Quiet Fire - ROBERTA FLACK***

Go Up Moses/Bridge Over Troubled Water/Sunday & Sister Jones/See You Then/Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow/To Love Somebody/Let Them Talk/Sweet Bitter Love

R & B vocalist and pianist Roberta Flack increased her commercial and artistic recognition with Quiet Fire, which includes a significant number of covers of well known songs. (US:18)

“Roberta Flack is back to her smouldering self on Quiet Fire. I was apprehensive as the first tune, Go Up Moses played, because while she does a fine job with gospel, it's the ballads that I really want. Then came her cover of Bridge Over Troubled Water, a song that has been covered countless times, with most failing miserably. Roberta nails it, with all the emotion, love and promise that Paul Simon intended. It's beautiful. But the best of all is the final cut, a gorgeous soulful reading of Sweet Bitter Love which explains perfectly why I love listening to Roberta Flack sing ballads. It's really something to behold.”

“As usual, less is always more with a Roberta Flack album, so the best tunes by far are those that simply feature her on piano. Nothing on this album really misses, and sometimes the results are amazing.”

“You'll love Roberta's passionate readings of many covers on this gem. She does a beauty remake of Aretha Franklin's minor hit Sweet Bitter Love with just herself on keyboards.”

“Quiet Fire is as apt a name as any for this wonderful singer. Her voice is a slow boiler that starts out cool, gradually heats and builds to a raging fire on this album. Go Up Moses stokes those flames. Again, Miss Roberta mines her choices well, and there isn't one bad cut here.”

“Roberta's approach to a song is rather conservative. She may slow it down a bit but always tries to preserve the melody and the cadence of a song. What she does is use her peerless phrasing and majestic performance to transform a song into something precious and personal. Listening to her voice build and rise above the piano is akin to a religious experience and it can't get more churchy than Go Up Moses which has Roberta feverishly incanting over a raucous rhythm.”

“This disc finds Roberta Flack at her peak, flush with her initial success, and building on that with an album that combines soul and jazz feeling. It captures the times, employing themes of mass movement as well as individual passion.”

A Nod Is As Good As A Wink - FACES****

Miss Judy's Farm/You're So Rude/Love Lives Here/Last Orders Please/Stay With Me/Debris/Memphis/Too Bad/That's All You Need

The Faces reached the pinnacle of success as a group with A Nod Is As Good As A Wink. From now on Rod Stewart’s solo career would take precedence, with the rest as mere backing musicians until they were ditched altogether. Includes the UK and US top twenty single Stay With Me. (US:6 UK:2)

“The Faces musically were a long way from the band fronted by Steve Marriott. For one thing, they had no interest in experimentation, being progressive or anything like that. They played raucous rock songs and were far more interested in having a real good time than playing serious music.”

“A Nod Is As Good As A Wink finds the group at the peak of their powers, a finely honed machine. Rod Stewart can be heard transforming into the superstar. Ron Wood proves himself to be one of the most capable guitarists on the planet. I've never been as big on the Ronnie Lane numbers, but even his are pretty good here. From here on out, they would essentially become the backing band for Rod Stewart, and, in the process, lose some of their mojo. Catch them at their best here.”

“The Faces' masterpiece is a glorious rave up, opening with the infectiously bluesy Miss Judy's Farm and closing with the mildly calypso influenced That's All You Need. With perhaps the Faces' most famous song Stay With Me acting as the lynchpin, you could argue that the band's songwriting was never stronger, and they bring excellent performances to match. Rod Stewart's vocal delivery is better than ever, Ron Wood takes the Faces closer to Rolling Stones territory than ever before and Ronnie Lane's compositions bring out the best in all concerned.”

“This was a great, rollicking band, with a reputation built on raucous, sloppy, and fun rock n' roll. The Faces often backed Rod Stewart on his own solo albums, particularly his early classics, but on their own records they cut loose even more.”

“These are some great songs here, and some unusual arrangements, starting with the kick-off Miss Judy's Farm a Ron Wood guitar tour-de-force. The Faces all share equal billing. The cover looks like it might be a live album. Its not, but its how you want a live band to sound.”

“Another classic raw blues and rock album. The Faces were great in their prime, they had a certain sincerity and authenticity.”

Deuce - RORY GALLAGHER****

Use To Be/I'm Not Awake Yet/Don't Know Where I'm Going/Maybe I Will/Whole Lot Of People/In Your Town/ Should've Learnt My Lesson/There's A Light/Out Of My Mind/Crest Of A Wave

Deuce was the follow up solo album from Irish blues-rock guitar legend Rory Gallagher. Unlike many of his contemporaries he eschewed stage theatrics concentrating instead on the music.

“Rory Gallagher had a seemingly instinctive guitar sensibility. On Deuce his passion and splendid playing more than compensate for the occasionally average song writing. Stunning slide guitar, ripping lead runs, and a good murky production tone make this worthy of any collection. Out Of My Mind is a beautiful acoustic number and Crest Of A Wave is a fine showcase.”

“A great follow-up to his first release, with ten very well written blues-rock tunes with some awesome guitar work. I don't know if I ever heard a better blues guitar player than Rory Gallagher. You can hear his soul screaming from his guitar.”

“Rory Gallagher is an excellent guitarist and nearly as good as a vocalist. But all the tracks on this record seem pretty similar, so my fascination for the music drops down a bit towards the end.”

“Deuce brings back to my mind how much Rory was a strikingly gifted artist. This album offers a very delicate form of blues-rock, played with finesse and unmatched feeling. Gallagher doesn't need to go out with the full artillery to be powerful.”

“More rockin’ than the debut, maybe not as much variation, but no matter what Rory did during his peak years it came out fantastic. One of the greatest talents in the history of blues or rock.”

“For people into guitar based music this is really an unappreciated gem of an album. Even the cover is no-nonsense in an age of frivolity and unnecessary showmanship. Gallagher always eschewed stage theatrics for the music and it shows here.”

“The dark, edginess of his first solo release have receded , and Deuce pretty much set the stage for how Gallagher's later catalogue of recordings would be structured, intermixing blistering power riffs from tracks such as Crest Of A Wave and In Your Town with plaintive blues songs such as Don't Know Where I'm Going and Should've Learned My Lesson.”

Ten Man Mop - STEELEYE SPAN***

Gower Wassail/Paddy Clancy's Jig-Willie Clancy's Fancy/Four Nights Drunk/When I Was On Horseback/Marrowbones/Captain Coulston/Dowd's Favourite-£10 Float-The Morning Dew/Wee Weaver/Skewball

Some Steeleye Span fans complained that Ten Man Mop did not make the best use of the band’s strongest asset, the pure voice of Maddy Prior. Following personnel changes they would move towards a more electrified sound.

“Ι find this album quite uneven. Some tracks are great with a progressive influence but others are so depressing and sometimes annoying that I just can't stand them.”

”The songs like Gower Wassail and When I Was On Horseback are the equal of anything on the preceding album, and the two medleys of jigs and reels feature some fantastic playing. My only minor quibble is the Maddy Prior is perhaps a tad under-used.”

“Ten Man Mop could be described as an attempt by Steeleye Span to achieve a sparser, more stripped-down sound than on the two earlier albums. However, the sparser sound scarcely achieves the intensity that might be hoped for, and the amazing atmosphere that was seen on the debut is seldom seen because the production often overemphasised dense violin or guitar work over a band sound. This detracts from Gower Wassail in particular, but even Wee Weaver, with Maddy's beautiful vocals, does not match the band's best work.”

“While Maddy Prior's vocals take something of a back seat here, the re-focus does not hurt the album as much as one might expect. The re-emphasis, while taking some getting used to, manages to still conjure up images of Ye Olde England. Skewball becomes the band most electric outing from their first three albums, while Marrowbones and Four Night's Drunk add some and with humour. Throw in a pair of fine instrumentals and Prior's vocals on her tracks, and you have an album that may fall a bit short of their best, but one that is still worth adding to your collection.”

“Steeleye Span were one of the very first groups to prove that the addition of an electric guitar lick wouldn't destroy the beauty of English traditional folk music. Hard to believe it's many decades since this album was first released as the sound continues to be fresh and current. Maddy Prior's vocals are always a treat and songs such as Skewball are classics made new again by the presentation.”

Hold Your Fire - PATTO***

Hold Your Fire/You You Point Your Finger/How's Your Father/See You At The Dance Tonight/Give It All Away/Air Raid Shelter/Tell Me Where You've Been/Magic Door

Hold Your Fire was the follow up album from the London based progressive rock group Patto named after their vocalist Mike Patto. Although building a reputation as an exciting live act, sales were disappointing and they were dropped from the Vertigo label.

“Not as good as their first release but not bad. Middle of the road rock music from a fairly average band.”

“Significantly off the pace of their debut, this one is much more loosely structured, improvised driven prog rock, but with some tracks more jazz flavoured than rock.”

“Looser and a little bluesier and jazzier than the debut, yet more consistent. The songs seem to have more direction overall.”

“The music on this album is well played and mostly well written. It seems a bit low on character, but if you enjoy guitar driven semi soft blues rock, you should try it out.”

“The lyrics often may rely on hippie imaginary and bourgeois values bashing, but their main problem was the lack of hooks on some songs, which tend to drag a bit and becoming monotonous.”

"Hold Your Fire was Patto's second release, and features an interesting blend of jazzy chords, bluesy singing and straight ahead rock 'n' roll frequently wrapped in epic arrangements of prog-rock length.”

“Inventive songs and incredible guitar playing. Others of far lesser ability have unfortunately received far more accolades, but his playing lives on in the minds and hearts of those who know this music.”

Gonna Take A Miracle - LAURA NYRO & LABELLE***

I Met Him On A Sunday/The Bells/Monkey Time-Dancing In The Streets/Desiree/You've Really Got A Hold On Me/Spanish Harlem/Jimmy Mack/The Wind/Nowhere To Run/Gonna Take A Miracle

Laura Nyro is best remembered as an somewhat intense songwriter, so the release of Gonna Take A Miracle, a collection of soul covers in collaboration with Labelle, comes as rather a surprise. (US:46)

“Gonna Take A Miracle is one of the greatest cover albums ever. This is not surprising to me given Nyro's astonishing run of masterpieces, but it is one of those simple/complex paradox albums that take time and repeated listening to fully reveal itself. Simple covers of Motown and R & B standards with the Labelle sisters become rave ups with hidden social commentary. Slow ballads are stripped down to their very essence featuring layers of soulful vocals with her voice front and centre.”

“Gonna Take A Miracle takes the adolescent superficiality of the mid-60s girl groups and presents them in the format of an operetta that's as serious as life itself. It's an overlooked gem, more easily overlooked, in fact, than Nyro's music in general. This matters little to those who are indifferent or antagonistic towards her unique musical vision but, to the converted, this album sits up there with her best work.”

“Musically, it's classic Philadelphia soul but is infused with Nyro's distinctive vocals, which are halfway between soul queen and opera diva. LaBelle never overpower Nyro, who remains the focus throughout, but their vocals meld particularly well.”

“My favourite Nyro release since I prefer her as a singer rather than a songwriter. She had a great voice, and she didn't over elaborate with American Idol style histrionics.”

“Why does such a great songwriter come up with a covers album? When it comes to an album like this that question is inevitable. Fortunately Laura Nyro has made this album something very special. At one time she's taking the unknown soul ballads The Bells and Desiree and making them sound entirely like Nyro originals, but the next moment she's showing us that she can do Motown, or a capella gospel as well. And if you can make Spanish Harlem sound like something completely new you have to be very special.”

“This was Laura Nyro's way of paying homage to the songs that gave her musical inspiration, and she crafted a fine tribute which has withstood the test of time.”

Nilsson Schmilsson - NILSSON****

Gotta Get Up/Driving Along/Early In The Morning/The Moonbeam Song/Down/Without You/Coconut/Let The Good Times Roll/Jump Into The Fire/I'll Never Leave You

Harry Nilsson achieved his commercial breakthrough in a big way with the transatlantic chart topping, Grammy winning single Without You. The accompanying album Nilsson Schmillson heralded a major change of style for this previously considered rather quirky vocalist. (US:3 UK: 4)

“Nilsson represents one of the most stupid ideas in rock music. That changing from one musical genre to another has some merit. It doesn't. Developing your own sound has merit. Going from faux-tropicalia to country-pop proves only lack of focus and taste. On top of that he's a corny and insipid singer with no discernible musical skill other than being popular.”

“Nilsson's big commercial breakthrough came with this Richard Perry produced album. Helped by the massive success of the single Without You, it seems as if Perry's layered production technique was the final piece needed in the jigsaw puzzle to see Nilsson at last burst into the mainstream, although his wilfulness saw him fail to follow through and become a truly major artist. Most of my favourite Nilsson songs are on his quirky, more innocent first two albums but this wonderfully diverse record perhaps holds up better as an album than anything he ever did after it.”

“It would be safe to assume that this is the most well known of Harry Nilsson’s output. It’s easy to see why. Clocking in at just a little over half an hour, you get ten songs that showcase his eclectic talent, honed to perfection by Richard Perry’s skilful production. Complaints have been made that this album is all over the place. In this case I find that to be a major plus. It covers numerous genres because Harry was talented enough to do it. On top of that his vocal range is on full display.”

“Say what you want about the high schmaltz factor, but his cover Without You,, melodramatic arrangement and all, is worthy of the acclaim that it has received. Nilsson's voice was built for this kind of song and when your version is considered definitive, you must be doing something right.”

“Nilsson's huge breakthrough album probably hasn't aged as well as a lot of his earlier albums, but that has a lot less to do with the quality of the songs/production and a lot more to do with the fact that this was pretty much the blueprint for 1970s pop: it retained enough of the whimsical, free nature of 1960s psych-pop but had a glossier, smoother production that put a lot more emphasis on the performance.”