming these English words sound, they were written by... a Belgian band, Wallace Collection. And more specifically by their violin holder, Raymond Vincent. There are worst ways of starting a career. Indeed, the song was featured on their first LP, as the closing track. 

But wait... a violin in a psychedelic pop outfit ? Well, it wasn't unusual at the time. Lots of musicians of the first pop wave were classically trained, and violin held a place among this background training. In the case of Wallace Collection, the violin almost took the main role, which was unusual. Raymond Vincent being the main composer of the band, the classical flavor of their tracks was a signature sound. 

One would expect Raymond Vincent to surf on the wave of success for decades after that international first hit. Well... maybe he did enjoy his money. But the blunt truth is that he didn't have the career he deserved. His name appeared on a few tracks by Sylvie Vartan, but that's almost it. 

Except for this solo album he released just a couple of years after the "Daydream" storm. 

Success wasn't far in time... Vincent could have signed anywhere, probably. Well, "Metronomics" was released on the Izarra label. Izarra ? Yes, Izarra. It's a liquor from Pays Basque, in France. Izarra had a music label that published records for promotional purposes. The inner sleeve is a giant promotional flyer as well. 

You can't make this up. 

So, when in Belgium, get Belgium records. This one was easy to choose. I knew roughly the story of Wallace Collection, although the name Raymond Vincent didn't ring a bell at first sight. The liner notes on the back cover of this record made it easy : it says it all of Vincent's life up to this album. It even includes a short bio of the artist who painted the front cover. Gentle. The idea of owning a piece from the genius who did "Daydream" sounded nice. I went for it, despite the fact that I was unable to listen to the record on the spot. 

On this record, Vincent perfectly manage to blend his classical approach with pop, in a psychedelic way, which involves kind of a delirium on drums, a bit of saturation at times, the right amount of flute bits. Most vocals sound distant and leave enough space to the harmonies provided by the instruments. The strings, of course, hold a particular role, violin, guitars, cello... One can't be a virtuoso and not pay tribute to his first love...

The perfect balance, which dresses up the moment beautifully.

Raymond Vincent - Metronomics.

Here's the album, in full : YouTube.

What more can you ask for for just one euro ?