Ekseption, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra – Ekseption 00.04

After recording three albums in a usual "rock band plus horns" setting, Ekseption decided to go for the big thing on this one.
Their third album was already a sign of things to come, most notably because of the "Piece For Symphonic And Rock Group In A Minor". This multi-part suite composed by the band's keyboard player, Rick Van Der Linden, closes side A of that album.

Next step was to create a similar piece to a full-length album and actually record it with a full-size orchestra.
But that was not enough. Rick Van Der Linden also wanted a chamber choir on the album, as well as a massive pipe organ.
To add to the complexity, three different locations were chosen to record the album.

1. The band themselves recorded their parts in the Phonogram Studios in Hilversum.
2. The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra was recorded in a studio in London.
3. Rick van der Linden played additional music on the St. Bavo Cathedral Grand Organ in Haarlem. At these times, the orchestra was directed by Ferry Wienneke.

Not sure where the Dutch Chamber Choir was recorded for the piece "Choral".

It must have been a hell of a job to record, most notably the closing 13-minute-plus "Piccadilly Sweet". According to Wikipedia, the orchestral parts were recorded first and the band and organ parts were dubbed in later. When listening to the composition, it sounds as if everyone is responding to each other's notes. I guess this is where composing rises above songwriting...

I have another variant. Side 1 has runout code 'AA 6423 019 1Y 1 670 1111 04' (same as 'Side 1 (Variant 2)' above). Side 2 has runout code 'AA 6423 019 2Y 1 670 117 04'.