The Turn of a Friendly Card

The Turn of a Friendly Card is the fifth studio album by the British progressive rock band The Alan Parsons Project, released in 1980 by Arista Records. It is a concept album that revolves around the theme of gambling and of the inherent effects that arise from gambling addiction. The title piece, which appears on side 2 of the LP, is a 16-minute suite broken up into five tracks. The Turn of a Friendly Card spawned the hits "Games People Play" and "Time", the latter of which was Eric Woolfson's first lead vocal appearance.

The Turn of a Friendly Card
Studio album by
The Alan Parsons Project
Released7 November 1980 [1]
Recorded1979-1980
StudioAcousti Studio, Paris, France
GenreProgressive rock, symphonic rock, new wave
Length40:25
LabelArista
ProducerAlan Parsons
The Alan Parsons Project chronology
Eve
(1979)		 The Turn of a Friendly Card
(1980)		 Eye in the Sky
(1982)
Singles from The Turn of a Friendly Card
  1. "Games People Play"
    Released: December 1980
  2. "Time"
    Released: April 1981
  3. "Snake Eyes"
    Released: September 1981
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[2]
Rolling Stone[3]

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Alan Parsons and Eric Woolfson.

Side one
No.TitleLead vocalsLength
1."May Be a Price to Pay" (Woolfson)Elmer Gantry4:58
2."Games People Play" (Woolfson)Lenny Zakatek4:22
3."Time" (Woolfson)Eric Woolfson5:04
4."I Don't Wanna Go Home" (Woolfson/Parsons)Lenny Zakatek5:03
Side two
No.TitleLead vocalsLength
1."The Gold Bug" (Parsons)Instrumental4:34
2."The Turn of a Friendly Card
  • i. The Turn of a Friendly Card, Pt. 1 (2:44) (Woolfson)
  • ii. Snake Eyes (3:14) (Woolfson/Parsons)
  • iii. The Ace of Swords (2:57) (Parsons)
  • iv. Nothing Left to Lose (4:07) (Woolfson)
  • v. The Turn of a Friendly Card, Pt. 2 (3:22) (Woolfson)"
Chris Rainbow (1, 2, 5), Eric Woolfson (4), Instrumental (3)16:24

Though numbered as a single work, "The Turn of a Friendly Card" is split into five tracks on most compact disc and all digital and streaming releases.

The Turn of a Friendly Card was remastered and reissued in 2008 with the following bonus tracks:

  1. "May Be a Price to Pay" (Intro/demo) 1:32
  2. "Nothing Left to Lose" (Basic backing track) 4:36
  3. "Nothing Left to Lose" (Chris Rainbow overdub compilation) 2:02
  4. "Nothing Left to Lose" (Early studio version with Woolfson's guide vocal) 3:11
  5. "Time" (Early studio attempt) 4:42
  6. "Games People Play" (Rough mix) 4:33
  7. "The Gold Bug" (Demo) 2:50

In 2015, a "deluxe anniversary edition" was released on double CD.[4] This featured a new remaster of the album, the bonus tracks of the 2008 edition on disc 1 and an additional disc of excerpts from Eric Woolfson's songwriting demos, rough mixes and the three single edits.

"Eric's Songwriting Demos"

  1. "May Be a Price to Pay" 3:26
  2. "Games People Play" 3:06
  3. "Time" 4:06
  4. "I Don't Wanna Go Home" 2:12
  5. "The Turn of a Friendly Card" 3:19
  6. "Snake Eyes" 3:13
  7. "Nothing Left to Lose" 2:46
  8. "TOFC / Snake Eyes / I Don't Wanna Go Home" 4:32

"Extra Bonus Tracks"

  1. "May Be a Price to Pay (Early version - Eric Guide Vocal & Unused Guitar Solo)" 5:03
  2. "Games People Play (Early Version - Eric Guide vocal)" 4:32
  3. "Time (Orchestra & Chris Rainbow Backing vocals)" 4:19
  4. "The Gold Bug (Early Reference Version)" 5:08
  5. "The Turn Of A Friendly Card Part One (Early Backing Track)" 2:18
  6. "Snake Eyes (Early Version - Eric Guide Vocal)" 3:20
  7. "The Ace Of Swords (Early Version With Synth "Orchestration")" 3:03
  8. "The Ace Of Swords (Early Version With Piano On Melody)" 2:40
  9. "The Turn Of A Friendly Card Part Two (Eric Guide Vocal And Extended Guitar Solo)" 3:32

"Single Edits"

  1. "Games People Play" 3:35
  2. "The Turn of a Friendly Card" 3:44
  3. "Snake Eyes" 2:26

Personnel

Produced and engineered by Alan Parsons
Executive producer: Eric Woolfson
Mastering consultant: Chris Blair
Sleeve concept: Lol Creme and Kevin Godley

Additional instrumentation

"The Gold Bug", which references the same-titled short story by Edgar Allan Poe, includes a whistling part by Parsons and wordless vocals by Rainbow, while the main theme is played on an alto saxophone. The saxophone player, originally credited as Mel Collins, is instead credited on the liner notes for the remastered edition as "A session player in Paris whose name escapes us"; this refers to the fact that the saxophone part is a composite of several separate takes.[5] Similarly, the accordion part on "Nothing Left to Lose" is credited in the liner notes to "An unidentified Parisian session player". Also on "The Gold Bug", the newer liner notes credit a "Harmonized Rotating Triangle" to drummer Stuart Elliott. This refers to the phasing sound effects heard throughout the rhythm-free introduction to the piece.

Charts

Certifications and sales
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[21] 2× Platinum 200,000^
Germany (BVMI)[22] Gold 250,000^
Netherlands (NVPI)[23] Gold 50,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[24] Gold 7,500^
United States (RIAA)[25] Platinum 1,000,000^
Summaries
Worldwide — 2,000,000[26]

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Covers

The album's title track was covered by German funeral doom metal band Ahab for their album The Boats of the "Glen Carrig" in 2015.

Notes
  1. "Alan Parsons albums".
  2. The Turn of a Friendly Card at AllMusic
  3. "Album Reviews". Rolling Stone.
  4. The Alan Parsons Project – The Turn Of A Friendly Card (2015, CD), retrieved 30 August 2021
  5. Liner notes on The Turn of a Friendly Card remastered CD booklet
  6. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 229. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  7. "Austriancharts.at – The Alan Parsons Project – The Turn Of A Friendly Card" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
  8. "Top RPM Albums: Issue 0287". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 18 June 2021.
  9. "Dutchcharts.nl – The Alan Parsons Project – The Turn Of A Friendly Card" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
  10. "Offiziellecharts.de – The Alan Parsons Project – The Turn Of A Friendly Card" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
  11. "Norwegiancharts.com – The Alan Parsons Project – The Turn Of A Friendly Card". Hung Medien. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
  12. "Charts.nz – The Alan Parsons Project – The Turn Of A Friendly Card". Hung Medien. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
  13. Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
  14. "Swedishcharts.com – The Alan Parsons Project – The Turn Of A Friendly Card". Hung Medien. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
  15. "The Alan Parsons Project | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
  16. "The Alan Parsons Project Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
  17. "Jahreshitparade Alben 1981". austriancharts.at. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
  18. "Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
  19. "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1981". Billboard. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
  20. "RPM Top 100 Albums of 1981 - December 26, 1981" (PDF).
  21. "Canadian album certifications – The Alan Parsons Project – The Turn of a Friendly Card". Music Canada.
  22. "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (The Alan Parsons Project; 'The Turn of a Friendly Card')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie.
  23. "Dutch album certifications – The Alan Parsons Project – The Turn of a Friendly Card" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers. Enter The Turn of a Friendly Card in the "Artiest of titel" box.
  24. "New Zealand album certifications – The Alan Parsons Project – The Turn of a Friendly Card". Recorded Music NZ.
  25. "American album certifications – The Alan Parsons Project – The Turn of a Friendly Card". Recording Industry Association of America.
  26. "The Alan Parson Project. Phenomenon". Billboard. 25 July 1981. Retrieved 19 September 2018.
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