Fearless - FAMILY***

Between Blue & Me/Sat'd'y Barfly/Larf & Sing/Spanish Tide/Save Some For Thee/Take Your Partners/Children/ Crinkly Grin/Blind/Burning Bridges

Fearless was considered by some critics to be a return to form for the British progressive band Family. Their music contained a variety of different styles which sometimes resulted in an eccentric sounding outcome. (US:177 UK:14)

“One of the more eclectic progressive rock bands Family contribute something wholesomely fun on this album, as well as musically ambitious. There are many creative highlights here which place it on equal grounding with Family's first two albums, regardless of the change in tone.”

“The songwriting seems to me too bland, gone are the psychedelic and prog feel of their earlier releases and what is left - blues and roots rock with some desperate attempts to sound modern.”

“Eclectic, excellently-played, heavy art-rock, with an outstanding vocalist. All the guitars and other instrumentation are exemplary. There really was no other band like Family and this is an excellent introductory album for the uninitiated but interested.”

“Over the space of a typical Family LP they'd be all over the map. They didn't serve up many easy hooks and it made you work a bit as a listener to figure what they were on about. Having said that, it was usually worth the effort. Fearless was one of their better efforts.”

“Fearless introduces a much more progressive sounding Family with the addition of bassist/vocalist John Wetton. The folksy Between Blue & Me and Children is Family at their best, although the unfortunate boozy nature of Sat'dy Barfly keeps this album from being an enjoyable listen from start to finish.”

“Family's sound is so hard to pin down, which is probably why they didn't find a true voice outside of the UK. Just about every musical style is thrown in the pot on Fearless. Rock, blues, psychedelia, jazz, soul, folk and eccentric British leanings, all weaved into an indescribable concoction of musical kaleidoscopic topography.”

“This album is a masterpiece from a band whose dramatic, melodic, and stunningly unique music is enhanced by masterful alterations of its sound, both vocally and tonally, in rich, artful complement. The band often alters the output of its conventional rock instrumentation by assigning it un-conventional tonal placements.”