Country Life - ROXY MUSIC****

The Thrill Of It All/Three & Nine/All I Want Is You/Out Of The Blue/If It Takes All Night/Bitter Sweet/Triptych/ Casanova/A Really Good Time/Prairie Rose

Roxy Music were riding the crest of a wave at the time of the release of Country Life. They had put aside their art-rock credentials, to adopt a more glam rock sound. Features the UK hit single All I Want Is You. (US:37 UK:3)

“In tracks one to four we have the classic Roxy Music sound, great vocals, interesting lyrics, funky guitar and some very jazzy arrangements. Perhaps this is them at the height of their creative powers, confident enough to push out some very uncompromising sounds. It's great that such a band could have been so commercially successful in the early seventies.”

“No one other than Bryan Ferry could sing with this much smug conviction, so full of himself and his own style and still make me like it. Yes, Ferry had that unique ability.”

“Its pretty standard glam music played safely. It’s not quite as unique or interesting as their previous two albums, and without Brian Eno Roxy Music were a lot less noteworthy. Still it’s not bad, just not as memorable and with more filler.”

“Roxy Music had proved that they could produce an interesting progressive-glam amalgam without Brian Eno, and on Country Life they perfected it. Bryan Ferry goes full crooner more often than on any previous album, but the band's art rock credentials never take a dent.”

“The overall impression I get from Country Life is of band going through the motions a little bit, seemingly unconcerned that the spark that made them so vital in the first place was visibly fading before their eyes.”

“The musicianship is still tops, and Ferry's vocals are magnificent, but they still couldn't put all the pieces together to make an essential classic.”

“Roxy Music's Country Life is a superb listen. Take all the musical elements of 70s era Pink Floyd: screaming guitar solos, horn sections, keyboards, hypnotizing bass lines, and melody driven vocals. But instead of sprawled-out, epic, ten minute tracks; compact it into shorter structured pop songs.”

“This is Roxy Music's most overtly rock album. Whether this was as a reaction to their prior art-rock leanings, an attempt to become more commercial, or because Bryan Ferry was hearkening back to his soul and pop roots is immaterial.”