Charming Snakes

1990 studio album by Andy Summers

Charming Snakes

Studio album by

Andy Summers

Released| 1990
Studio|

* Beat Street Recording (North Hollywood, California)
* Red Herring (Venice, California)

Genre| Jazz rock, jazz fusion
Length| 51:06
Label| Private Music[1]
Producer|

* Andy Summers
* David Hentschel

Andy Summers chronology
| The Golden Wire
(1989)  | Charming Snakes
(1990)  | World Gone Strange
(1991)

|
|

Charming Snakes is an album by the English musician Andy Summers.[2][3] It was released in 1990.[4] Summers promoted the album by opening the 1991 Montreal International Jazz Festival; he also played shows with John McLaughlin.[5][6]

## Production

[edit]

The album was produced by Summers and David Hentschel.[7] "Monk Gets Ripped" is a tribute to Thelonious Monk.[8] Herbie Hancock played on "Innocence Falls Prey" and "Big Thing".[9] Sting played bass on the title track.[10] Bill Evans played saxophone on many of the tracks.[11]

## Critical reception

[edit]

Professional ratingsReview scores

Source| Rating
AllMusic| [12]
Calgary Herald| B−[13]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music| [14]
MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide| [7]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide| [15]

The Calgary Herald wrote that "the shift to jazz from rock continues," and praised the "vibrant, fluid guitar."[13] The Washington Post determined that "Summers has progressed from the mood noodlings of his earlier solo recordings to solidly structured and arranged pieces."[8] The Dallas Morning News concluded that, "this time out, he eschews most of his synthpop inclinations and puts himself in a studio of consummate session players... This nearly traditional jazz format results in his most lyrical instrumental album so far."[16]

The Vancouver Sun noted that "the guitar is a little more frenetic, the bass faster paced, with strong jazz influences."[9] The Gazette lamented that "Summers couldn't write a catchy melody to save his life."[10]

AllMusic called the album "a strong jazz-rock statement," writing that "Summers's guitar covers the spectrum from in-your-face wailing leads to subtle background colorings, with much use of electronic effects."[12] MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide considered it "Summers's first and best turn from ambient rock guitar noise to artful jazz fusion."[7]

## Track listing

[edit]

All tracks are written by Andy Summers.

No.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

|
|
|

1.| "Mexico 1920"| Summers, David Hentschel| 4:00
2.| "Charming Snakes"|  | 5:14
3.| "Big Thing"| Summers, Hentschel, Dennis Smith| 7:07
4.| "Rainmaker"|  | 6:18
5.| "Charis"|  | 3:19
6.| "Mickey Goes to Africa"|  | 4:53
7.| "Innocence Falls Prey"|  | 2:45
8.| "Passion of the Shadow"|  | 5:10
9.| "Monk Gets Ripped"|  | 3:57
10.| "Easy on the Ice"| Summers, Hentschel| 4:34
11.| "The Strong & the Beautiful"| Summers, Hentschel| 3:49

## Personnel

[edit]

* Andy Summers – guitars, slide guitar (6), banjo (6)
* Brian Auger – keyboards (1, 10, 11)
* David Hentschel – keyboards (2-4, 8-10), organ (6)
* Herbie Hancock – keyboards (2, 3, 7), acoustic piano intro solo (3)
* Doug Lunn – bass (1, 3, 4, 6-11), high bass (2)
* Sting – bass (2)
* Darryl Jones – bass (4)
* Chad Wackerman – drums (1-4, 6-11)
* Ed Mann – percussion (3, 4, 6, 8, 11)
* Bill Evans – soprano saxophone (1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8), tenor saxophone (6, 7)
* Mark Isham – trumpet (4, 6, 9, 10)

### Production

[edit]

* David Hentschel – producer, recording, mixing
* Andy Summers – producer, mixing
* Jan Lucas – recording assistant
* Dennis Smith – recording assistant
* Brian Gardner – mastering at Bernie Grundman Mastering (Hollywood, California)
* Norman Moore – art direction, design
* Merlyn Rosenberg – photography

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Andy Summers". Trouser Press. Retrieved 26 May 2022.
2. ^ "Andy Summers Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic.
3. ^ Milkowski, Bill (Jan 1991). "Record & CD Reviews — Charming Snakes by Andy Summers". DownBeat. Vol. 58, no. 1\. p. 32.
4. ^ McCann, Ian (Oct 1, 1990). "Rock: Andy Summers Charming Snakes". Vox. Vol. 1, no. 1\. p. 80.
5. ^ Lepage, Mark (27 June 1991). "Andy Summers comes in from the cold". The Gazette. p. D7.
6. ^ DeVault, Russ (October 12, 1990). "Concert Preview". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. p. G1.
7. ^ a b c MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1999. p. 1106.
8. ^ a b Brace, Eric (26 Oct 1990). "Andy Summers". The Washington Post. p. C8.
9. ^ a b Strachan, Alex (22 Nov 1990). "Charmed by Summers". Vancouver Sun. p. F21.
10. ^ a b Wells, Paul (23 Feb 1991). "This musical label covers a multitude of styles, sins". The Gazette. p. D4.
11. ^ Robicheau, Paul (25 Oct 1990). "Recordings". The Boston Globe. p. A6.
12. ^ a b "Andy Summers Charming Snakes". AllMusic.
13. ^ a b Obee, Dave (4 Oct 1990). "Recent Releases". Calgary Herald. p. F4.
14. ^ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 7\. MUZE. p. 840.
15. ^ The Rolling Stone Album Guide. Random House. 1992. p. 683.
16. ^ Maurstad, Tom (October 13, 1990). "Arts Day". The Dallas Morning News. p. 5C.

* v
* t
* e

Andy Summers

Studio albums|

* XYZ
* The Golden Wire
* Charming Snakes
* World Gone Strange

Collaboration albums|

* I Advance Masked
* Bewitched
* First You Build a Cloud
* Circus Hero

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Authority control databases |

* MusicBrainz release group

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