BO HANSSON – Ur trollkarlens hatt (Silence, 1972) / Mellanväsen (Silence, 1975) / El-Ahrairah (YTF, 1977)

 Ur trollkarlens hatt (Silence, 1972)

Instrumental
International relevance: ***

It's impossible for anyone to follow up a masterpiece like ”Sagan om ringen” with something equally good, Bo Hansson included. Therefore, his subsequent albums will always stand in the shadow of his monumental debut. You almost have to forget you've ever heard ”Sagan om ringen” – at least, that's what I had to do to fully appreciate ”Ur trollkarlens hatt”. Truth is, it's a very loveable album, not as dark as its predecessor (see? now I'm comparing it to ”Sagan om ringen” again!), more like drinking dewdrops in the morning with the sun shining through the foliage of trees. It's a wonderful album, meaning both incredibly beautiful and full of wonder.

The album was released abroad as ”Magician's Hat” with cover variations.

Mellanväsen (Silence, 1975)
Instrumental

International relevance: ***

There's something about ”Mellanväsen” (international title: ”Attic Thoughts”) that makes it more intangible than Hansson's previous albums. It has more guitars (courtesy of Finn Sjöberg of Kvartetten Som Sprängde, and Kenny Håkansson) that somehow seem to restrict the album, and with more syntesizers in use, it also has an unbecoming coldness to it. Also, Hansson's regular session drummer Rune Carlsson has a stiffer way of playing here than before. It's also a bit worrying that the music at times veers towards fusion, only a tiny bit as if it doesn't want you to notice, but you can't help but doing it anyway. ”Mellanväsen” isn't a bad album but somewhat unsatisfactory.

The international cover seen above is eye-slicingly terrible. The drawing of Hansson makes him look like a mean-spirited caricature of Sweden's then prime minister Olof Palme.

El-Ahrairah (YTF, 1977)

Instrumental
International relevance: ***

Another album based on a book, this time Richard Adams's ”Watership Down” (the album's international title is ”Music Inspired by Watership Down”). ”El-Ahrairah” also saw Bo Hansson signing with a new label, YTF. My concerns with ”Mellanväsen” are even greater here. It's further down fusion road and despite several excellent names in the credits list – Kenny Håkansson, Bosse Skoglund, Sten Bergman, Göran Lagerberg et al – the music just won't come to life. The best track is the first part of ”Flykt” which sounds like the music to a porn scene in an Italian horror movie. I want to like this album more than I do, but unfortunately, there's too little here to invite me into the music.

The cover art was again mutilated for the album's international release:

”El-Ahrairah” is the last of the 'real' Hansson albums. He made ”Mitt i livet” for Silence in 1985 but that one doesn't count.

Ur trollkarlens hatt full album playlist with bonus track
Mellanväsen full album playlist with bonus track
El-Ahrairah full album playlist with bonus track