Penguin Cafe Orchestra

The Penguin Cafe Orchestra (PCO) was a collective of performing musicians founded by classically-trained English guitarist, composer and arranger Simon Jeffes. He and cellist co-founder Helen Liebmann were core members throughout the group's life. As the group grew and developed, a number of other musicians joined it, many of whom appear on the PCO's six studio and two live albums.

The PCO toured extensively during the 1980s and 1990s, and two albums, When in Rome... (1988) and Concert Program (1995) captured the sound of the live ensemble. The Penguin's sound is not easily categorized, but has elements of exuberant folk music and a minimalist aesthetic occasionally reminiscent of composers such as Philip Glass.

The Penguin Cafe Orchestra recorded and performed for 24 years until Jeffes died of an inoperable brain tumour in 1997. Several remaining members of the original group reunited for three concerts in 2007. Since then, five original members have continued to play concerts of PCO's music, initially as The Anteaters and more recently under the name The Orchestra That Fell to Earth.

Penguin Cafe Orchestra (album)

Penguin Cafe Orchestra was the second album by the Penguin Cafe Orchestra, and was recorded at the Penguin Cafe between 1977 and 1980. By this time the line-up for the band had expanded greatly, with contribution including Simon Jeffes, Helen Leibmann, Steve Nye, Gavyn Wright of the original quartet, as well as Geoff Richardson, Peter Veitch, Braco, Giles Leamna, Julio Segovia and Neil Rennie. All pieces were composed by Simon Jeffes except for "Paul's Dance" (Jeffes and Nye), "Cutting Branches" (traditional), and "Walk Don't Run" (by Johnny Smith).

"Cutting Branches for a Temporary Shelter" is based on the traditional Zimbabwean song "Nhemamusasa", a field recording of which can be heard played on mbira on the Nonesuch Records album The Soul of the Mbira.

The cover painting is by Emily Young.

Track listing

Penguin Cafe

Penguin Cafe is a band originally conceived by Arthur Jeffes, son of Simon Jeffes and Emily Young, as a continuation of his father's project, the Penguin Cafe Orchestra. Penguin Cafe's current ten-person line-up was originally brought together in 2009, featuring a group of musicians ranging from "luminaries from The Royal College of Music to members of bands such as Suede and Gorillaz". The group produced their first album, A Matter of Life... in 2010, which was released on their own Penguin Cafe label. Despite the similarities in genre and name, the group is distinguished from the original Penguin Cafe Orchestra.

Discography

Personnel