Walter Trout [2010] Common Ground

[01] May Be A Fool
[02] Open Book
[03] Her Other Man
[04] Common Ground
[05] Danger Zone
[06] Hudson Had Help
[07] Loaded Gun
[08] Song For My Guitar
[09] Eyes Of A Child
[10] No Regrets
[11] Wrapped Up In The Blues
[12] Excess Baggage



amg: On what is billed as his 20th solo album, journeyman blues-rock guitarist Walter Trout seems to be intent on establishing himself as something more than a worthy successor to an older generation of blues originators, as well as a bevy of their better-known successors all old enough to be his older brothers. He has written all 12 songs himself and printed the lyrics to them in the CD booklet. Especially at first, his bid to be a singer/songwriter shows promise, with the self-deprecating and reflective "May Be a Fool" and "Open Book" leading things off, and, in fourth position, the spiritually oriented title song, "Common Ground," a prayer for universal understanding. Even on these tracks, however, the guitar solos stand out, and as the album goes on the songs tend to seem more and more like platforms on which Trout builds those solos. Stomps, shuffles, and ballads vary the tempos somewhat, and the styles range from country-blues ("Hudson Had Help") to Southern rock in the Allman Brothers Band mold ("Danger Zone") and Chicago blues ("Wrapped Up in the Blues"). But the tunes are predictable and the lyrics only serviceable; what matters is Trout's Fender Stratocaster, to which he pays tribute in the lilting "Song for My Guitar." He plays with authority, but at any given moment suggests any one of a number of his immediate predecessors, including Keith Richards, Jimi Hendrix, Johnny Winter, Duane Allman, and so on. That tends to make him a more impressive figure when he's playing right in front of you in a club or theater than when he's heard on a recording.
(amg 7/10)

Walter Trout [2009] Unspoiled By Progress

[01] They Call Us The Working Class
[02] Goin' Down
[03] Life In The Jungle
[04] Long Tall Sally
[05] Jimmy As Yoko
[06] Somebody's Acting Like A Child
[07] Hey Barney
[08] Sweet As A Flower
[09] Two Sides To Every Story
[10] Finally Gotten Over You
[11] Goin' Back Home
[12] Marie's Mood
[13] She's Out There Somewhere
[14] So Afraid Of The Darkness



amg: Walter Trout has always been a blues man with rock & roll on his mind first and foremost. Though showy and loud, Trout keeps on the path of least resistance for an audience that wonders what Stevie Ray Vaughan, Luther Allison, Albert Collins, or Jimi Hendrix would sound like were they still alive. Still, Trout has carved out a career and a living playing music that definitely gets people out of their seats and raving for more. This collection — correctly subtitled "Twenty Years of Hardcore Blues" — has Trout picking favorites from various live performances recorded over the years by the BBC and, as he puts it, were selected favoring performance over recording quality. It should be pointed out that there's absolutely nothing wrong with the sound quality of these select dates and songs, and there are a couple of studio tracks thrown in, adding to the special nature of this disc, for both fans and novices. Notable for being the last recording done with bassist Jimmy Trapp (2005 in Las Vegas,) "Sweet as a Flower" is especially poignant, a rattlesnake shaker that recalls Peter Green when he was with Fleetwood Mac, while "Two Sides to Every Story" adopts an acoustic-style slide guitar-centered slow stomp that stands apart from the other tracks. Tougher than tough is a version of the Don Nix evergreen popularized by Freddie King "Goin' Down"; there's Buddy Guy's juke joint-rockin' shuffle "She's Out There Somewhere," and the classic old-school rocker "Long Tall Sally" — all played with great energy and good spirit. The band also covers John Mayall's "Somebody's Acting Like a Child" with stinging guitar as good as anyone's, and the Finis Tasby tune "Goin' Back Home," fairly typical, from Bonn, Germany in 1991. Trout's originals include a new studio recording of the two-chord, organ-fed rocker "They Call Us the Working Class," and live performances of the hard rock blues "Life in the Jungle" (Amsterdam, 1991) which was the title track of his first album, and the instrumental "Marie's Mood" showing a jazzier side. Sammy Avila on the Hammond B-3 organ, bassist Rick Knapp, and drummer Michael Leasure join Trout for the majority of these concert shows. While there's nothing groundbreaking here, or out of character with Trout's reputation and estimable talent, it's a solid collection of songs featuring the worked-up guitar of the leader that should appeal to the guitar hero nation without reservation.
(amg 8/10)

Waterboys [2007] Book Of Lightning

[01] The Crach Of Angel Wings
[02] Love Will Shoot You Down
[03] Nobody's Baby Anymore
[04] Strange Arrangement
[05] She Tried To Hold Me
[06] It's Gonna Rain
[07] Sustain
[08] You In The Sky
[09] Everybody Takes A Tumble
[10] The Man With The Wind At His Heels



amg: Mike Scott recorded his ninth Waterboys record live in the studio, bringing along some old friends and re-igniting a fire that had been burning awfully low since 2003's deeply introspective and inconsistent Universal Hall. Opening with Book of Lightning's finest four minutes, the gorgeous "Crash of Angel's Wings," fueled by the instantly recognizable laser sweep of longtime Julian Cope collaborator Thighpaulsandra, Scott doesn't just breath life back into the band, he makes it sound like a band again. This is the amiable and slightly mischievous Waterboys of old, as evidenced by the tight, Beatles-inspired "Nobody's Baby Anymore," which takes a winking look at age, success, and longing for the day where "Peacocks danced around my eyes" and "I kissed riches/Strode tall in my britches," but that's not to say that the weighty themes of life, loss, faith, and hope aren't still the bedrock on which Scott builds his sonic temples. "Strange Arrangement" echoes the more soulful, R&B-influenced ballads from Room to Roam, the aching "Sustain" relies heavily on Vancouver backing band Great Aunt Ida's dynamic, tide-like construction and longtime trumpet collaborator Roddy Lorimer's steeple-high runs, and Scott revisits the "Big Music" of the Pagan Place era on "It's Gonna Rain," a rousing, vaguely apocalyptic romp that echoes "The Whole of the Moon." This time around, the soul-searching feels like part of the process rather than the mission itself, and even the somewhat manipulative "Everybody Takes a Tumble," which is nearly a carbon copy of "Fisherman's Blues," feels like a campfire full of good-natured charlatans on a stormy night, just waiting to talk the ear off of some lucky (or unlucky) traveler. [Book of Lightning is also available with a bonus DVD called The Travels of the Waterboys.]
(amg 7/10)

Wet Wet Wet [2007] Timeless

[01] Run
[02] Thru' The Night
[03] Weightless
[04] Real Life
[05] Eyes Wide Open
[06] In Every Heart (A Fire Burns)
[07] Too Many People
[08] I Believe
[09] Heaven
[10] New Age Sacrifice
[11] What Do You Know
[12] Eyes Wide Open [Orchestral Mix]



amg: From 1987 until their demise a decade later, Scotland's Wet Wet Wet were one of the most successful bands in Europe. While often compared to the onslaught of boy bands that appeared in their wake, the Wets were nothing of the sort. These were four talented individuals who wrote almost all of their own material, played their own instruments, and had one of the greatest white soul vocalists in frontman Marti Pellow. So, when the band called it quits after its album 10 in 1997, the pop market lost a credible and seemingly clean-cut outfit, a group that was actually worthy of its fame. When news came out that Pellow had battled heroin addiction, it almost seemed unbelievable to their legions of fans. Thankfully, Pellow pulled through and pursued a semi-successful solo career. But as the Wets' 20th anniversary loomed, the boys in the band patched up their differences and hit the road for a hugely successful reunion tour. Then, in 2007, the band released Timeless, a brand-spanking-new album filled to the brim with all the things fans loved about the Wets: melodic soulful pop with lush production, classic arrangements, and that Pellow bellow. Timeless, released on the band's own Dry Records label, strips away the glossy production of 10 and allows Wet Wet Wet to stretch out musically and be themselves without having to rely on the latest musical trends. Perhaps their most varied album, Timeless is exactly as the title suggests: a collection of songs that are timeless soulful pop nuggets that could have been hits in any decade from the '60s to the new millennium. From Marvin Gaye to Roy Orbison via the Beatles and Elton John, the album still has its feet firmly planted in the now while embracing yesterday and tomorrow. On "Run," the Wets rock harder than usual with frenzied guitar bouncing off of their trademark lush harmonies. "Too Many People" is one of their finest soul moments to date (although the single mix removed the heart and, literally, the soul of the song). "Eyes Wide Open" and "Weightless" are beautiful without being lightweight. "In Every Heart (A Fire Burns)" channels the spirit of Roy Orbison and could have been the catalyst for another comeback for him had he lived another two decades. Only "Thru' the Night" fails to deliver anything memorable even after repeated listens. Will the boys in the band last long enough to make another album? Hopefully.
(amg 8/10)

Zutons [2006] Tired Of Hanging Around

[01] Tired Of Hanging Around
[02] It's The Little Things We Do
[03] Valerie
[04] Someone Watching Over Me
[05] Secrets
[06] How Does It Feel
[07] Why Won't You Give Me Your Love
[08] Oh Stacey (Look What You've Done!)
[09] You've Got A Friend In Me
[10] Hello Conscience
[11] I Know I'll Never Leave



amg: If Geno Washington were still making records, he would probably sound a lot like the Zutons. Then again, Dexys Midnight Runners, who brought many pop fans' attention to the great soul man in the early '80s, are also forerunners of the Zutons. Tired of Hanging Around was the second album by the Liverpool band and was even more assured than the group's debut offering, Who Killed...... The Zutons. Not that they had changed much — they really didn't need to, for there was no one making music quite like the Zutons, the voice of David McCabe able to handle songs as diverse as "Secrets," which was a throwback to the sleazy early-'80s sound just before synth pop took over, and "Why Can't You Give Me Your Love?," the first single taken from the album, which also had a retro feel — but going back even further to the 1960s garage rock bands. There was a little bit of everything here, including the powerful sax playing of Abi Harding — obvious on every track but not dominant — and Boyan Chowdhury's guitar work, which was original and innovative (and would soon be missed, as he left the band not long afterwards). They unashamedly lifted the intro of Tears for Fears' "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" for their song "Valerie," but the song was so good that one could forgive them almost anything; indeed, Amy Winehouse took the same song into the Top Ten for the second time within two years with a very different version. What a pity they released Tired of Hanging Around in the same week as Shayne Ward's album; otherwise, there would have been some real music at the top of the charts.
(amg 7/10)

Waterboys [2005] Karma To Burn

[01] Long Way To The Light
[02] Peace Of Lona
[03] Glastonbury Song
[04] Medicine Bow
[05] Pan Within
[06] Open
[07] Return Of Jimi Hendrix
[08] My Dark Side
[09] Song For The Life
[10] Bring Em’ All In
[11] Whole Of The Moon
[12] Fisherman’s Blues
[13] Come Live With Me



amg: In 2001, Mike Scott decided to return to recording and performing under the Waterboys moniker. He released his first new-era Waterboys studio record, A Rock in the Weary Land, a good seven years after 1993's Dream Harder — with some small contributions of some the more permanent Waterboys of the '80s and '90s. In between those records, Scott had recorded and performed solo in two different incarnations: one as an acoustic singer/songwriter (Bring 'Em All In), and one as a bandleader (Still Burning). And on 2005's Karma to Burn, the first ever official Waterboys live record, it's these two sides that he wants to capture. Where 1998's bootleg Live Adventures revealed a Mike Scott fronting a full band back in 1986, wanting to grasp the stars in the sky, Karma to Burn is, partially, a much more quiet affair. Culled from tours Mike and company made in 2003 and 2004, half the songs have a piano (Richard Naiff), acoustic guitar, and fiddle (Steve Wickham) setup, while on the other half the three core members are backed by then touring drummer Carlos Hercules and bass player Steve Walters. As a result, the record is a two-faced one: there's the rock band playing old and new Waterboys songs, and there's the acoustic trio playing material from Dream Harder, Universal Hall, and Scott's solo work. There are also two covers. Unfortunately, the record is too short too really show the two sides of the Waterboys: it plays off as just a rock show with some quiet tunes thrown in for good measure. It would have been wiser for Scott to release a double album, with one disc given wholly to his quiet side and one to his rock band persona. The 13-plus-minute guitar-heavy version of "The Pan Within," for example, is now followed by an intimate reading of "Open." As a consequence, both songs feel out of place. Hopefully, the next time around (be it an archival release or new recording) Scott will give his music the space it deserves, and have a clearer idea about what he wants to release. Nonetheless, the record kicks off with a strong rendition of "Long Way to the Light," sort of a retelling of Scott's life up until the end of '90s, and it sounds very inspired. And "The Return of Jimi Hendrix," finally, also makes a good appearance with Wickham's fuzz fiddle stealing the show. "Peace of Iona" is played in all its heartbreaking beauty, too.
(amg 7/10)

Wolfmother [2005] Wolfmother

[01] Colossal
[02] Woman
[03] White Unicorn
[04] Pyramid [WANTED]
[05] Mind's Eye
[06] Joker & The Thief
[07] Dimension
[08] Where Eagles Have Been
[09] Apple Tree
[10] Tales From The Forest Of Gnomes
[11] Witchcraft
[12] Vagabond



amg: There's no denying Australian heavy rock trio Wolfmother has been raised on rock — specifically, raised on '70s rock. Problem is, from all appearances on their eponymous debut, they made their journey into the past via the twin gateway drugs of the White Stripes and Queens of the Stone Age, and once they dug back to the original Zeppelin and Sabbath texts (stopping along the way for some Soundgarden discs and maybe, for lyrical inspiration, Yes and Rush), they indulged so much it screwed with their sense of aesthetics. They threw everything and anything together, not bothering with minor problems like how their frenzied retro-rock doesn't quite support songs with titles like "The White Unicorn" and "Where Eagles Have Been" — Zeppelin drew inspiration from JRR Tolkien and Sabbath certainly sang about fairies and gnomes, but neither band sounded as precious, inarticulate, or confused as Wolfmother does here. And their naïveté is not limited to guitarist Andrew Stockdale's stock swords 'n' sorcery imagery: they mix up their musical clichés in bewildering ways, as riffs lifted from Soundgarden ("Rusty Cage" provides the opening for "Joker & the Thief") give way to a QOTSA stomp as sung by Jack White (whose ghost is also heard on the title of "Apple Tree," not to mention its frenetic verses), or how a complicated Zep riff is graced by a Jethro Tull flute solo on "Witchcraft." Blame it on their youth — all this stuff was new to them, so they absorbed it all at once then quickly regurgitated it in ways that won't seem to make much sense to anybody familiar with their inspirations (and their clunky funk-rock workout "Love Train" simply won't make sense to anybody anywhere). At times, Wolfmother's unintentionally bizarre amalgams are kind of delightful, and the group does have a basic, brutal sonic force that is pretty appealing, but even at their best, they never banish the specters of the bands that they desperately mimic throughout this promising but muddled debut. They have enough of a good thing going here to suggest that they'd be a killer live band, but not enough to make this record all too memorable on its own terms.
(amg 6/10)

Zutons [2004] Who Killed...The Zutons

[01] Zuton Fever
[02] Pressure Point
[03] You Will You Won't
[04] Confusion
[05] Havana Gang Brawl
[06] Question Mark
[07] Railroad
[08] Long Time Coming
[09] Nightmare Part II
[10] Not A Lot To Do
[11] Remember Me
[12] Dirty Dancehall
[13] Moons And Horror Shows



amg: Since the Zutons share a label (Deltasonic), producer (Ian Broudie), hometown (Liverpool), and pool of influences with the Coral, you'd think it's probably a safe bet that they sound an awful lot like the Coral. Well, you'd be right — in fact, the bands sound so eerily similar, from their Love/Animals-influenced ruckus down to their Scouse accents that, were it not for the Zutons' solid reputation as a live act, there'd be serious questions as to whether this was just the Coral under a secret moniker, à la XTC's the Dukes of Stratosphear. Still, Who Killed. . . the Zutons was nominated for a Mercury Prize for Album of the Year, so they must have something, and they do. From rave-ups like "You Will You Won't" and "Pressure Point" down to the album's many, gentle folk moments, they cover quite a bit of ground. It's all very steeped in '60s garage rock, very much "dad rock" if you will, though it's injected with just enough fun that it doesn't sound like an entirely retro exercise. The best moments come when the band expands their sonic palette — the bouncy, horn-spiked "Remember Me" is the very definition of classic Merseybeat, and one of the reasons to revisit Who Killed. . . the Zutons again and again. Still, this sounds like a lost Coral album down to every last detail, which means that it seems silly to venture here unless you've at least bought one Coral album already.
(amg 5/10)

Wet Wet Wet [2004] Greatest Hits

[101] All I Want
[102] Goodnight Girl
[103] Temptation
[104] Lip Service
[105] Love Is All Around
[106] Julia Says
[107] Wishing I Was Lucky
[108] Sweet Surrender
[109] Hear Me Now
[110] Sweet Little Mystery
[111] Somewhere Somehow
[112] Stay With My Heartache
[113] If I Never See You Again
[114] Angel Eyes (Home And Away)
[115] Don't Want To Forgive Me Now
[116] She's All On My Mind
[117] Morning
[118] Strange
[119] With A Little Help From My Friends
[120] (Feels Like I'm) Walking On Water
[201] Broke Away
[202] Yesterday
[203] Maybe I'm In Love
[204] Make It Tonight
[205] Cold, Cold Heart
[206] Put The Light On
[207] More Than Love
[208] Hold Back The River
[209] Shed A Tear
[210] Blue For You
[210] This Time (Memphis Sessions)
[212] East Of The River (Memphis Sessions)
[213] Get Ready (Live)
[214] I Can Give You Everything (Live)
[215] Temptation (Live)
[216] Goodnight Girl (Live)
[217] Love Is All Around (Live)
[218] With A Little Help From My Friends (Live)



amg: The Greatest Hits, released in 2004, acts as an expanded and updated take on Greatest Hits: End of Part One, incorporating highlights from the likes of 1995's Picture This and 1997's 10. The disc contains all of the group's biggest hits, including "Love Is All Around," "With a Little Help from My Friends," "Sweet Surrender," "Sweet Little Mystery," "Goodnight Girl," and "Wishing I Was Lucky" (their first single, a Top Ten U.K. hit). Since each one of the group's albums is patchy and has floated in and out of print throughout the years, the disc will satisfy anyone who is not a devout fan. [A double-disc version was also released, which dipped deeper into the group's catalog while also including live material.]
(amg 9/10)

Waterboys [2003] Universal Hall

[01] This Light Is For The World
[02] The Christ In You
[03] Silent Fellowship
[04] Every Breath Is Yours
[05] Peace Of Iona
[06] Ain't No Words For The Things I'm Feeling
[07] Seek The Light
[08] I've Lived Here Before
[09] Always Dancing, Never Getting Tired
[10] The Dance At The Crossreads
[11] E.B.O.L
[12] Universal Hall



amg: Mike Scott begins his eighth proper Waterboys record with the kind of laid-back intensity that fueled the group's 1990 Celtic rock classic Room to Roam. "This Light Is for the World" is the inspirational headlight on a devotional train hauling 12 tunes through the heart of northeast Scotland. The album was named after Universal Hall, a theater run by the Findhorn Foundation, a spiritual community that Scott joined in 1992 and where he has continued to visit, write, and perform. The recorded Universal Hall is an entirely different vehicle than the group's last offering, the noisy, dark, and aptly titled, A Rock in the Weary Land. Focusing on life, light, and sense of place, Scott, who describes the record as "full of love and fire," has no qualms about his renewed religious fervor. In the sparse "The Christ in You," he tells the listener, "I'm gonna look twice at you/Until I see the Christ in you." Not everything is so heavy handed, though, and the tunes range from fun ("Always Dancing, Never Getting Tired") to gorgeous ("Peace of Iona") to psychedelic ("Seek the Light"). Lyrically, Scott has simplified, focusing on inspiration rather than conversation, often repeating the title of the song, as in the Nick Drake-cloned, "Every Breath Is Yours." On the previous two records, Scott depended upon a rotating lineup of studio musicians to fill the holes he could not, which had a tendency to deflate the intimacy of his songwriting. The return of fiddler Steve Wickham is a welcome one, and he sneaks his way into every piece with delicious results. His gifts are most apparent on the epic title track, a tendril of wind that nearly achieves the tornadic catharsis of the mid-'80s, This Is the Sea-era Waterboys. Fans who yearn for those anthems of yesterday may find themselves cursing the enigma that is Mike Scott, but there's no denying his vision.
(amg 5/10)

Wallflowers [2002] Red Letter Days

[01] When You're On Top
[02] How Good It Can Get
[03] Closer To You
[04] Everybody Out Of The Water
[05] Three Ways
[06] Too Late To Quit
[07] If You Never Got Sick
[08] Health And Happiness
[09] See You When I Get There
[10] Feels Like Summer Again
[11] Everything I Need
[12] Here In Pleasantville
[13] Empire In My Mind



amg: The Wallflowers' long-awaited third album, Breach, was a strong, confident record that demonstrated clear growth from Jakob Dylan as a songwriter and the Wallflowers as a band. Thing is, everybody ignored it. Critics wrote it off and the large audience Bringing Down the Horse attracted shunned it, leaving the band in an awkward position of having to prove themselves yet again with their fourth album, Red Letter Days. The first striking thing about the album is that its production is a clear reaction to the failure of Breach. Glistening where its predecessor had a semblance of grit, this is a polished mainstream rock record, designed to win back listeners who loved the band by hearing "One Headlight" on the radio repeatedly. Dylan has adjusted his songwriting slightly, too, playing up the hooks and the melodies, which is hardly selling out. Even so, it's hard not to wish that the album had a bit more of the quirks and muscle that gave Breach its backbone. Without it, Red Letter Days isn't quite as forceful, but it is accomplished, melodic, and attractive, especially since the simple fact is, there are very few bands making this kind of post-Tom Petty classicist rock in the 2000s, and those that do don't do it as well, which is why this album is welcome, no matter how glossy the production is.
(amg 8/10)

Waterboys [2000] A Rock In A Weary Land

[01] Let It Happen
[02] My Love Is My Rock In The Weary Land
[03] It's All Gone
[04] Is She Concious
[05] We Are Jonah
[06] Malediction
[07] Dumbing Down The World
[08] His Word Is Not His Bond
[09] Night Falls On London
[10] The Charlatan's Lament
[11] The Wind In The Wires
[12] Crown



amg: Through the years, the Waterboys have adopted whatever persona or fancy Mike Scott held at a given point in time. Hence, this band has fluctuated from the pop/rock of the early- to mid-'80s to the ensuing folk period to the aimless early '90s, which yielded Dream Harder. That was their swan song, which alienated Waterboys fans who grew to cherish the previous two releases, Room to Roam and Fisherman's Blues. That apparently didn't concern Scott too much, since he equates the individual (himself) with the band in no uncertain terms: "[T]o me there's no difference between Mike Scott and the Waterboys; they both mean the same thing. They mean myself and whoever are my current travelling musical companions." Appropriately, A Rock in the Weary Land fuses the complexity, grandeur, and simplicity that have characterized Scott's music in the past. This is the recording that the homogenous Dream Harder failed to become. It's ambitious, moody, surreal, and relevant. Scott terms the renewed sound of the Waterboys as "sonic rock," in which he incorporates all of the elements and possibilities of modern rock (which he finds compatible) into a uniform, technically updated body of work. Various distorted and synthesized effects are utilized throughout this album, but typically so are the psychedelic tendencies that Scott has always held dear. John Lennon influences seem to surface frequently, both vocally and compositionally, most notably on "Is She Conscious." And, as virtually all Mike Scott projects (both solo and group) will reveal, much of the content revolves around the struggle, confusion, and inspiration that his growing faith elicits.
(amg 6/10)

Wallflowers [2000] (Breach)

[01] Letters From The Wasteland
[02] Hand Me Down (INCOMPLETE)
[03] Sleepwalker
[04] I've Been Delivered
[05] Witness
[06] Some Flowers Bloom Dead
[07] Mourning Train
[08] Up From Under
[09] Murder 101
[10] Birdcage
[11] Babybird



amg: When Jakob Dylan first debuted with the Wallflowers, nobody expected that he would ever escape the shadow of his famous father, and those doubts hung heavily above the band until their second album, Bringing Down the Horse, became an unexpected multi-platinum smash. In light of that success, Dylan became his own man, no longer seen as only Bob's kid. That freedom is evident on the Wallflowers' superb third album, Breach. At the time of its fall 2000 release, there was a lot of attention paid to Jakob finally writing about Bob, a subject he steadfastly ignored before, and it is true that several songs do clearly acknowledge his famous father. But that's not the most noteworthy thing about the album. What's remarkable about the album is that he is assured as a songwriter and bandleader. On the surface, there's not much different between this album and its predecessor, but the songs are stronger, sharper, and the performances are lean, muscular, and immediate. Andrew Slater and Michael Penn's clear, surprisingly varied production is a factor, but the credit goes to Jakob Dylan and the Wallflowers; the band has never sounded better and Dylan has never been as convincing as a writer or singer. The result is the finest straight-ahead rock album of 2000.
(amg 9/10)

Waterboys [1998] The Whole Of The Moon

[01] The Whole Of The Moon
[02] Glastonbury Song
[03] Medicine Bow
[04] Fisherman's Blues
[05] A Girl Called Johnny
[06] The Pan Within
[07] She Is So Beautiful
[08] Rare, Precious And Gone
[09] Strange Boat
[10] Red Army Blues
[11] This Is the Sea
[12] Higher In Time
[13] The Return Of Pan
[14] What Do You Want Me To Do
[15] When Ye Go Away
[16] Love Anyway



amg: This is the first American compilation to select most of the Waterboys' most memorable tracks and the first compilation to combine Waterboys tracks with songs from Mike Scott's solo albums. Combining all of the group's British chart singles except "And a Bang on the Ear" as well as live tracks, B-sides not previously on an album, and even one previously unreleased studio track, "Higher in Time," from 1991, it is in effect a "the best and the rest" selection of the work of Mike Scott from 1982 to 1997. The sequencing pays no attention to chronology, instead moving back and forth between the Waterboys' early, ambitious rock creations, the effervescent neo-folk of the Fisherman's Blues era, and Scott's sometimes introspective solo work. Despite this, his impassioned singing holds things together better than might be expected, and the effect is not unlike a good Waterboys concert. Since the Waterboys were always more of a rumor than a real commercial threat in the U.S., there is always the chance for the band's music to be appreciated anew, and it didn't hurt that in the same season this album was released, "Fisherman's Blues" was used as the title music for the popular film Waking Ned Devine. The album makes an excellent sampler of Mike Scott's work so far.
(amg 9/10)

Wet Wet Wet [1997] 10

[01] If I Never See You Again
[02] Back On My Feet
[03] Fool For Your Love
[04] The Only Sounds
[05] If Only I Could Be With You
[06] I Want You
[07] Maybe I'm In Love
[08] Beyond The Sea
[09] Lonely Girl
[10] Strange
[11] Theme From Ten
[12] It Hurts



amg: Wet Wet Wet's tenth album isn't that much different from any of their earlier records, but there are the occasional departures from their lite-funk and lite-soul styles that make it worthwhile for fans. Too often, the music slips into slick, bland professionalism, but the group has enough charisma to make the big-band flourishes of "Beyond the Sea" and the shifting sections of "If Only I Could Be With You" infectious.
(amg 5/10)

World Party [1997] Egyptology

[01] It Is Time
[02] Beautiful Dream
[03] Call Me Up
[04] Vanity Fair
[05] She's The One
[06] [Vocal Interlude]
[07] Curse Of The Mummys's Tomb
[08] Hercules
[09] Love Is Best
[10] Rolling Off A Log
[11] Strange Groove
[12] The Whole Of The Night
[13] Piece Of Mind
[14] This World
[15] Always



amg: Karl Wallinger defined the ornate, Beatlesque World Party sound on their debut Private Revolution, and he never strayed from that blueprint over the next decade, even if he augmented it with other '60s and '70s pop flourishes. Egyptology finds Wallinger at his most conservative, sticking to the basic late-'60s pop and psychedelia that distinguished Private Revolution and Goodbye Jumbo. As always, his production is tasteful and subtle, revealing new layers of sonic detail on each listen, and his songcraft is sturdy and tuneful, if not remarkable. Few of the songs jump out upon the first few listens, yet there are no weak moments on the record, which makes Egyptology, of all things, a workmanlike release. It's not flashy or extravagant, and it may not have the inspiration of Goodbye Jumbo, but it does deliver a collection of fine pop tunes without pretension, and that alone makes it a better album than the overly ambitious Bang!.
(amg 8/10)

Wallflowers [1996] Bringing Down The Horse

[01] One Headlight
[02] 6th Avenue Heartache
[03] Bleeders
[04] Three Marlenas
[05] The Difference
[06] Invisible City
[07] Laughing Out Loud
[08] Josephine
[09] God Don't Make Lonely Girls
[10] Angel On My Bike
[11] I Wish I Felt Nothing



amg: No sophomore jinx here. Of course, there are only two Wallflowers left from their first release, so this could be called a whole new band. No matter, because the music here is assured and contemporary with just enough of the past showing through to catch one's eye. Jakob Dylan has been polishing his compositional chops and it really shows on such cuts as "Invisible City," the hit "6th Avenue Heartache" and especially "One Headlight." A fine effort indeed.
(amg 9/10)

Wet Wet Wet [1995] Picture This

[01] Julia Says
[02] After The Love Goes
[03] Somewhere Somehow
[04] Gypsy Girl
[05] Don't Want To Forgive Me Now
[06] She Might Never Know
[07] Someone Like You
[08] Love Is My Shepherd
[09] She's All On My Mind
[10] Morning
[11] Home Tonight
[12] Love Is All Around



amazon: The sales of Wet Wet Wet's fifth album had everything to do with Four Weddings And A Funeral (featuring, of course, "Love Is All Around") but not a terrible amount to do with the quality of the record. Thirteen weeks at number one with a cover version can place an awful lot of pressures on a band, and, at some level, the Glasgow quartet must have been aware that their songwriting style simply didn't lend itself to providing a natural follow-up. That said, there are moments here that remind us where Wet Wet Wet's roots do lie. "She's All On My Mind" and "Somewhere Somehow" return to the gentle Memphis inflections that occasionally seeped into earlier albums, but they're all too often swamped by the kind of lavish production that bands usually turn to when they're feeling self-conscious. One wonders to what degree the pressures of stardom eventually turned the band in on each other and Mart Pellow to drugs. But for all the money spent on it, Picture This could do with some of the youthful joie de vivre found on 1986's Popped In Souled Out.
(amg 6/10)

Waterboys [1993] Dream Harder

[01] The New Life
[02] Glastonbury Song
[03] Preparing To Fly
[04] The Return Of Pan
[05] Corn Circles
[06] Suffer
[07] Winter Winter
[08] Love And Death
[09] Spiritual City
[10] Wonders Of Lewis
[11] The Return Of Jimi Hendrix
[12] Good News



amg: After two albums of neo-traditional Irish music, Mike Scott brings The Waterboys back to the big rock sound of earlier albums like This is the Sea. Coming after the remarkably accomplished Fishermen's Blues and Room to Roam, Dream Harder is a bit of a disappointment. Its best material doesn't carry the same weight as compositions from Blues — compare the simple beauty of Fishermen's Blues' "Has Anyone Hear Seen Hank" to Dream Harder's overblown "The Return of Jimi Hendrix." Scott can still bang out some good songs, but on Dream Harder there aren't as many as on previous efforts.
(amg 4/10)

World Party [1993] Bang!

[01] Kingdom Come
[02] Is It Like Today
[03] What Is Love All About
[04] And God Said...
[05] Give It All Away
[06] Sooner Or Later
[07] Hollywood
[08] Radio Days
[09] Rescue Me
[10] Sunshine
[11] All I Gave
[12] Give It All Away (Reprise)



amg: On his previous releases, Wallinger has displayed a social conscience, but never has it taken prominence like it does on Bang!, World Party's third album. Bang! does contain some glorious music that equals his masterpiece Goodbye Jumbo, but the album slows down when he tries to say too much (as in the quasi-operatic "And God Said"). Even then, Wallinger's preaching doesn't obliterate the considerable pleasures of the music. Wallinger has often been accused of recycling the Beatles, but the truth is that he can combine the Beatles, Beach Boys, Sly Stone, Dylan, and Prince into a musical style that is distinctive and unique yet familiar. Bang!, for all of its shortcomings, is as strong an album as any Wallinger has released.
(amg 6/10)

Wet Wet Wet [1993] End Of Part One: Their Greatest Hits

[01] Wishing I Was Lucky
[02] Sweet Little Mystery
[03] Angel Eyes
[04] Temptation
[05] With A Little Help From My Friends
[06] Sweet Surrender
[07] Broke Away
[08] Hold Back The River
[09] Stay With Me Heartache
[10] This Time
[11] Make It Tonight
[12] Put The Light On
[13] Goodnight Girl
[14] More Than Love
[15] Lip Service
[16] Blue For You
[17] Shed A Tear
[18] Cold, Cold Heart
[19] Love Is All Around



amg: From the time Wet Wet Wet's debut was released in 1987 to the time this best-of compilation was released in 1993, the band managed to become one of the biggest-selling acts in British chart history; and that was before the release of "Love Is All Around." End of Part One brings together Wet Wet Wet's hits from the late '80s and early '90s and is a good overview of the band's early catalog of work. Ranging from blue-eyed soul to radio-friendly pop, the disc catalogs the band's evolution, although it also serves to show some of the limitations of the band, most noticeably Marti Pellow's charismatic but limited vocal delivery. For casual fans, this is all the Wet Wet Wet you'll ever need, as End of Part One contains the best of their recordings without too much of the album fill. Apart from their biggest single, "Love Is All Around," there was nothing from the last few years of their existence that matched the quality of the songs collected here.
(amg 8/10)

Wet Wet Wet [1992] High On The Happy Side

[01] More Than Love
[02] Lip Service
[03] Put The Light On
[04] High On The Happy Side
[05] Maybe Tomorrow
[06] Goodnight Girl
[07] Celebration
[08] Make It Tonight
[09] How Long
[10] Brand New Sunrise
[11] 2 Days After Midnite



amg: By the time High on the Happy Side was released, Wet Wet Wet had realized that their true strength lay in making soul-pop ballads. As a result, this album is more a return to their soul roots than an extension of the pop of Holding Back the River. This is not a perfect album by any means. The songwriting is flimsy, even by Wet Wet Wet's standards, and there are a number of tracks here that descend too far into syrupy ballad territory (especially the most successful single from the disc, "Goodnight Girl"). However, there are a number of surprises here. More than on previous outings, the band have let vocal harmonies come to the fore with great effect, although there is still no doubt that Marti Pellow's voice is the main focus. The other notable change here is that the synthesizers that were an integral part of their sound have largely been replaced, even to the point of the inclusion of acoustic songs. Again, this is a successful step forward for the band. There are fewer "rock" tracks here, with the band preferring to stick to the slow-paced pop of "Put the Light On" and "Make It Tonight." While this will undoubtedly make the album palatable to fewer listeners, there is still enough variation to show that, amazingly, a band like Wet Wet Wet can actually make their sound evolve. One of their better and more interesting albums.
(amg 8/10)

Waterboys [1990] Room To Roam

[01] In Search Of A Rose
[02] Song From The End Of The World
[03] A Man Is In Love
[04] Calliope House
[05] Bigger Picture
[06] Natural Bridge Blues
[07] Something That Is Gone
[08] The Star And The Sea
[09] A Life Of Sundays
[10] Islandman
[11] The Raggle Taggle Gypsy [Version 2]
[12] How Long Will I Love You
[13] Upon The Wind And The Waves
[14] Spring Comes To Spiddal
[15] The Trip To Broadford
[16] Further Up, Further In
[17] Room To Roam



amg: The Waterboys' departure from the self-described "big music" of the early to mid-'80s into the more pastoral Celtic folk-rock landscapes of Fisherman's Blues frustrated many longtime fans who thought that the group belonged in the same arenas as contemporaries like U2 or the Alarm, but it also brought in a new set of listeners who were looking for a young Fairport Convention or Steeleye Span. Taking its name from a passage in Scottish author, poet, and minister George MacDonald' fantasy novel Phantastes: A Faerie Romance for Men and Women, Room to Roam extends the scope of the group's previous effort by integrating that album's Irish and Scottish folk elements further into the rock and pop nether regions. If anything, Room to Roam captures head (and soon to be only) Waterboy Mike Scott at his most unabashedly Beatlesque, stringing together whispery interludes, pub-style jam sessions (of the traditional folk variety), sound effects, and genre-defying forays into soul ("Something That Is Gone"), country ("How Long Will I Love You?"), traditional folk ("Raggle Taggle Gypsy"), and full-on rock & roll ("Life of Sundays") — the latter cut even dissolves into a group singalong of the Fab Four classic "Yellow Submarine." Of the two albums, Room to Roam balances these two worlds the most effectively, and while the more focused and nuanced Fisherman's Blues is the superior record, it lacks Roam's amiable, schizophrenic, and pioneering spirit.
(amg 8/10)

World Party [1990] Goodbye Jumbo

[01] Is It Too Late
[02] Way Down Now
[03] When The Rainbow Comes
[04] Put The Message In The Box
[05] Ain't Gonna Come Till I'm Ready
[06] And I Fell Back Alone
[07] Take It Up
[08] God On My Side
[09] Show Me To The Top
[10] Love Street
[11] Sweet Soul Dream
[12] Thank You World



amg: This excellent follow-up album from World Party is much tighter than the debut. Dealing with issues from the environment ("Take It Up," "Put the Message in the Box") to relationship woes ("And I Fell Back Alone"), these tracks manage to maintain a hopeful, positive mood without becoming trivial. In these songs, Wallinger has developed his own distinct style. A great album, worth checking out just for the uptempo groove of "Way Down Now."
(amg 9/10)

Wet Wet Wet [1989] Holding Back The River

[01] Sweet Surrender
[02] Can't Stand the Night
[03] Blue for You
[04] Broke Away
[05] You've Had It
[06] I Wish
[07] Keys to Your Heart
[08] Maggie May
[09] Hold Back the River
[10] How The Hell Did They Get There


amg: Wet Wet Wet had a difficult task in following the success of their debut Popped In Souled Out, eventually returning with Holding Back the River. While not a major departure from the style that saw Popped In become a British chart-topper, it did see the band stepping away from soul and venturing more into pure pop territory. By and large this new approach works. Holding Back the River is a collection of pleasant, melodic, somewhat lightweight pop songs topped by Marti Pellow's charismatic vocal delivery. Two of the best tracks here are the pop gems "Sweet Surrender" and "Can't Stand the Night" (the latter was renamed "Stay with Me Heartache" when released as a single). There are some weak points, though, most of which arise because Pellow's voice is not suited to some of these songs. While "Maggie May" remains faithful to the original version, Wet Wet Wet lack the emotion that Rod Stewart was able to give the song, and Pellow is completely lost on the otherwise enjoyable blues of "Hold Back the River." A good album, but not one of their more essential recordings.
(amg 8/10)

Waterboys [1988] Fisherman's Blues

[01] Fisherman's Blues
[02] We Will Not Be Lovers
[03] Strange Boat
[04] World Party
[05] Sweet Thing
[06] Jimmy Hickey's Waltz
[07] And A Bang On the Ear
[08] Has Anybody Here Seen Hank
[09] When Will We Be Married
[10] When Ye Go Away
[11] Dunford's Fancy
[12] The Stolen Child



amg: Mike Scott had been pursuing his grandiose "big music" since he founded the Waterboys, so it came as a shock when he scaled back the group's sound for the Irish and English folk of Fisherman's Blues. Although the arena-rock influences have been toned down, Scott's vision is no less sweeping or romantic, making even the simplest songs on Fisherman's Blues feel like epics. Nevertheless, the album is the Waterboys' warmest and most rewarding record, boasting a handful of fine songs ("And a Bang on the Ear," the ominous "We Will Not Be Lovers," "Has Anybody Here Seen Hank?," and the title track), as well as a surprisingly successful cover of Van Morrison's breathtaking "Sweet Thing." [Fisherman's Blues was reissued in 2006 with a bonus disc containing fourteen outtakes, alternate versions and late-night studio jams. The re-mastered original included extended versions of "And a Bang on the Ear" and "World Party."]
(amg 9/10)

Wet Wet Wet [1987] Popped In Souled Out

[01] Wishing I Was Lucky
[02] East Of The River
[03] I Remember
[04] Angel Eyes (Home And Away)
[05] Sweet Little Mystery
[06] I Don't Believe (Sonny's Letter)
[07] Temptation
[08] I Can Give You Everything
[09] The Moment You Left Me
[10] Words of Wisdom
[11] Don't Let Me Be Lonely Tonight
[12] World in Another
[13] Wishing I Was Lucky (Live)



amg: The new blue-eyed soul band with a sophisticated sound and two hit singles already under their belts, released their debut album, Popped in Souled Out in the autumn of 1987. All tracks were composed jointly by the bandmembers Graeme Clark, Tommy Cunningham, Neil Mitchell, and Marti Pellow except the James Taylor song "Don't Let Me Be Lonely Tonight." Most of the songs were midtempo including the debut single and album opener, "Wishing I Was Lucky" as well as the two follow-up singles, "Sweet Little Mystery" and "Angel Eyes." The fourth single "Temptation" was a ballad in the style of Spandau Ballet's "Through the Barricades" and was the least successful of the tracks released as singles. Many of the songs, despite being filled with horns and strings reminiscent of Phil Collins' No Jacket Required era, lacked a distinctive melody, including most of the tracks not released as singles. Thus the album appeared crammed with rather too much filler although Marti Pellow carried even a tuneless song with his lush soulful voice. Popped in Souled Out hit number two in the charts on its first week, eventually climbing to the very top at the beginning of 1988 and spending the whole of the first half of that year inside the Top 10. During this run, they released a non-album track, "With a Little Help from My Friends" for the Childline charity, which became the bands' first number one single. The album concluded with a live version of their first hit, "Wishing I Was Lucky," which was almost identical to the studio version.
(amg 7/10)

World Party [1987] Private Revolution

[01] Private Revolution
[02] Making Love (To The World)
[03] Ship Of Fools
[04] All Come True
[05] Dance Of The Hoppy Lads
[06] It Can Be Beautiful (Sometimes)
[07] The Ballad Of The Little Man
[08] Hawaiian Island World
[09] All I Really Want To Do
[10] World Party
[11] It's All Mine



amg: This debut album from World Party is a solid release, even if it is a bit heavy on the synthesized sounds (what can you expect from a one-man band?). Karl Wallinger's insightful songs deal primarily with the responsibility of the individual to recognize and cope with the problems of the world. Private Revolution features mainly original songs like the title track, "World Party," and "It's All Mine," as well as a cover of Dylan's "All I Really Want to Do," which remains surprisingly true to the original version.
(amg 6/10)

Warren Zevon [1986] A Quiet Normal Life

[01] Werewolves Of London
[02] Excitable Boy
[03] Play It All Night Long
[04] Roland The Headless Thompson Gunner
[05] The Envoy
[06] Mohammed's Radio
[07] Desperados Under The Eaves
[08] Johnny Strikes Up The Band
[09] I'll Sleep When I'm Dead
[10] Lawyers, Guns And Money
[11] Ain't That Pretty At All
[12] Poor Poor Pitiful Me
[13] Accidentally Like A Martyr
[14] Looking For The Next Best Thing



amg: Warren Zevon's body of work is a good bit more diverse and intelligent than you might imagine if you only know his music from the radio; while his relative hits ("Werewolves of London," "Excitable Boy," "Lawyers, Guns and Money") play more like novelty songs than anything else, his best albums display a melodic sophistication that never gets in the way of his desire to rock out, and a lyrical perspective that's unusually literate, witty, and brutally cynical. As one might expect, A Quiet Normal Life: The Best of Warren Zevon focuses on the artist's best known stuff from his tenure at Asylum Records, and leans more towards "Crazy Warren" tunes (like the above-mentioned trio) over superior if more difficult material like "The French Inhaler" or "Frank and Jesse James," with no rare or unreleased material for completists. It doesn't even honor the hits as well as one might hope (the remastering is a bit on the flat side, and "Lawyers, Guns and Money" appears in a radio edit that deletes the final verse), and there isn't a single song from Stand in the Fire, Zevon's superb live album. But you do get the most famous songs, which are invariably worth hearing (his own hits and a couple tunes that were made famous by Linda Ronstadt, though "Hasten Down the Wind" is curiously absent), along with a few pleasant surprises, including the incendiary "Play It All Night Long" and one of Zevon's finest meditations on life in L.A., "Desperados Under the Eaves." A Quiet Normal Life: The Best of Warren Zevon will satisfy those with a casual interest in the artist, but for a better one-stop introduction to this songwriter's body of work, try I'll Sleep When I'm Dead (An Anthology).
(amg 9/10)

Waterboys [1985] This Is The Sea

[01] Don't Bang The Drum
[02] The Whole Of The Moon
[03] Spirit
[04] The Pan Within
[05] Medicine Bow
[06] Old England
[07] Be My Enemy
[08] Trumpets
[09] This Is The Sea
[10] Beverly Penn
[11] Sleek White Schooner
[12] Medicine Bow [Full-Length Version]
[13] Medicine Jack
[14] High Far Soon
[15] Even The Trees Are Dancing
[16] Towers Open Fire
[17] This Is The Sea [Live]
[18] Then You Hold Me
[19] Spirit [Full-Length Version]
[20] Miracle
[21] I Am Not Here
[22] Sweet Thing
[23] Waves



amg: Expanding the epic, multi-layered sound of A Pagan Place, This is the Sea is a more ambitious yet a more successful record, since it finds Mike Scott at his melodic peak. Consequently, the album has enough strong, accessible moments to make his indulgences forgivable.
(amg 9/10)

Waterboys [1984] A Pagan Place

[01] Church Not Made With Hands
[02] All The Things She Gave Me
[03] The Thrill Is Gone
[04] Rags
[05] Some Of My Best Friends Are Trains
[06] Somebody Might Wave Back
[07] The Big Music
[08] Red Army Blues
[09] A Pagan Place



amg: On their second album, A Pagan Place, the Waterboys turn Celtic folk-rock into a monumental fusion of Van Morrison's poetry, arena rock, and Phil Spector's monolithic wall of sound. Mike Scott's ideas are simply too grand to be executed properly, yet A Pagan Place has enough thrilling moments to make his embarrassing missteps forgivable.
(amg 6/10)

Yazoo [1982] Upstairs At Eric's

[01] Don't Go
[02] Too Pieces
[03] Bad Connection
[04] Midnight
[05] In My Room
[06] Only You
[07] Goodbye '70's
[08] Tuesday
[09] Winter Kills
[10] Bring Your Love Down (Didn't I)
[11] The Other Side Of Love (12 Inch)
[12] Situation (Remixed By Francois Kervorkian)



amg: Vince Clarke can claim involvement in two stunning debuts in only two years: Depeche Mode's Speak and Spell and Yaz's Upstairs at Eric's. While Speak and Spell is, by far, the more consistent record, Upstairs at Eric's is wholly more satisfying, beating the Depeche record on substance and ambition, and is light years ahead in emotion. "Don't Go" and "Situation" are absolutely killer with Clarke's bubbling synth and singer Alison Moyet's bluesy and powerful delivery. They're both rightful dance floor staples, and have since undergone numerous remixes, both official and bootleg. "Bring Your Love Down (Didn't I)" is just as good a thumper, adding a wonderful mumbled bridge that shows how much Clarke enjoyed messing with pop music. The softer "Only You" would have sounded silly and robotic if it had appeared on Speak and Spell, but Moyet's vocals makes it bittersweet and engaging. The clumsier experimental tracks make most people head for the hits collection, but to do so would be to miss the album's great twist. The loony tape loop of "I Before E Except After C," the skeletal "Winter Kills," and a disruptive phone call in the middle of the naïve "Bad Connection" offer up more complex and intimate moments. Like its curious cover, Upstairs at Eric's presents a fractured, well-lit, and paranoid urban landscape.
(amg 8/10)

Weather Report [1979] 8:30

[01] Black Market
[02] Scarlet Woman
[03] Teen Town
[04] A Remark You Made
[05] Slang (Bass Solo)
[06] In A Silent Way
[07] Birdland
[08] Thanks For The Memory (Tenor Sax Solo)
[09] Badia - Boogie Woogie Waltz Medley
[10] 8:30
[11] Brown Street
[12] The Orphan
[13] Sightseeing



amg: Weather Report is generally regarded as the greatest jazz fusion band of all time, with the biggest jazz hit ("Birdland") from the best jazz fusion album (1977's Heavy Weather). But the group's studio mastery sometimes overshadows the fact that it was also a live juggernaut — so don't overlook the outstanding live and studio album from 1979, 8:30. This was a rare quartet version of Weather Report, with co-leaders in keyboardist Joe Zawinul and saxophonist Wayne Shorter. The bassist was the inimitable Jaco Pastorius, the drummer a young Peter Erskine. Pastorius is otherworldly on early gems like "Black Market," the breakneck "Teen Town," and his solo showcase, "Slang" (in which he quotes Jimi Hendrix's "Third Stone from the Sun"). Shorter is most involved on the CD's slower pieces like "A Remark You Made," "In a Silent Way," and his own solo piece, "Thanks for the Memory"; Zawinul and Erskine shine on the swinging version of "Birdland" and roller coaster ride of the "Badia/Boogie Woogie Waltz" medley. Four studio tracks (composing what was side four of the original album version) close 8:30 with a flourish — and some surprises. Pastorius duets on drums with Zawinul on the brief title track, then plays double drums with Erskine (as Erich Zawinul plays percussion) on the playful "Brown Street." Zawinul then throws a curve with "The Orphan," dueting with Shorter as ten members of the West Los Angeles Christian Academy Children's Choir chant harmonies. The saxophonist gets in the last word, though, with his burning composition "Sightseeing" — on which he plays unison lines with Zawinul over Pastorius' rare walking bassline and Erskine's most aggressive drumming. A future jazz standard ending one of this band's standard-setting CDs.
(amg 9/10)

Wire [1978] Chairs Missing

[01] Practice Makes Perfect
[02] French Film Blurred
[03] Another The Letter
[04] Men 2nd
[05] Marooned
[06] Sand In My Joints
[07] Being Sucked In Again
[08] Heartbeat
[09] Mercy
[10] Outdoor Miner
[11] I Am The Fly
[12] I Feel Mysterious Today
[13] From The Nursery
[14] Used To
[15] Too Late
[16] Go Ahead [WANTED]
[17] Former Airline
[18] Question Of Degree



amg: Chairs Missing marks a partial retreat from Pink Flag's austere, bare-bones minimalism, although it still takes concentrated listening to dig out some of the melodies. Producer Mike Thorne's synth adds a Brian Eno-esque layer of atmospherics, and Wire itself seems more concerned with the sonic textures it can coax from its instruments; the tempos are slower, the arrangements employ more detail and sound effects, and the band allows itself to stretch out on a few songs. The results are a bit variable — "Mercy," in particular, meanders for too long — but compelling much more often than not. The album's clear high point is the statement of purpose "I Am the Fly," which employs an emphasis-shifting melody and guitar sounds that actually evoke the sound of the title insect. But that's not all by any means — "Outdoor Miner" and "Used To" have a gentle lilt, while "Sand in My Joints" is a brief anthem worthy of Pink Flag, and the four-minute "Practice Makes Perfect" is the best result of the album's incorporation of odd electronic flavors. In general, the lyrics are darker than those on Pink Flag, even morbid at times; images of cold, drowning, pain, and suicide haunt the record, and the title itself is a reference to mental instability. The arty darkness of Chairs Missing, combined with the often icy-sounding synth/guitar arrangements, helps make the record a crucial landmark in the evolution of punk into post-punk and goth, as well as a testament to Wire's rapid development and inventiveness. [The original 1989 CD issue by Restless Retro features three bonus tracks: the fine non-LP single "A Question of Degree" and the B-sides "Go Ahead" and "Former Airline."]
(amg 10/10)

Weather Report [1974] Mysterious Traveller

[01] Nubian Sundance
[02] American Tango
[03] Cucumber Slumber
[04] Mysterious Traveller
[05] Blackthorn Rose
[06] Scarlet Woman
[07] Jungle Book



amg: Weather Report's fourth recording finds Wayne Shorter (on soprano and tenor) taking a lesser role as Joe Zawinul begins to really dominate the group's sound. Most selections also include bassist Alphonso Johnson and drummer Ishmael Wilburn although the personnel shifts from track to track. "Nubian Sundance" adds several vocalists while "Blackthorn Rose" is a Shorter-Zawinul duet. Overall the music is pretty stimulating and sometimes adventurous; high-quality fusion from 1974.
(amg 9/10)

Weather Report [1971] Weather Report

[01] Milky Way
[02] Umbrellas
[03] Seventh Arrow
[04] Orange Lady
[05] Morning Lake
[06] Waterfall
[07] Tears
[08] Eurydice



amg: Here we have the free-floating, abstract beginnings of Weather Report, which would define the state of the electronic jazz/rock art from its first note almost to its last. Their first album is a direct extension of the Miles Davis In a Silent Way/Bitches Brew period, more fluid in sound and more volatile in interplay. Joe Zawinul ruminates in a delicate, liquid manner on Rhodes electric piano; at this early stage, he used a ring modulator to create weird synthesizer-like effects. Wayne Shorter's soprano sax shines like a beacon amidst the swirling ensemble work of co-founding bassist Miroslav Vitous, percussionist Airto Moreira, and drummer Alphonse Mouzon. Zawinul's most memorable theme is "Orange Lady" (previously recorded, though uncredited, by Davis on Big Fun), while Shorter scores on "Tears" and "Eurydice." One of the most impressive debuts of all time by a jazz group.
(amg 10/10)