The Turn Of A Friendly Card (1980)

The Alan Parsons Project once again earns a No Skip Album award for their fifth studio record, The Turn of a Friendly Card! At this point, the band had already built a solid reputation for crafting conceptual prog-rock masterpieces—but this album took things to the next level commercially. It charted in multiple countries and spawned some of the band’s biggest hit singles, bringing them new fans without sacrificing the brains or ambition behind their sound.

You can definitely hear the group evolving here, leaning slightly more into pop and radio-friendly territory. But let’s be clear: they didn’t sell out. They just brought their signature mix of lush arrangements, sharp storytelling, and progressive bones into a sleeker package. Their commitment to the concept album format remains fully intact—and they’re still better at it than just about anyone else.

The Turn of a Friendly Card dives headfirst into the world of gambling—not just the casino kind, but the larger metaphor for life’s risks, rewards, and the emotional roulette we all play. Every track zooms in on a different angle: the thrill of the bet, the collapse after a loss, the manipulation, the time wasted, and the inner toll.

If you’re in the mood for a song-by-song deep dive, look up a full breakdown—but here’s the TL;DR: May Be a Price to Pay sets the tone, warning that every gamble comes with a cost. Games People Play is catchy, punchy, and speaks to how far people will go to win—whatever “winning” means to them. Time is a haunting meditation on how fast it slips away while chasing success (and it’s one of the band’s most beautiful ballads).

Nothing Left to Lose captures the heartbreak and numbness that follows total collapse. The rest of the album dances through addiction, excitement, regret, and ultimately—reflection. It’s a high-stakes ride that feels emotionally rich and strangely relatable. You don’t need to be a card shark to feel the sting. Conceptually? This is bold stuff. Musically? It walks the tightrope between commercial accessibility and progressive depth—and sticks the landing.

Five albums in. Four No Skip Awards. One undisputed run. And somehow, they make it look easy.

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Highlight Songs:

• Games People Play

• Nothing Left to Lose

• May Be a Price to Pay

• Snake Eyes

• I Don’t Wanna Go Home

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Own it, Stream it, Forget about it?

It’s 5 stars .. of course you have got to own this one. You’re crazy if you don’t and you risk people making fun of you for not owning it. We cannot have that, so stream the hell out of it until you can get your hands on a hard copy. Once you have it, place it on a pedestal, bless it with holy water, pray to it and thank it for coming into your life. The Turn of a Friendly Card is proof that smart music can also be catchy, and that a great concept doesn’t have to come at the cost of replay value. This is The Alan Parsons Project at their most accessible—and still, unmistakably them.

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Overall Rating:

5 Stars