Terje Rypdal - If Mountains Could Sing (1994)
Front Cover Album Info
Artist/Composer Terje Rypdal
Title If Mountains Could Sing
Length 47:55 Discs: 1 Tracks: 11
Format HQ 192+ kbps Packaging Jewel Case
Label ECM Cat. Number 523987
Style Fusion Rating
Recorded 1994 
Comment przyjemnie zawodzi...
Musicians Credits
Terje Rypdal guitar
Christian Eggen conductor
Oystein Birkeland violin, cello, violoncello
Bjorn Kjellemyr bass
Audun Kleive drums
Terje Tonnesen violin
Jan Erik Kongshaug guitar
Producer Manfred Eicher
Engineer Jan Erik Kongshaug
Track list
01
The return of Per Ulv 05:03
02
It's in the air 04:04
03
But on the other hand 05:07
04
If mountains could sing 05:15
05
Private eye 05:47
06
Foran Peisen 04:26
07
Dancing without reindeers 03:27
08
One for the roadrunner 05:03
09
Blue angel 03:05
10
Genie 03:47
11
Lonesome guitar 02:51
Notes
AMG (3)

Commentary by Jeff Gower, www.jeffgower.com
If Mountains Could Sing = one of Terje's best CDs
Here's why:
The Return of Per Ulv - fun pop/funk melodic groove - long enough for some excellent solos but short enough to not irritate
It' In The Air - Kleive tries his best Christensen, Darling-like bowed bass by Kjellemyr, but above all else, Terje goes crazy with the ring modulator! Excellent!!
But On The Other Hand - QED-haters will hate this; QED-lovers will love it - that might be enough said, but how any TR fan can not love the held string harmonics from 2:20 on, with Chasers coming in shortly thereafter, with Terje on intense guitar screams is BEYOND ME - this reminds me of some of Mahavishnu's great "Emerald Beyond" stuff
If Mountains Could Sing - if you don't like this one, there is NO hope for thee as a TR fan
Private Eye - Lovely string trio intro, very melodic - I imagine this one was hard to get down cleanly and precisely with the two trios (strings + Chasers), but it comes off superbly - another excellent track IMO, but I can understand why some would not dig this kind of thing
Foran Peisen - means "in front of the fireplace" - very nice bass playing with those legato fade-in chords by Terje - simply lovely stuff, the title of which is quite appropriate, methinks
Dancing Without Reindeers - (I always thought this was a poke at the "Dancing With Wolves" movie title?) - another QED-like intro, but soon settles into a short Per-Ulv-type groove, very melodic and fun and rhymically syncopated - another one that I bet took a few takes to get right - great understated solo by Terje - like Private Eye, I love this combination of the "trios", but can understand why some wouldn't.......sorta.......
One For The Roadrunner - Terje always has sympathized with "per ulv" (the wolf/coyote) the most, so here is one for the roadrunner - ring-modulator again - great groove - sounds like something Bruford/Fripp/Belew/Levin/et al. would do - great playing by all
Blue Angel - lovely, just lovely - one of Terje's signature beautiful melodies, and one of my favorites - who can NOT love this one????
Genie - take Foran Peisen and add a vital rhythm element, and you got the opening to Genie - but Terje takes it to a new level with his solo, combined with great drums - this one is way too short
Lonesome Guitar - excellent!! Too short, though, and ends too abruptly
So I can't really find a significant weakness throughout this CD, other than some of the tracks are, like John said, not as developed as I'd have hoped, or taken to the next level of expression. But as they are, they are near-perfect little sparkling gems of what makes Rypdal so great, IMHO. That is why I consider IMCS one of the best "introductions to TR" that I can think of.