· SHADOWPLAY PROJECT - PAINT THE SKIES BLUE FOREVER ·
· (A TRIBUTE TO RORY GALLAGHER) · (GYR181) ·

::T R A C K S::

01. MOONCHILD
02. SECRET AGENT
03. DO YOU READ ME
04. BAD PENNY
05. I FALL APART
06. OUT ON THE WESTERN PLAIN
07. WAYWARD CHILD
08. MESSIN' WITH THE KID
09. JUST HIT TOWN
10. SAME OLD STORY
11. WALKIN' WOUNDED
12. FOLLOW ME
13. A MILLION MILES AWAY


FORMAT: Audio CD / 4 PANEL WALLET
GYR181 - $14.99

Grooveyard Records is proud to release the Shadowplay Project: "Paint The Skies Blue Forever" disc which is our musical tribute dedication to phenomenal guitar hero legend Rory Gallagher. Featuring and co-produced by the multi-talented Stavros Papadopoulos on guitar & vocals and including an all Greek cast of excellent musicians, the Shadowplay Project lands with true passion; an outstanding, authentic "musical document" that celebrates the classic, timeless, guitar rock music of Rory Gallagher. Includes 13 superb, dynamic, blues-based, soul-powered, retro-sonic, guitar fueled songs performed and recorded with the utmost attention to detail, respect and excellence devoted to the great guitar man and his music.

Stavros Papadopoulos is an awesome, prolific, gifted modern day guitar hero & Rock n' Roll Savior on a mission to Keep the Rock alive at his Freerock Studio in Kavala City, Greece with the Shadowplay Project and his many other excellent bands including Revolution Highway, Super Vintage, Freerock Saints, Hard Driver, Hush N' Rush & Universal Hippies who have all released a multitude of killer, essential discs that are highly recommended if you heavily dig serious heavy guitar rock music performed and produced with true love, passion & inspiration. An authentic, legit, classic, six string riff:master axeslinger & retro:sonic mojo:man perfectionist who reaches for the stars and always lands with impressive focus, strength & musical greatness. Our good musical brother Stavros Papadopoulos has done an amazing, legit, professional job with his excellent re-creation of the Rory Gallagher Mojo at both guitar playing and vocals. The Shadowplay Project also features the excellent musical talents of Panagiotis Zabourlis on slide guitar & acoustic, Sakis Dovolis on guitar, John Christopoulos on bass and Chris Lagios & Nick Kalivas on drums. All world-class Greek musicians who deserve praise for their efforts.

The Shadowplay Project - "Paint The Skies Blue Forever" is a remarkable tribute disc that shines a bright light on the musical legacy of the legendary, long haired, all natural Irish Strat axeslinger, guitar hero of monumental proportions. Rory Gallagher is a supreme guitar rock "Moonchild" who "Paints the Skies Blue Forever" and makes the world a better place to live in with his awesome music. Long Live The Musical Spirit Of Rory Gallagher.


MP3 Sample Clips

01. MOONCHILD
02. SECRET AGENT
03. DO YOU READ ME
04. BAD PENNY
05. I FALL APART
06. OUT ON THE WESTERN PLAIN
07. WAYWARD CHILD
08. MESSIN' WITH THE KID
09. JUST HIT TOWN
10. SAME OLD STORY
11. WALKIN' WOUNDED
12. FOLLOW ME
13. A MILLION MILES AWAY

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SHADOWPLAY PROJECT - MOONCHILD

 

 

· reviews ·

We know the Greek music from Vangelis, Nana Mouskouri and Gus G from Firewind and Ozzy Osbourne. Extreme metal fans would probably know Septic Flesh and Rotting Christ. Now a Greek guitar hero is on the rise and his name is Stavros Papadopoulos. Born in the harbour town of Kavala, has gained recognition through his incredible hard working attitude. He has played with Super Vintage, Freerock Saints, Hard Driver, Revolution Highway, Universal Hippies, and recently released his solo album "Spirits On The Rise", the Children Of Aegean album "Mythologica", merging hard rock and classical Greek music, and the Stoned Olympus album "Mystic Alchemy", an instrumental hard rock record. And it is not just about quantity, it is the sheer quality of the albums, with scorching guitar leas and emotions pouring down like rain. With Papadopoulos, top quality is always guaranteed. Papadopoulos has rolled on the wheels of hard rock and blues. His entry to the rock world was his sister's Deep Purple Fireball album which he heard when he was 7, but the shock came at 15 years old, when he listened to Rory Gallagher's Calling Card. He was mesmerized by Moonchild at first listen. As a musician, he was more impressed by Top Priority - the exposing guitar, hard rocking music and productions put his soul in the sky. He felt the modern music scene needed this kind of music. The respect and love for Rory led to the Shadowplay Project and its album "Paint The Skies Blue Forever" (A Tribute To Rory Gallagher). The album, released in Japan on 29th January 2020, has 13 tracks, originally written by Rory or played by him. There are mid-era hard rocking songs from the mid 1970s that inspired Papadopoulos in his youth, like "Moonchild", "Wayward Child" and "Follow Me". There also are the classic early 1970s "A Million Away", the Taste era "Same Od Story", Junior Wells' "Messin' With The Kid" played on "Live In Europe '72". Newbies and old fans will both appreciate the songs, retaining the taste of the original and still incorporating Papadopoulos' arrangements that are just right. The chemistry that Papadopoulos creates with various collaborations are great to listen to. On this album, Sakis Dovolis from the Greek hard blues combo Sakis Dovolis Trio plays on 6 tracks. You always realise how big the world is, filled with unknown talents. Papadopoulos runs his Freerock Studio in his hometown Kavala, immersed in his various projects. Though he has not played live for over 3 years, he is always busy with music. He will release 2 albums in June - July 2020, and another 2 in November. His never-ending fountain of creation is incredible. He say that he works hard for music, because it is his life - we must keep our eyes and ears open to the rich career of Stavros Papadopoulos.

Tomoyuki Yamazaki / Yamaha - Japan (January 2020)
 


Rory Gallagher was one of the iconic few that in the years around 1970 re-invented and changed the rock guitar forever. The news of his passing in 1995 were shattering for not only his fans but an entire generation that had come to age listening to his music and that of those other rock musicians that had shared the scene with him since his early years with Taste. These were the musicians that created the genre of wonderfully varied traditions we now think of as classic rock. By the time of his death, however, the “classic” connotation was not there yet; as a matter of fact Rory’s music along with the music of many of his contemporary rock musicians was seen as out of time, past relics mostly favoured by some leftovers of the old hippie generation and younger eccentrics and bedroom guitar enthusiasts that had got stuck in some timewarp and failed to keep up with the times and mindlessly allow themselves to float along with the new currents of punk, new wave and diluted radio friendly AOR. In the news of Rory’s death it was noted that, the great musician he had been, he had failed to move on with the times and develop his music to suit the taste of the day and play to younger generations. Although many of modern rock greatest pioneers had found it ever harder to find meaningful work on their own home turf, most notably Great Britain, as the 1970s drew to a close and artists of new fads and fashions, appealing to younger audiences with a different taste, emerged to take all the best seats, elsewhere their fans stayed loyal and continued to cherish their music. Gerry McAvoy, Rory’s steadfast bassman through the years, fondly remembered German fans’ devotion to Rory’s music; while British audiences had largely turned their back on him, in Germany he would easily fill 4000 seat venues! The Germans got it; Rory Gallagher and those other greats of his generation of rockers were not meant to change. Their music was no passing pleasure, it was an enduring treasure and loved for what it was, Rory was to continue to be who he was and had always been and not chase the whimsical vanities of the moment. And he was ever so pleased to do their bidding and stayed true to his fans to the last day, continued to write and release the music we love him for, with the trusted mates that had stuck with him through the years, not to forget the guitar that changed the course of history.

Only a very few of our guitar greats are held in such esteem and revered as Rory Gallagher. No serious guitar man does a Rory “cover”, his songs are played as a way of showing respect and appreciation of what he has left us. And that is what this album is about. Stavros Papadopoulos’ Shadoway Project is here to celebrate Rory and his music by playing through his post-Taste career, dropping by on various Rory albums and visiting many of his best known and loved songs, re-vitalising them and adding new meaning and depth as Stavros, a musician and guitarist of a different generation, brings us Rory’s music as he hears and understands it. To step into Rory’s shoes and play his music is a tall undertaking, something no one does lightly or casually. Rory is mostly remembered as one of the greatest guitarists of his generation and someone who has influenced thousands of guitar players. Stavros, the fantastically competent guitarist he is, can certainly deliver all the right notes and chops and his performance on this album is truly impressive. But that is not the real challenge here. The real challenge is to bring us Rory’s music and not only his guitar. Rory always recorded and played his music in the simplest and most rudimentary manner with no extras to speak of; just him and his guitar with the very basic support of bass and drums. This simplicity exposed the man and the artist, gave us a glimpse into his soul, insight into his vulnerabilities and pure honesty; his music gave him away, the gentle and kind soul he was known to be. Nothing was hidden behind studio gimmicks, multi-layering, overdubs or over-production. Listening to Rory Gallagher almost felt as knowing the man, personally. And when listening to this album it feels as Stavros certainly did know Rory, the man. His guitar may sound slightly grittier than Rory’s did but his understanding of Rory’s music goes deep and he gives us the same sense of simple honesty and the very essence of Rory’s musical character. Stavros has, very obviously, spent long hours being mentored by the great man, listened to and studied his music and genuinely has a deep feel for it. This album is made to honour Rory’s legacy and bring his music to us, fresh and new as it sounded back then and is meant to sound always. It is hard to believe a better job could have been done here. Of all the great achievements Stavros has accomplished over the last five years – just have a look at his Grooveyard catalogue – this is his most important one. This is him paying his dues and respect to the one musician that inspired him the most and brought him up to be the musician he is. This album is a deeply personal statement of respect for Rory Gallagher and love for the man and his music. It honours and stays true to his legacy, the authenticity of the music on this album is genuine.

Listening to this album is a very joyous experience if not a little painful. It brings a mix of emotions; a sense of loss and nostalgia but perhaps most of all gratitude for having had the privilege of growing up listening to Rory Gallagher in his prime. But also gratitude for Stavros’ appreciation of Rory’s music and the courage to bring it to us once again, authentic and fresh and exciting as it always was. It is tempting to say that this is an album of historical significance. But it is safe to say that it is one of the greatest recordings of the year and perhaps the most important and urgent one.

Thor Indridason / Guitar Rock Appreciation Society (United Kingdom) (October 2019)
 


From the blistering opening track, “Moonchild”, it becomes immediately apparent that “Shadowplay Project / Tribute To Rory Gallagher” is a very personal and deeply inspired piece of musical art. Up until now, whenever I’ve heard the word “tribute” on a release, I always seem to end up feeling that (and pardon me if my disappointment shows through) the end result was a assortment of players pulling their reverence out of mothballs and doing cover versions of their favorite songs in between their ongoing commitments, with the resulting tracks ending up as mere postscripts to their more immediate career priorities.

You can be assured this is NOT one of those run-of-the-mill, less-than-memorable efforts. What it IS is yet another brilliant slice of mindblowing musical excellence from Greek wunderkind Stavros Papadopoulos, and he crafted this in-depth retrospective of guitar legend Rory Gallagher COMPLETELY ON HIS OWN, delivering the goods with soulfire, grit, attitude and genuine passion, every note and word infused with sincere reverence and respect. In the words of Stavros himself, “I never thought that I would record a tribute disc but there is something very deep and special about Rory Gallagher and his music that led me to this decision. Rory Gallagher lived for the music with love and passion, a true guitar hero who inspired me to play the instrument. Rory Gallagher is a supreme rock ‘Moonchild’ who ‘paints the skies blue forever’ and makes the world a better place to live in with his awesome music.” Nowandforeveramen, brother…

Stavros really channels the vibe of Mr. Gallagher on all of his vocal interpretations with a world-weary depth and emotional content that is eerily like an actual reincarnation of Rory himself. His smooth grit and self-assured confidence is totally legit in every way. Just like everything that Stavros has ever done, there are heaping helpings of hot smears of smokin’, squealin’ lead guitar artistry (his shake, searing wah work and pinch harmonics are joys to behold) and every groove swings hard, greasy and smooth. The tones are widely varied from sweet & clean to molten & mean; the arrangements are true to the originals, but Stavros and his Rip Roarin’ Band of Groovin’ Greek Brothers (John Christopoulos on bass and Chris Lagios & Nick Kalivas on drums) add the requisite riff twisting, rhythmic cloverleafs and strategic key changes in just the right places to enhance the originals (just listen to “Follow Me” for a seminal example), elevating these versions from competent covers to revisionist masterpieces.

Whether it’s throwdown tradeoffs with fellow axeslinger Sakis Dovolis on “Secret Agent” and “Messin’ With The Kid” (among several others that all hit HARD) or the powerful, understated drama of “I Fall Apart”, “Out On The Western Plain” (also featuring the beautifully nuanced stylings of the great Panagiotis Zabourlis on slide & acoustic guitar) and “A Million Miles Away”, everything lands rock-solid, complete and exquisitely crafted. “Bad Penny” is a my personal favorite and you’ll probably find yourself hitting the replay button on this one; the vocal delivery and lead work is pure majesty…talk about meaning it! Starting at 3:23 to the end of the track, the lead guitar takes the listener on an inspired harmonic journey which is simply fantastic: purely channeled emotion, tightly focused yet effortlessly free. Absolute. Brilliance.

Rory Gallagher was one of those true musical originals that never truly got the credit and recognition that was due him while he lived. Thanks to Stavros, the legacy of Rory Gallagher is now reanimated for the current age from a modern master of the instrument. This should be the “gold standard” that every “tribute” should be compared to. Really. It’s that great.

Jimmy Ryan / Guitar Rock Appreciation Society (September 2019)
 


Rory Gallagher was a wonderful artist that was taken from us much too soon. When he passed, we lost one of the greatest blues guitar players the world may ever experience. This tribute, 'Paint The Skies Blue Forever' by the Shadowplay Project, keeps the music and spirit of Rory Gallagher alive for those of us that are true fans. The mastermind behind the Shadowplay Project features the multi-talented Stavros Papadopoulos on guitar and vocals , who also co-produced with Joe Romagnola. The other fine musicians that make up The Shadowplay Project are Panagiotis Zabourlis on slide guitar and acoustic, Sakis Dovolis on guitar, John Christopoulos on bass and Chris Lagios and Nick Kalivas on drums. If you're a Rory Gallagher fan you are without a doubt will be blown away with what the Shadowplay Project serve up, however don't think this is a imitation of Rory's music. The Shadowplay Project put their own flavor on Rory's music and making the songs their own while doing Rory's music proud. The guitar interplay between Stavros Papadopoulos and Sakis Dovolis is a match made in heaven. Both do an amazing job. The guitar playing is powerful never putting in and extra note, but capable of vast expression all the same, as can be heard on smoking renditions of, "Moonchild", "Do You Read Me", a personal favorite Gallagher song, "Bad Penny", "I Fall Apart" and a killer take on, "Messin' With The Kid". The only bad thing about it is that once you hear it straight through once or twice you'll want to hear more and wish it were a lot longer. Rory Gallagher made an outstanding contribution to blues and guitar and he will be sorely missed. In my opinion, this is one of the best tributes I have heard in quite awhile. You can feel the power and emotion pouring through every song. If you can listen to this without getting getting goosebumps, you might want to get yourself checked out. 'Paint The Skies Blue Forever' is a fitting tribute honoring Rory Gallagher as well a great introduction for someone interested in blues music, but unfamiliar with his work. Hands down, this is a must for any Rory Gallagher fan, or any blues fan. Big Kudos to Stavros Papadopoulos and the rest of the Shadowplay Project for truly an amazing job!

Tony Sison / The Dedicated Rocker Society (August 2019)
 


Guitar god Rory Gallagher of yesteryear interpreted by guitar god Stavros Papadopoulos, of today. While Ireland and Greece established diplomatic relations in the winter of 1975, their overlap was not perfected until the release of this CD. It is indeed a pleasure to see (hear?) Papadopoulos in a more traditional blues setting than usual — his more well known offerings consist of complicated hard rock, with progressive overtones, and Satriani-inflected licks. While all of that is clearly still evident on this CD, ‘Paint the Skies Blue Forever: Tribute to Rory Gallagher,’ the ‘Shadowplay Project’ — i.e., Papadopoulos and his stellar band of Greek virtuosos — allows us to hear him play blues, with his bevy of ongoing notes engulfing our ears and hearts in the deepest possible way. ‘Messin’ with the Kid’ is a personal favorite, as Papadopoulos turns the seminal Gallagher tune into a funky guitar workout, with alternating heavy riffs and meaningful guitar phrases. His singing voice is eerily reminiscent of Gallagher’s, too, and the interesting selection of songs is a reminder of what a great songwriter the original really was. Thank God for Papadopoulos, who gives Gallagher back to us in a new and vital incarnation.

Steven J. Rosen / Author + Journalist (September 2019)
 




 


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