This fine album was originally released in 1980. It is exceedingly poppy for Harper and may not be a favourite of his devotees.
I really like it however as the songwriting remains top-quality in my opinion and the tunes are very memorable and stay with you
Too many guest musicians to mention but what about this bunch: Kate Bush, David Gilmour, Andy Roberts, Jimmy Bain, Steve Broughton and the late, great jazz composer/pianist Don Grolnick.
Although Harper is very much his own man I think he must have been playing a lot of Beatles albums before coming up with this. Not that he sounds remotely like the The Beatles but there is something. Harpers poppy stuff is far more emotional than The Beatles however. Like the best Beatles albums this too is beautifully balanced with each track seeming to fit perfectly into its order.
Harpers vocals are so plaintive and passionate and very much his own. I guess he arouses the same feelings as say Jack Bruce (he sounds nothing like Jack, by the way) in that you either like his singing or you hate it. I love them both.
All the tracks are well-conceived so difficult to pick out a fave. A restrained Bush sings alongside Harper on You to great effect with Gilmours background wailing guitar memorable. The following Old Faces really sounds like it is hippy-trippy 60s. Its just fab.
I cannot imagine this album sold big numbers in 1980 apart from dedicated Harper followers. Thats not to say it didn’t deserve to though. Now that its back in circulation on CD go and discover its endless joy.
