Ron Geesin
As He Stands

I would change "Carneade chi era costui" from Manzonian memory to "Ron Geesin chi era costui" because perhaps not many are aware of the things this British gentleman has done in his career as a composer and musician. Born in 1943, he has been recording since 1967, but I love to remember him for being, in 1970, the mind, the arranger, the composer of various melodies, and the orchestra conductor of the suite "Atom Heart Mother" when the Floyds, who had great and beautiful ideas about making music with an orchestra, were deeply incapable of managing the situation. Final result: Geesin does not appear in the credits—perhaps due to misunderstandings with the group or because the Floyds, who were stingy, didn't want to admit external help. We well know the treatment they also reserved for Clare Torry for The Great Gig in the Sky, now credited with Richard Wright since 2004 following the Supreme Court ruling in the United Kingdom. But let's move on to "As He Stands" by our hero, dated 1973, released thanks to the financial support of Pete Townshend and the encouragement of John Peel (of the "John Peel Sessions") mentioned on the back of the LP. A strange album, sometimes insane I would say, with spoken parts I could have gladly done without but which confirmed the stereophony of the system. A patchwork album with the piano harmonically setting the rules for short tracks that, if developed, would surely have led to good results. He is a genius that must be read between the grooves of the record and, finally, appreciated because he plays the vast majority of the instruments and for this, he should be reevaluated.