Hard Hat Area
| Hard Hat Area | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by Allan Holdsworth | ||||
| Released | 1993 | |||
| Studio | Front Page Recorders in Costa Mesa, California; The Brewery in North County, San Diego | |||
| Genre | Jazz fusion | |||
| Length | 41:37 | |||
| Label | Polydor | |||
| Producer | Allan Holdsworth | |||
| Allan Holdsworth chronology | ||||
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| Alternative cover | ||||
European edition
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| Professional ratings | |
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| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| All About Jazz | Favourable |
| AllMusic |   |
Hard Hat Area is the eighth studio album by guitarist Allan Holdsworth, released in 1993 through Polydor Records (Japan), JMS–Cream Records (Europe) and Fred Bloggs Music (United Kingdom), and in 1994 through Restless Records (United States); a remastered edition with expanded liner notes was reissued on May 15, 2012 through MoonJune Records. Holdsworth has frequently cited the album as one of his favourites. "Tullio" is a reference to cycling component innovator and company founder Tullio Campagnolo.
Hard Hat Area has received mostly positive reviews. John Kelman at All About Jazz called it one of Holdsworth's better solo recordings, naming "Ruhkukah" and "Low Levels, High Stakes" as highlights. He also praised the line-up of keyboardist Steve Hunt, drummer Gary Husband and bassist Skúli Sverrisson, but remarked that it was sometimes difficult to distinguish between Hunt's playing and Holdsworth's SynthAxe. Glenn Astarita at AllMusic also called the album one of Holdsworth's "better solo excursions", and "a must-have" for fans of his work. Like Kelman, he named "Ruhkakah" and "Low Levels, High Stakes" as highlights.
All music composed by Allan Holdsworth, except where noted.
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