Cai-Noche Abierta (1980)

"Noche Abierta" is one of the jewels of the Andalusian progressive rock movement, an album that displays masterful musicianship, brimming with jazz sensibility, flamenco essence, and the atmospheric sounds of progressive rock. The band behind this superb work was Cai, a Spanish group originally from Cádiz, founded in mid-1977 by drummer Diego Fopani, guitarists José Fernández and Francisco Delgado, keyboardist and vocalist Sebastian Dominguez, and bassist José Vélez. This band released three albums between 1978 and 1981, disbanding shortly after their third and final album. They reformed almost 25 years later, producing new material which they released on two new albums. The moderate success of their debut album, "Más Allá de Nuestras Mentes Diminutas" (1978), paved the way for them to sign with a major label, CBS's subsidiary Epic Records, with whom they released "Noche Abierta" in 1980. The foreseeable potential of their first album is realized in this follow-up, a first-rate Andalusian progressive rock album with symphonic and strong fusion touches in all the compositions, combined with the virtuoso performances of all its members. Hints of jazz-rock, sounds reminiscent of Canterbury, and ethereal, progressive atmospheres are very much present in tracks like "Alegrías de Cai", "Extraña Seducción", and "La Roca del Diablo". This is undoubtedly one of the high points of Andalusian progressive rock of all time and a truly timeless work.