Music From The Penguin Cafe

Album number 99. For what it's worth, the Spotify link here takes you to a version of the album that's missing a track. I doubt that will matter in forming your opinion one way or the other. Me, I went and listened to that missing song. I like simple pleasures, like butter in my ass, lollipops in my mouth. That's just me. That's just something that I enjoy. The naked dude just chilling on the album cover isn't fooling that penguin or me for that matter. He's just a guy who stayed a little too long at an "Eyes Wide Shut" orgy and now refuses to take his mask off. There are parts of this album that would fit right in at one of those orgies as long as an actual penguin is involved. A good chunk of it sounds like it's trying to be weird just to be as Avant Garde as possible. But I'm guessing Stanley Kubrick loved this album. It made me think a little too much about Penguins and the actor's who portrayed the Penguin in Batman's world. My favorites are Burgess Meredith, the naked guy on the album cover, and I guess Danny DeVito. Honorable mention to former Dodger and Cub great Ron "The Penguin" Cey, who might have been the greatest Penguin of them all. Now that I think about it, that penguin looks like he's the one who stumbled into an orgy. My favorite song, that I think sums up the entire album, is called, "The Sound Of Someone You Love Who's Going Away and It Doesn't Matter". It's almost 12 minutes long, but that thing takes you on a JOURNEY. Ultimately you end up back to staring at that album cover, wishing you were at an outdoor orgy.

The main reason I'm listening through the 1001 is to find stuff like this. Super chill, experimental and simply very well done.

superb album cover. perfectly apt too, i've never heard the penguin cafe before but i saw the album cover and knew what i was getting, some oddness. fucking brilliant eccentric shit.

After finding out that this album was produced by Brian Eno, I'm not surprised that I liked it right away. What I am surprised about is that I've never heard of it before. It's really cool for a mostly instrumental album. Laid back, if not quite ambient, with a really cool sound to it. I think I'm going to try and pick up this album on vinyl based on my first listen. This was a great palette-cleanser after having to review a fucking KISS album yesterday 4/5

Albums like this are the reason I love this project so much. I had absolutely no clue what to expect and had never heard of the artist or album, but both the naked penguin man and the fact that Brian Eno was the producer had me feeling hopeful. This just hit right today. Slightly bizarre and utterly beautiful, I've got nothing to complain about.

I can see how important this album probably was I just don't care.

I love penguins

Cannot understate the dread and delight of this album. The chirpy bright notes are ominous when juxtaposed with the frantic tunes following. Feels like the end of the world.

This was a real winner for me. I don’t know why it resonated with me so much. But the intermingling of the instruments was great. Definitely on the list to pick up.

This is such an strange yet earnest album. The orchestration is beautiful and expertly oscillates through moments of beauty, strangeness, and dread. Simply put, it is an avant-garde masterpiece. The use of traditional orchestration within an experimental folk framework packaged as an album of popular music manages create something that stands out among the experimental and progressive music of the 70s and that says an awful lot.

No, just no. This is terrible, and I have no idea why I had to hear it at all. Anytime it started to get almost (and almost is a loose term here) listenable, it went in some weird ass, left-field direction and totally pulled me out of it.

I'm pleasantly surprised that this album was included on the 1001 list. Most of the curator's choices are obvious, boneheaded or both; this is neither. Music From The Penguin Cafe is unique, both in The Penguin Cafe Orchestra's discography and more generally. It seems to me that the group's driving force, Simon Jeffes, was still trying to figure out what his group was all about. Seemingly irreconcilable elements fight for dominance, sometimes in the same song. You have feints at pop songs, pastoral violins, world music tropes boiled down to their essence, and avant guarde noodling, flavored from time to time with producer Brian Eno's effects processing. Adding to the strangeness is the prominence of Fender Rhodes (mostly used in jazz fusion) and electric guitar. Sometimes Music From The Penguin Cafe is awkward, sometimes it's gorgeous, but it sure as hell ain't boring.

This was like a fever dream. Wait, did I accidentally drop acid at work? Truly great album cover by the way. I might try to find the vinyl for that reason alone. I liked this, can’t really imagine sitting around one day and having the presence of mind to put this on.

Very pleasant listening. It's an interesting combination of instruments and genres they normally aren't heard in. Some of the songs remind me of songs in the style of Apocalyptica (who came much later, but I heard first). I wonder if these people were an influence.

Apparently I had to hear this album once before I die, so I did. That was plenty...1 🌟

No effing way!!! I LOVE this band. I cannot believe they threw this album on there. A great classical music influenced pop record. I never knew this band had any songs where there were vocals which is shocking and honestly not the best aspect of the album. Otherwise this album to me feels like it came from a co-owner of the said penguin cafe who hung up surreal penguin artwork (like the album cover). They bought the space from a former used instrument store and there were a lot of classical instrument lying around and they just made an album that would play in the background there or musicians would play at an open mic. Very DIY production feel/interesting instrumentation choices all over this thing. I like other albums more but this gets a five on the off chance those don’t show up on this site. The sound of someone, penguin cafe single, huge baby and chartered flight are great. Giles farnaby’s dream, milk, surface tension are cool from the “zopf” piece but there’s a lot of interesting experiments on those tracks that have some slightly mixed results. That being said, a unique record for an amazing band.

Quel bonheur de faire respirer le générateur avec un documentaire animalier. La voix de Pierre Arditi donne aux images de drones volant au-dessus de la banquise une poésie qui ravira petits et grands.

I honestly... Just what can I say? It was awful, I didn't vibe at all to this... The worst album I've heard so far. It is now my benchmark for 1's.

Just boring ambient sounds. 2/10.

This is way more interesting than a lot of other stuff on here, and I enjoyed it a lot, too.

I have never, before today, heard of these people. I approached it knowing literally nothing. And it's really good. Tracks that are just on the edge of familiar while being absolutely new. This will definitely be listened to again.

HAVE YOU EVER FUCKED A PENGUIN IN THE ASS? HAVE YOU FUCK! HAVE YOU EVER FUCKED A PENGUIN IN THE ASS? HAVE YOU FUCK! HAVE YOU EVER FUCKED A PENGUIN, EVER FUCKED A PENGUIN, EVER FUCKED A PENGUIN IN THE ASS? HAVE YOU FUCK!

This Album has at the same time the most interesting and the most boring moments of music I heard in a while. I can't bring myself to give it a 3, but for sure I won't give it a 5

I would feel a little irresponsible giving this more than a 2, it's got some excitingly unique moments but it spends too much time leaning a little more standard and boring Sydney Motel and Milk are cool listens, though

Je n'ai pas trop compris ce que cet album venait faire dans cette liste, quand des artistes comme Céline Dion se sont vus refuser l'accès à ce cercle de petit privilégiés. Néammoins, l'album débutait sur de belles notes, un début d'écoute plutôt amusante, moi et mes camarades procédant à une bataille de polochons. Toute cette petite troupe était hilares, hurlant des phrases en allemand n'ayant pas le moindre sens sorties de leur bouche. Quand tout d'un coup, l'ambiance change du tout au tout. Jurgen fait son apparition dans la pièce, et jette immédiatement un froid dans l'assemblée. Il fixe de ses yeux de glace le denommé Ludvig, tenant une chaise en plastique entre ses deux mains, et le sermonna immédiatemment d'un "Die Stuhle musst mie die Stuhle sein". S'en suivirent de pénibles heures pour notre joyeuse troupe, bien moins guillerette qu'à l'accoutumée. A suivre donc

I’d prefer to listen to penguins mating for 40 minutes.

Painful. 1

Hefts a pure carcinogen that is as mysterious as its inclusion in this list

Happy bird watching August!!!!

I LOVE this album!! I never heard of the group before, and I had no clue what to expect, even after reading up on them. This was such a great mix of pop orchestral music with just enough weirdness to keep me totally interested. I’ve added a bunch of songs to my main playlist.

Well this was great. It sent me down the rabbit hole of mellow ambient pop. How many Eno related albums are on this list? I'll be exploring the rest of the PCO catalog.

I went in listening to this without knowing anything other than the cover art, name of the group, and the year it was released. Near the end of the album I heavily suspected that Brian Eno was some how involved. It had that mysterious and ambient feel to it that gave him away. These are the records that I am happy to see appear when I open up my project in the morning. It's much more exciting to dig into the Penguin Cafe Orchestra than a damn Bruce Springsteen album.

First album I genuinely enjoyed in this challenge so far

There was something familiar to me about this album, at least a track or two, but I can't figure out why. Can anyone tell me??? I totally dug it! Please sir, I want some more.

I struggled with this vote. On the one hand, it was a well made album. On the other, it is not something I would normally listen to at all. The penguin cover may have influenced this a bit. Really well done and strange album

Sehr interessant

Excellent. Love this

Pretty weird and definitely about the oddest pick possible to have on Thanksgiving of all days. That being said, it is kind of nice? Very ambient and the idea of “modern chamber music” definitely comes across. It’s sort of soundtrack music mixed with ambient electronic. To quote Benedict Cumberbatch: “penglings”

Pleasantly surprised

I wasn't expecting to be into this, but I am! It's quirky but still sounds good. I didnt know what to expect next and it was a great journey

This is the stuff I signed up for. (36 known/81 new)

First, search for the album rather than follow the link, the 2008 remaster is complete rather than missing Pigtails. I know these mainly for Perpetuum Mobile, which is absolutely delightful and should be checked out even if you don't love this album. You've probably heard it on an advert, but deserves listening in full. Also check the Aussie film Mary and Max, which is where I first heard it. Beautifully used and lovely film. Never heard this record, and it's certainly more challenging in general than the albums of theirs I have given time to. Anyway, it's gorgeous sometimes, mental at others. Tick, and tick. Wiki calling this Pop is funny.

Quite nice, atmospheric music.

Really unusual but not bad. Very different than what I would ever listen to but that’s the point of all of this!

I enjoyed this - a nice change from the list, and a genuine oddity. Jennifer said it was the whitest music she'd ever heard.

This list really loves some Brian Eno. This is a tranquil interesting listen. 3/5

A very interesting album, some will call it odd but for me it is a breath of fresh air 3/5

Kinda neat

Is this background music to a silent Wes andersonnmovie?

Not sure what the Zopf that was but I didn’t hate it.

Pingviinikahvilassa ois varmaan toiminu paremmin ku kotikoneella töitä tehdessä

not an enjoyable listen , to me it felt like they were making this album as a prank. Which sounds harsh but I didn’t think this album was great

A man lies on his deathbed at a hospice, a friend walks in his room: - hey buddy! How are you feeling today? - I am ok. I accepted that my life will be over soon. But I lived a good life, I visited many countries, I dated many girls, I tasted all types of food, ... - Dude, but have you ever listened to Penguin Cafe Orchestra?

It makes me want to frolic around but it also scares me. It makes me want to be mischievous but like, in child way. It makes me want to buy the most expensive Lego set ever and then say damn it to hell and not follow the directions. It’s in different shades of pink. It’s lovely and it’s breaking my heart while also giving me hope. I liked this more than I thought I would when it first started.

This is a group I didn't know I had heard before. The album could be the soundtrack to some quirky movie. A very easy listen.

I'm on my 4th listen. This is amazing!

Absolutely lovely, perfect background music

Pengin

Mid-70s art rock. Very weird combination of quirky instrumentals and instruments. World music flavours.Sufjan was clearly inspired by this. Eno production. Avant-garde chamber music. Relaxing and mostly pleasant.

I need to stop giving 5 star albums, but I knew this one would slay at least a bit based on the name and cover art. Really loved it though, have listened to it 4 times today. We come to the penguin café to laugh, to cry, to care, because we need that, all of us. These orchestrations capture some really interesting vibes that are difficult to describe but I can feel. Really cool stuff.

I was so ready to hate this album at first glance, but it fully got me. I love this weird thing.

Beautiful and weird, true art

toll!

Going into this I thought it’d be another shitty British that nobody cares about, but this album really impressed me. It’s rare for an instrumental to leave an impression on me other than, "Hey, that’s pretty nice," but this album has already made its mark. Throughout listening to this album I couldn’t stop smiling. Best classical album ever, and "Penguin Cafe Single" may be the best instrumental ever.

I remember being introduced to the Peguin Cafe Orchestra when I was young and they were new - there's a special place in my heart for the telephone and rubber band song! This album was in the same league and thoroughly enjoyable, with interesting melodies and calm pacing. Brilliant!

Oh how I love this band. Lush, playful, deeply human, often shatteringly gorgeous. An act that was serious about stretching the boundaries of what acoustic music could be without ever being too serious about it. Capital M music with heart and a warm smile.

One of those albums that feels like a weird, perfect little world you escape to while listening. Music like this reminds me of how I felt watching Star Wars as a kid, getting lost in a book, playing Skyrim. I imagined a little penguin concert. A bunch of penguins in an ice field waddling around to their penguin music. Loved the tonal variety. Drifting from beautiful harmony to atonality always does it for me. That's what life is. It made me feel super emotional. Sometimes music just finds you at the perfect time and this was one of those days for me

Beautiful piece of music. Truly. The single that opens the album is so catchy, I can just picture myself in the Penguin Cafe performatively sipping my matcha while nodding along to the tune

Avante garde? Great muscianship, a really fun listen.

Albums like this are a good part of the reason I’m participating in this project. I don’t think I would have ever been exposed to this album without doing the 1001 Albums Project but I’m glad I was able to hear it. Very experimental and quite fun. Album 30, March 28, 2026

PERFECT SUNDAY MONING COFFEE MUSIC ALERT!!!

Delightful little orchestra music with bass and keyboard and string instruments. Zopf: From the Colonies and The Sound of Someone You Love are really good. I really enjoyed this journey. Also, the composer has a son with his own group "Penguin Cafe." They have a very similar sound.

wow, this is really cool. I had never heard of this group before - sort of classical/ambient/chamber music. Very pleasant to listen to. I will listen again and probably buy this. Not a bad track on the album, my first 5 star rating

Wow, what an album. The Penguins delivered a highly experimental record with sweet and subtle use of the strings, as well as a variety of other instruments. Intricate melodies are never boring and bring unexpected turns pretty much all the time. So, music feels relaxed, but in a highly elegant way. Abundance of purely intrumental compositions is a huge plus here. In short, an album of talented experimental stuff that I will listen again for sure. Best tracks: "Zopf: Giles Farnaby's Dream", "The Sound Of Someone You Love Who's Going Away And It Doesn't Matter", "Hugebaby". Also it's notable how fresh the "Penguin Cafe" feels given its release year.

9/10

Listened to this 3 times before moving on, great stuff

well yea

Cover? SLAPS. Music? Weird af. What a vibe.

LOVEEEEEE would play in the background

I’m gunna revisit this one soon

A truly beautiful instrumental album.

Music From The Penguin Cafe is the kind of album that makes me the most glad of having embarked on the 1001 album journey. Even if I do generally enjoy this kind of music (or more like, the genres and styles that are present in this), I probably would have never thought to listen to this album, let alone even knowing of its existence. This record sits nicely between folk and classical music, mostly. The artists are not afraid to explore with full freedom the line between modern folk/rock with acoustic and electric guitar and bass, and more classical sensibilities with other instruments like the violin, cello or spinet. The compositions are very original and the music sounds timeless. This is one of those that requires you to sit and listen intently. By the way, I have no idea what the album cover means, but I like it. I also like the consistency with the band's different album covers (check them out, the penguins and the naked people with penguin heads are a recurring theme). This was very hard to rate. It's not exactly what I would listen usually, but the creativity in Music From The Penguin Cafe had me marvelled in a way that rarely happens. So I think this deserves the 5 starts even if it's not going to enter my regular rotation and I've rated lower other albums that I like "more".

Weirded me out. Approved.

That was absolutely delightful! I've grabbed their entire discography and added it to the mix that I keep on my phone and at home.

Minimalist Avant folk pop not quite ambient music from another world. Utterly charming and never quite heading in the direction you expect, this is full of beautiful surprises.

This is different and wonderful, uplifted my day.

Never heard of penguin cafe orchestra. Ohhh so now we are really expanding our music knowledge - this album surpassed expectations even with a band name like that. Love orchestral music, mostly just instruments capturing the essence of emotion with the occasional vocal thrown in on songs like “milk”. I am going to feel soooo better than when I next suggest this album to someone.

Missing vocals to get the hooks into me for the first song. I feel like that song was an ill recorded Beatles B side without lyrics. Second song, minorly depressing without any real hook. Gave up when I got through songs 3, 4 and 5 without wanting to cut off my ears.

I had a feeling right off the bat that I would enjoy this, and it didn’t disappoint! Amazingly odd and super chill, I can see listening to this again and again. I’ve had a few albums here made and/or produced by Brian Eno that I liked a bit less than Penguin Cafe Orchestra so I’m glad to finally find one I love

Unfortunately it is very hard to give an objective opinion as the album cover is too cute to make me not like this. I love penguins man. This album is so soothing. It feels like a warm hug on a cold night. It had such a good variety of highs and lows - I think I listened to this one about 4 times and didn't get bored once. Fabulous record from an band/artist(s) I have never even heard of. One of the few good picks on this book.

Oooh, I LIKE this. Experimental, yet tuneful, absolutely perfect listening for being cocooned in blankets with my headphones on on a cold winter night.

Just a lovely sounding album. Gives me warm feelings.

Great

A wonderfully innovative album that breaks the mold by using weird and unconventional instruments. It’s has a modern feel to it because of this. Great study/work album as well.

An unexpected delight. I had heard a bit from this band without actually seeing the bigger picture so this was very surprising

I liked this!!!

Something about this really grabbed me, it's definitely going into my regular "get stuff done" rotation

Ya el nombre da pistas de que no es un grupo cualquiera. Pop de cámara es una etiqueta que les viene como un guante. Yo les conocía de Perpetuum Mobile (esta y Telephone and Rubber Band de su siguiente disco o Music for a Found Harmonium del posterior son de obligada escucha) , pero este disco es una maravilla. Minimalismo, folk, disonancias, música de vanguardia... cualquier cosa que se pueda decir ya está dicha pero lo que mejor les resume es la libertad y su elegancia. Cuerdas, piano y también Simon Jeffes tocando ukulele, bajo, guitarra eléctrica, percusión bucal y otros exticos como el venezolano cuatro, spinet (una especie de pequeño clavicordio), el sheng (un raro instrumento de vientos con boquilla y finos tubos de variada longitud), y un modulador. Unos sonidos que merecen la pena ser escuchados y que lo convierten en un imprescindible. Publicado por Brian Eno, haciendo de teloneros de Kraftwerk... no son precisamente malos referentes. Realmente aquí no se trata del cuarteto sino que incluye a Emily Young en la voz y autora de la portada y el ukelele de Neil Rennie. Todo ello conforma Zopf. Responsables de casi toda la cara A (menos la inicial). Penguin Cafe Single es una perfecta apertura. From the Colonies (for N.R.) es un clásico de su repertorio. In a Sydney Motel, primer tema cantado, la han escuchado Piano Magic cientos de veces. Giles Farnaby's Dream abre con un solemne clavicordio pero tiene ese aire latino que tan bien le sienta. Pigtail parece música concreta remite a King Crimson y a Eno. Abre la segunda cara The Sound of Someone You Love Who's Going Away and It Doesn't Matte, de aires muy reposados, casi folkies en algun sentido recuerda al mejor Kevin Ayers pero se va abriendo con disonancias y sonidos que remiten a Durruti Column. Es el tema que se lleva casi toda la cara del disco, y es una pieza excelente. Aquí está la grandeza del álbum, en este etma y en los dos siguientes: Hugebaby y Chartered Flight. Magistrales

Cute and good! I knew some of the penguin cafe orchestra, but i didn’t realize it was 1976. Definitely ahead of its time, i would have guessed late 90s at earliest

Wow, how have I never heard of this before? Finds like this make listening through 50 Elvis Costello albums worthwhile.