Al Stewart
Band members Related acts
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- Al Stewart -- vocals, guitar
backing musicians (1969): - Brian Brocklehurst -- bass - Harvey Burns -- drums - Simon Breckenridge (aka Simon Nicol) -- guitar - Martyn Francis (aka Martin Lamble (RIP)) -- drums - Stephen Gray -- keyboards - Ashley Hutchings -- bass - Brian Odgers -- bass - Jimmy Page -- lead guitar - Phil Phillips -- keyboards - Mervyn Prestwick (aka Richard Thompson) -- guitar
backing musicians (1970): - Louis Cennamo -- - Gerry Conway -- - Peter Gavin -- - Tim Hinkley -- - George Hultgreen -- - Trevor Lucas -- - Duffy Powers -- - Larry Steele -- - Mike Woods --
backing musicians (1972): - Bb Andrews -- keyboards - Graham Hunt -- bass - Roger Pope - bass - Tim Renwick -- lead guitar - Brinsley Schwarz -- guitar - Bruce Thomas -- bass - Rick Wakeman -- keyboards, synthesizers - Tim Walker - Spanish guitar
backing musicians (1975): - Brian Bennett - background vocals - Tony Carr - percussion - Gerry Conway - drums - Stuart Cowell - dobro, guitar - Barry DeSouza - drums - David Ellis - acoustic guitar - Isaac Guillory (RIP) - guitar - George Ford - bass - Neil Lancaster - background vocals - Charles Mills - background vocals - Peter Moss - fuzz bass - Simon Nicol - guitar - Tim Renwick - guitar - Graham Smith - harmonica - Pete Wingfield - keyboards - Peter Wood - keyboards, accordion
backing musicians (1984): - Denny Caamassi -- drums, percussion - Steve Chapman -- drums, percussion - Lynn Davis -- backing vocals - Mike Fisher -- percussion - Mike Flicker -- percussion - Joyce Kennedy -- backing vocals - Phil Kenzie -- sax - Robin Lambie -- bass, guitar - Marcy Levy -- backing vocals - Marc Macino --- harmonica - Charity McCrary -- backing vocals - Peter White -- guitar, keyboards, accordion - Robin Yurman -- guitar
backing musicians (1988): - Tori Amos -- backing vocals - Kim Bullard -- keyboards - Dave Camp -- flute, sax - Steve Chapman -- percussion - Vinnie Colaiuta -- drums - Steve Ferris -- lead guitar - Carol Sue Hill -- backign vocals - Phil Kenzie -- sax - Robin Lamble -- backing vocals - Tim Landers -- bass - Steve Recker -- lead guitar - Lee Thornburg -- trumpet - Peter White -- lead guitar, keyboards, accordion - Peter Wood -- lead guitar, keyboards
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- none known
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Genre: pop Rating: 3 stars *** Title: Love Chronicles Company: Epic Catalog: BN
25634 Country/State: Glasgow, Scotland Grade (cover/record): VG/VG+ Comments: cut top right corner Available: 1 Catalog ID: 5805 Price: $15.00
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Perhaps because they were looking for another Donovan, in 1968 Stewart found himself signed to Epic Records in the States (CBS distributed his catalog in the UK), which eventually got around to releasing his sophomore album "Love Chronicles". Recorded with a notable cast of guests including Jimmy Page and the bulk of Fairport Convention (listed under pseudonyms to avoid cross-label contract issues), the album was actually scheduled for release in 1968, but ran into a major firestorm in the form of the title track. Serving as extended autobiographical overview of Stewart's love life, 'Love Chronicles' saw Stewart break various taboos by using an obscenity as a verb in describing an act of physical intimacy. You can guess the word. That led to a protracted battle, with Epic management refusing to release the album and Stewart digging in his artistic heels similarly refusing to back down and edit the track. So what about the rest of the album? The title track basically set the theme - Al Stewart as an English stud muffin. Half of the songs seemed to focus on Stewart's sexual conquests. It wasn't exactly a threatening, in-your-face style of obnoxious sexism, rather the results were almost embarrassing - like hearing a buddy babbling on and on about his prowess with the ladies and you know that he's a clueless mama's boy who would run at the sight of a hot woman ... Musically the album also marked a change. Whereas "Bedsitter Images" surrounded Stewart with heavy orchestration, this time out the results were stripped down, with Page and his Fairport buddies giving several tracks a distinctive rock edge. We're not talking Zeppelin here, but far heavier than the debut.
- 'In Brooklyn' served to frame the album's sometimes weird mixture of singer/songwriter folk moves and rock touches; notably Page's screeching electric guitar. Lyrically the song focused on Stewart's luck bedding American fans - for better of worse his sex life came up in quite a few songs on this set. rating: *** stars - Starting off as a more conventional singer/songwriter number, 'Old Compton Street Blues' could have been a Donovan tune. An indication of the storyteller direction he'd pursue in a couple of years, the plotline centered on a wannabe film star who ends up pursuing a somewhat less desirable career path. About halfway through Page and company kicked in (Page turning in one of his best leads), giving the song a distinctive bluesy feel. For what it was worth, Stewart sounded like he was singing with a cold. rating: *** stars - Divided into two distinct segments, the first part of 'The Ballad Of Mary Foster' found Stewart taking potshots at the English middle class, while the second part focused on the mom who'd given up her dreams and settled for a life of safety and comfort. The song was heaven made for English and psychology majors. Way too sensitive and insightful for my tastes, it ran on for over eight minutes. You'll either want to cry for the main character, or want to scream at her for not taking charge of her pathetic life rating: ** stars. - 'Life and Life Only' offered up another stab at the English middle class, this time out it was the foibles of a school teacher cheating on his equally pathetic wife. Framed with one of the album's heavier arrangements, it wasn't a particularly uplifting or cheerful selection, though Page turned in another nice performance. rating: ** stars. - The most mainstream and commercial song on the album, 'You Should Have Listened To Al' had a likeable Byrd-ish folk-rock feel that could have garnered some attention as a single. A relief from the album's somber feel, it was my favorite performance. rating: **** stars. - The autobiographical title track served as an extended overview of Stewart's love life; literally detailing every girlfriend the singer ever had - graduate students have written papers with fewer words than he packed in here (by one count there were almost 1,400 words). Stretching over 18 minutes, there were a couple of funny segments ("missing the bus, walked twelve miles home and it didn't seem far"), but overall it quickly became pretty dull and even the combination Page's lead guitar and the appearance of the naughty word (which didn't show up until around minute 16), couldn't save this one from becoming boring. I imagine most folks had tuned out before they heard the bad word and even if you heard it, Stewart's use of the verb came off as surprisingly sensitive ... kind of a letdown given all the hype, though I'm writing this in an age when most CDs carry parental warning labels. rating: *** stars
This was attracts high praise from the Stewart faithful, but to my ears it hasn't aged all that well, and there's something slightly unsettling about seeing that much of the man's personal life. Call me a prude ...
In the UK the album generate widespread praise, including Melody Maker magazine's selection as 1969 "Folk Album of the Year". In contrast, after all of the commotion around the title track, the album was released to complete indifference in the States, quickly ending up in cutout bins, making it a semi-collectable today.
"Modern
Times" track listing: 1.) In Brooklyn (Al Stewart) - 2.) Old Compton Street Blues (Al Stewart) - 3.) The Ballad Of Mary Foster (Al Stewart) - 4.) Life And Life Only (Al Stewart) - 5.) You Should Have Listened To Al (Al Stewart) -
(side
2) 2.) Love Chronicles (Al Stewart) -
In case anyone cared, the original English release had a different cover (same track listing):
CBS catalog number 63460
The album's seen a couple of reissues. The Collector's Choice package (catalog number 07662) included three forgettable previously unreleased tracks:
1.) Jackdaw (Al Stewart) - 3:20 2.) She Follows Her Own Rules (Al Stewart - Peter White) - 3:18 3.) Fantasy (Al Stewart) - 2:15
reviewed SRB 8/2009
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Genre: pop Rating: 3 stars *** Title: Past, Present and future Company: Arista Catalog: AL
9524 Country/State: Glasgow, Scotland Grade (cover/record): VG+/VG+ Comments: includes original lyric inner sleeve (reissue of the 1974 Janus LP) Available: 1 Catalog ID: 5803 Price: $8.00
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Unlike many Al Stewart fans I came to this album rather late. I didn't pick it up until well after he'd become a late-1970s top-40 staple. As a result, I've always viewed it as kind of a curiosity - 'so that's what he sounded like before he became popular ...' Produced by John Anthony, 1973's "Past, Present and Future" was a concept piece. The plotline was never particularly obvious to my ears since the narratives covered topics bouncing haphazardly across roughly one hundred and twenty years of history (1853 ("Old Admirals') up through the 1960s ('Soho' Needless To Say)'). It's easier to just quote Stewart's own description from the liner notes: "Originally my idea was to write one song for each decade of the twentieth century." Hard to imagine any label green lighting a similar concept in this day and age !
- Musically 'Old Admirals' was okay; if kind of meandering, with it's brief nods to military marches. The concept of measuring a generation via an admiral's life was kind of clunky, but got the point about obsolescence across. Stewart's own description of the song: " ...is based, loosely on the life of Admiral of the Fleet, Lord Fisher, but is really a song about growing old, and becoming unwanted." rating: *** stars - 'Warren Harding' benefited from a spiffy, mildly Caribbean-flavored melody and a nice Tim Renwick lead guitar. Unfortunately once again the obscure subject matter didn't really do much for the song. Sad to say, but I wonder how many Americans would even know who Warren Harding was. Stewart's own description of the song: " Warren Harding was President of the USA from 1920 to 1923, and my song contrasts his decline and fall with the rise of an immigrant bootlegger." rating: ** stars - With a pseudo rap-like delivery, 'Soho (Needless To Say)' was an abrupt departure from Stewart's historical wanderings. The song highlight came in the form of the dual acoustic guitars that closed out the track. Unfortunately the song faded out just as it was starting to pick up some energy. Stewart's own comments on the composition: "Soho" is present and I did in fact spend many such rainy Friday evenings walking around in between sets at "Les Cousins' when I lived just down the road in Lisle Street.' rating: ** stars - "The last day of June 1934 decided the course of European history for the next eleven years. Ernst Roehm and his followers in the hierarchy of the S.A. [Sturmabteilung - roughly translated as storm brigade] had represented the most real threat to Hitler's authority within the Third Reich at this time by. By their elimination he gained the support of the Army, and thus made his position as Dictator virtually impregnable. Here I had looked in on some of the other 'sleeping Europeans.' The jaunty melody certainly made for a stark contrast with the subject matter, though once again the subject matter was probably lost to lots of listeners. rating: *** stars - 'Post World War Two Blues' was inspired by what I thought was a quite surrealist idea. As legend has it Churchill really did refuse to talk to Earl Mountbatten after the latter had presided over the granting of independence to India, and if Churchill really did say to Mountbatten "How could you have given India away?" what else could Mountbatten have answered by "some of these things slip through your hands ..." In spite of the heady description the song seemed to be more of a personal reflection on growing up as a post-war baby. Nice kind of Dylan-ish tsunami of words format. rating: ** stars - I'll readily admit that I'm not a big fan of Stewart's historical epics, but 'Roads To Moscow' was worth hearing. It wasn't much musically; the late Isaac Guillory providing some Spanish guitar to give it Russian flavor (yeah that sounded weird), but the music was basically just an aural background for the story of a Russian soldier who survived the German assault; fought his way back to Berlin, only to be imprisoned in a Gulag by Stalin. "The German invasion of Russia, on the 22nd June 1941, was one of the greatest single events of the history of the world. The hero of "Roads To Moscow" fights his way backwards towards Moscow, and then all the way to Berlin, only to be imprisoned by Stalin, as were incalculable millions at the end of the Second World War. General Gudevian, the Panzer Leader, was incidentally perhaps the most imaginative of the early German Commanders, and his lightening drives across Poland and France had created the basis for much of the German Army's reputation for invincibility. He was also the only German General to argue with Hitler, during the latter's frequent harangues." rating: **** stars - 'Terminal Eyes' was another song that seemed out of place amidst the historical vignettes. Yeah, it did bare more than a passing resemblance to a Fab Four song. "Any resemblance between 'terminal eyes' and 'I am the walrus' is intentional. Terminal Eyes is a suicide song, both about an individual, but less obviously, about the movement in popular music in the middle to late sixties. For Egg-men everywhere." Easily my favorite song on the album. rating: ***** stars - The first half of 'Nostradamus' just kind of plodded along, but when the song got to the actual prophecies the tempo picked up (great bass pattern) and the track became quite enjoyable. 'Course the acoustic guitar solo segment was okay, but needlessly extended the song well beyond its welcome. Would have been far better with a little bit of judicious editing and without the operatic closing segment. "For "Nostradamus" I have leaned heavily on the researches of Erika Cheetham, whose book on the subject is shortly to be published and who had kindly written some sleeve notes for me. Whether or not you believe his prophecies to be true rests with you, but history seem to be on his side." rating: *** stars
Hard to believe but in the UK the album spun off a pair of singles:
- 1973's 'Terminal Eyes' b/w 'The Last Days of June 1934' (CBS catalog number S CBS 1791) - 1974's 'Nostradamus' b/w '???' (CBS catalog number S CBS 2397)
Even harder to believe that Janus floated a single in the States:
- 'Nostradamus' b/w 'Terminal Eyes' (Janus catalog number J-243)
Too inconsistent to be my favorite Al Stewart album, but has enough classic cuts to be worth checking out (plus you can still find it cheap). Besides, listening to this was far more fun than sitting through a history class.
Backed by positive reviews from the critics the album actually charted in the States, peaking at #133.
The original UK release of CBS featured a different cover (though the same track listing):
CBS catalog number 65726
"Past,
Present and Future" track listing: 1.) Old Admirals (Al Stewart) - 5:54 2.) Warren Harding (Al Stewart) - 2:39 3.) Soho (Needless To Say) (Al Stewart) - 3:55 4.) The Last Days of June 1934 (Al Stewart) - 4:45 5.) Post World War Two Blues (Al Stewart) - 4:17
(side
2) 2.) Terminal Eyes (Al Stewart) - 3:22 3.) Nostradamus (Al Stewart) - 9:46
reviewed SRB 8/2009
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Genre: pop Rating: 3 stars *** Title: Modern Times Company: CBS Catalog: 80477 Country/State: Glasgow, Scotland Grade (cover/record): VG+ / VG+ Comments: UK pressing include lyric insert Available: 1 Catalog ID: 5797 Price: $15.00
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Funny, but "Modern Times' was my introduction to the Al Stewart cult, though I didn't know such. I can clearly remember seeing stacks and stacks of this album piled up and available at a deep discount at my local Penguin Feather record store (dating myself here). I had no idea who Al Stewart was at the time, but I remember picking up copies of the album and trying to decipher the cover. Not that the cover art on the US pressing exactly inspired my rock and roll curiosity. Shame it took me a couple of years to correct that shortsightedness.
US cover Janus catalog JXS-7012 UK cover CBS 80477
Released by the Janus label in the States, the album featured the same track listing, but different cover art. Needless trivia - the blond woman on the cover was David Gilmour's first wife Ginger, while the car belonged to Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page.
As the title coincidently alluded to, 1975's Alan Parsons produced "Modern Times" found singer/songwriter Al Stewart moving towards a fuller, more modern sound. The album also found Stewart moving away from his historical-based compositions in favor of what amounted to short story-songs (sorry for the crappy description). The lyrically dense results were still instantly recognizable as Al Stewart, just shinier and fuller. 'Course if you weren't already an Al Stewart fan, that probably did little to change your mind about the guy. Yeah, Stewart managed to pack more narrative and imagery into three minute vignettes than many novelists managed to cram into hundred of pages of print. It was also true that he occasionally came off as somewhat fey and pompous.
- Even though it opened up with your patented strumming acoustic guitar, 'Carol' served as a nice introduction to Stewart's updated electric sound. Complete with glistening lead guitar from Tim Renwick, the track actually rocked (well relatively speaking). The life-is-tough-for-a-party-chick lyric didn't exactly make me cry ('diving into a cocaine holiday' was a nice image ...), but it was nice to know Stewart was worried about that segment of the population. rating: **** stars - 'Sirens of Titan' was obviously based on the Kurt Vonnegut novel. Since Vonnegut's book never made much sense to me (for a laugh try reading the Wikipedia summation), I really can't comment on the song's literary merit, though the melody and performances were modestly catchy. rating: ** stars - An acoustic number kicked along by some fantastic guitar, 'What's Going On?' had a great melody, nice harmonica, catchy chorus and actually rocked out harder than some of the full band selections. rating: **** stars - 'Not the One' was a perfect example of Stewart's musical novella vision. Literally choking on literary imagery, this one probably sent English majors into spasms of joy. At the other end of the spectrum, stuff like this was liable to kill Slade fans. That said, the upbeat tune wasn't half bad. Nice electric piano hook throughout the song. rating: ** stars - 'Next Time' had kind of a bluesy feel, but the real highlight came in the form of the twin acoustic guitars. Nice interplay that made you complete forget about the lyrics. rating: **** stars - Up to this point Stewart had never been known for pop tunes, making 'Apple Cider Re-Constitution' kind of a surprise. Certainly not your standard throwaway slice of top-40 unless you consider a song describing the decay and decline of a railway station typical radio material, the song was still quite commercial and catchy. It also boasted the best guitar solo on the album. rating: **** stars - Kicked along by Tim Renwick's typically tasteful guitar, 'The Dark and the Rolling Sea' was my choice for favorite song. Certainly not the most commercial song on the album, but memorable and actually thought provoking. rating: ***** stars - The title track was almost as good - great melody (if the orchestration was a little heavy handed), one of Stewart's best vocals, another fantastic performance from Tim Renwick, and surprisingly poignant lyrics - I can remember listening to this after meeting up with a college friend I hadn't seen in some twenty years. Hard to grow older and try to recall past glories ... rating: **** stars
In the US and UK the album's single was:
- 1975's 'Carol' b/w 'Sirens of Titan' (Janus catalog number J250) -
1975's 'Carol' b/w 'Next Time' (CBS catalog number S
CBS 3254) Not my favorite Stewart album, but in the top-3 and I'll readily admit that this one sounds great and was actually stronger because it wasn't as commercial as some of this latter releases. It was even better when heard through a quality set of headphones, or on a high end stereo system.
Supported by favorable reviews from the critics, it actually sold quite well in the States, peaking at # 30.
"Modern
Times" track listing: 1.) Carol (Al Stewart) - 4:24 2.) Sirens of Titan (Al Stewart) -2:50 3.) What's Going On? (Al Stewart) - 3:34 4.) Not the One (Al Stewart) -4:34 5.) Next Time (Al Stewart) -4:19
(side
2) 2.) The Dark and the Rolling Sea (Al Stewart) - 5:21 3.) Modern Times (Dave Mudge - Al Stewart) - 8:21
For an album that wasn't a massive hit, it's kind of curious to see this one's been re-released at least three times. In 1992 Rhino released the album in CD format without additional material (catalog number R2-71046). The 2000 re-issue by The Beat Goes On label (catalog number BGOCD156) included three additional tracks:
1.) News from Spain (Al Stewart) - 6:03 2.) Elvaston Place (Al Stewart) - 2:53 3.) Swallow Wind (Al Stewart) - 3:21
In 2007 Collector's Choice Music (catalog number CCM-769) reissued the collection with three different bonus tracks:
1,) Swallow Wind (Al Stewart) - 3:23 2.) A Sense of Deja Vu (Al Stewart) - 4:50 3.) Willie the King (Al Stewart) - 4:01
reviewed SRB 8/2009
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Genre: pop Rating: 3 stars *** Title: Early Years Company: Janus Catalog: XJXS
7026 Country/State: Glasgow, Scotland Grade (cover/record): VG+//VG+ Comments: double LP; gatefold sleeve Available: 1 Catalog ID: 5804 Price: $15.00
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So put yourself in the shoes of an executive of
Janus Records. You've spent quite a bit of time, effort, and money
trying to promote Al Stewart to American audiences without much commercial
success. The ungrateful guy bolts for another label and suddenly
becomes a megastar. What are you to do? Well naturally you're
going to go raid those corporate archives and re-release some of that older
material, even if it comes into direct competition with the artist's newest
studio release.
Yeap, that's a pretty apt description of 1978's "The Early Years". Pulling material from Stewart's first four studio albums "Bedsitter Images", "Love Chronicles", Zero She Flies", and "Orange", the result was a 16 track double album retrospective. Who knows what the thinking was, but for some reason Janus decided to include all of the "Love Chronicles" album, with the other two sides featuring highlights from the other three studio sets. Was it an essential acquisition? Of course not. On the other hand it was a cheap and convenient way to sample Stewart's early career in order to see if that material had any interest for you. You can read the other reviews for more details on the individual albums. "Early
Years" track listing: 1.) Bedsitter Images (Al Stewart) - 2.) You Don't Even Know Me (Al Stewart) - 3.) I'm Falling (Al Stewart) - 4.) A Small Fruit Song (Al Stewart) - 5.) The News from Spain (Al Stewart) -
(side
2) 2.) Denise At 16 (Al Stewart) - 3.) Manuscript (Al Stewart) - 4.) Clifton In the Rain (Al Stewart) - 5.) Night of the 4th of May (Al Stewart) -
(side 3) 1.) In Brooklyn (Al Stewart) - 2.) Old Compton Street Blues (Al Stewart) - 3.) The Ballad of Mary Foster (Al Stewart) - 4.) Life and Life Only (Al Stewart) -
(side
4) 2.) Love Chronicles (Al Stewart) -
reviewed SRB 8/2009
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Genre: pop Rating: 3 stars *** Title: Last Days of the Century Company: Enigma Catalog: D1
73316 Country/State: Glasgow, Scotland Grade (cover/record): VG+//VG+ Comments: includes lyric insert Available: 1 Catalog ID: 3103 Price: $10.00
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Continuing his corporate wanderings, 1988's "Last Days of the Century" found Al Stewart signed by Enigma Records. For a label known for it's roster of punk and metal bands (Poison, Red Hot Chilli Peppers, The Smithereens, Stryper), Enigma was an odd choice to sign Stewart, but the label was on a commercial winning streak and was apparently willing to invest considerable time and capital on Stewart, even financing a promotional video for one of the songs. Produced by Joe Chiccarelli (Pete White listed as associate producer), the business partnership should have led to big things. It didn't. Within a matter of months of the album being released, Enigma had been acquired by Capitol which had little interest in much of the label's recording roster - including Stewart. Ironically, Stewart's first studio album in four years, stands as a collection that seems to be universally disliked by his fan base.
Like everything else in Stewart's catalog, this was apparently a concept album, but having listened to it dozens of times, to this day I don't have a clue what the underlying theme was. To my ears the collection sounded like a bunch of odds and ends that Stewart hadn't been able to slot on to earlier collections. Is there a link between Josephine Baker, the legal profession, and exploration of Antarctica ? That said, the absence of a unifying theme wasn't a bad thing. Sure, longtime fans who grew up on Stewart's detailed historical pieces were probably distraught by the absence of a unifying theme, but it didn't bother me all that much. I was more irritated by the fact the album included a couple of flat and uninspired numbers ...
So, I'll go against the tide and tell you the album's far better than critics would have you believe. Yes, the pop ('Red Toupee') and AOR orientations ('Bad Reputation'), took a little getting acclimated to, but Stewart's unique sound and approach to music remain intact. Once you got over the flat '80s production and the shock of hearing Stewart writing truly commercial tunes like 'King of Portugal' and 'Bad Reputation', the album was one of those low-keyed pleasures. I even like the AWest cover art.
"Last Days
of the Century" track listing: 1.) Last Days of the Century (Al Stewart - Pete White) - 6:17 rating: *** stars Hum, the disco-ish rhythm, burping synthesizers, big hair band lead guitar, and Tori Amos on backing vocals still take a little getting use to. Listening to this one I can kind of see why some fans were less than impressed. YouTube has a December,1988 performance of the song taken from a show in Antwerp with the Flanders Philharmonic Orchestra: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EI8JJWACCYA 2.) Real and Unreal (Al Stewart) - 3:35 rating: *** stars Maybe it's just my ears, but for some reason 'Real and Unreal' had always reminded me of a slightly jazzed up version of The Beatles' 'For the Benefit of Mr. Kite'. 3.) King of Portugal (Al Stewart - Pete White) - 4:23 rating: **** stars With a bouncy, upbeat, dance-ready melody (seriously), 'King of Portugal' sounded like Stewart might have been listening to some prime-era Level 42, or Tears for Fears. It certainly wasn't going to appeal to everyone, but I have to admit that coupled with Pete White's acoustic guitar, I quite enjoyed the track. Enigma tapped the song as a single:
- 1988's 'King of Portugal' (pop mix) b/w 'King of Portugal (rock mix) (Enigma catalog number 75025-7) Enigma also funded a promotional video. The MTV video was ... well strange and probably didn't do much for sales: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMe8gfSbZVk . YouTube also has a live performance of the song, though neither the video, nor sound quality are great: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3b7RKI49M9I 4.) Red Toupee (Al Stewart - Phil White) - 3:34 rating: **** stars Another song that was clearly written with an ear to commercial exposure and would have made a dandy single for Stewart ... no idea what it was about (though the lyrics name checked then San Antonio mayor Henry Cisneros) , but hearing Tori Amos chirping away on backing vocals always makes me smile. 5.) Where Are They Now (Al Stewart - Phil White) - 5:55 rating; **** stars Love cast in terms of warfare? Interesting set of lyrics and one of the songs that largely abandoned his new found pop orientation for a more traditional sound. Great Spanish guitar from Pete Wood and a stunning bass work from Tim Landers.
(side 2) 1.) Bad Reputation (Al Stewart - Phil White) - 4:54 rating: **** stars Supposedly inspired by the Neil Jordan directed film Mona Lisa, 'Bad Reputation' found Stewart and the band going for an FM friendly AOR sound ... Complete with squalling electric guitar solos, it was the kind of song that wouldn't have sounded bad on an episode of Miami Vice - LOL. As mentioned before, the updated sound was a little different, but not bud and Stewart's fragile voice actually didn't sound bad in this environment. Once again the sound and video quality are poor, but YouTube has another un-credited live performance of the song at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7aA8RVBfb1k 2.) Josephine Baker (Al Stewart - Phil White) - 4:11 rating; *** stars Interesting theme to base a song on, but the tune itself wasn't particularly strong. 3.) License to Steal (Al Stewart) - 3:51 rating; *** stars 'License to Steal' was a straight ahead rocker with Stewart and company go after the legal profession. Not exactly Stewart's most subtle set of lyrics, but then it was hard to argue with the underlying sentiments. 4.) Fields of France (Al Stewart) - 2:52 rating; *** stars Love and loss in the Great War ... another one of those historical vignettes that Stewart seems to so effortlessly pull off. YouTube has an acoustic performance of the song (Dave Nachmanoff on piano): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CNgEZOLtJXQ 5.) Antarctica (Al Stewart - Phil White) - 4:04 rating: **** stars No sure anyone else in popular music could take a subject like the exploration of Antarctica and turn it into a rocking learning experience. Shackleton, Scott ... One of the commercial numbers that worked well. Awesome electric guitar performances; one of those songs you wish had been stretched out. 6.) Ghostly Hours of the Plain (instrumental) (Al Stewart - Steve Recker) - 2:26 rating: ** stars Pretty, but rather anonymous new age instrumental - good song to put on repeat if you can't sleep. Here's what co-writer Recker had to say about the song's history:Actually, I wrote this song and Al first heard it when we were at Ovation picking up some guitars for a tour. I was playing the main riff and Al said "Hey, that would work great for a last song on an LP." Well, he moved the chorus and the verse around and wrote some lyrics which we recorded as a demo at Peter White's house. We recorded the instrumental in Santa Monica with me on steel string acoustic and Peter on nylon string playing the melody. For anyone interested, Stewart's vocal version of the song was included on the compilation album "Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time"
© Scott R. Blackerby January, 2025
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Genre: pop Rating: 3 stars *** Title: Russians & Americans Company: Passport Catalog: PB
6042 Country/State: Glasgow, Scotland Grade (cover/record): VG+//VG+ Comments: original lyric inner sleeve Available: 1 Catalog ID: 3077 Price: $15.00
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Sometimes it takes age and distance for one to appreciate an item. Perhaps that's the case with Al Stewart's hopelessly pretentious and over-the-top album "Russians & Americans". Released near the apex of the Cold War confrontation between the East and the West, you certainly couldn't blame Stewart for turning his attention to the subject. You just wish the results would have been a little more palatable; let alone tuneful and memorable. Maybe in another ten years ... Originally released by RCA in the UK, the subject matter was apparently too controversial for American labels who shied away from the set. It was finally picked up by Passport Records who demanded some changes to the track listing prior to release. Deleted from the original release were two songs 'Lori, Don't Go Right Now' and 'The Gypsy and the Rose'. Those two tracks were replaced by 'The One That Got Away' and 'Night Meeting'.
Produced by Mike Flicker (hot from his work with Heart), "Russians & Americans" was instantly recognizable as an Al Stewart project. Flicker seemed to have been charged with updating Stewart's sound, giving it a more radio-ready sheen ('Strange Girl'), but those efforts were offset by Stewart's ill focused plotline and some of his most tuneless compositions. Like every Stewart album, this was clearly a concept piece (divided into Russian (side 1) and American sides (side 2)), but not every one of the songs seemed to fit into the narrative (or if they did, their meanings were lost to my ears). Too his credit, Stewart seemed to take potshots at both side of the ideological and political wars, though many of his criticisms seemed to be at politics in general ('The Candidate'), and the concept of nationalism (an adaptation of Len Barry's 'One, Two, Three'). He also found time to take on cultural and political elites ('Cafe Society'). Sure there were a couple of enjoyable tracks ('Rumours of War' and the odd 'Strange Girl'), but the overall result was kind of a disappointment. Maybe it'll come off better in another ten years ?
"Russians
& Americans" track listing: 1.) The One That Got Away (Al Stewart - Peter White) - 4:24 rating: *** stars Pretty enough tune with a nice hook and a Phil Kenzie sax break that bore more than a passing resemblance to 'Year of the Cat'. 2.) Rumours of War (Al Stewart - Peter White) - 5:25 rating: **** stars I'm a sucker for cheesy '80s synthesizers and there were plenty of them on the martial 'Rumours of War'. Not quite sure what the plotline was about, but it certainly had a nice beat and the synthesizer riff was quite catchy. The song was tapped as a single in Germany and Italy:
- 1984's 'Rumours of War' b/w 'Lori, Don't Go Right Now' (RCA catalog number PB 69198) 3.) Night Meeting (Al Stewart) - 5:03 rating: *** stars Damn, how did this Genesis song get on the album ? 'Night Meeting' opened up with some Genesis-styled jittery guitar and what sounded like an Atari game that had gone amuck. Spy games in the cold war? Beats me. 4.) Accident on 3rd Street (Al Stewart) - 3:30 rating: *** stars Want a one word description for 'Accident on 3rd Street' ? Dylanesque ... Amazing how many word Stewart crammed into these three and a half words. I guess, it's just one of those things; one of those things ....
(side 2) 1.) Strange Girl (Al Stewart) - 3:54 rating: **** stars Normally rocking Al Stewart is an acquired taste, but on 'Strange Girl' he got everything right. Interesting set of lyrics framed by a rollicking melody and a killer lead guitar. One of the album highlights - maybe the only album highlight and the track I would have tapped as a single ... 2.) Russians & Americans (Al Stewart) - 4:30 rating: *** stars Stewart channeling Dylan as he apparently tries to show the two sides have far more in common than they'd care to admit. 3.) Cafe Societ (Al Stewart) - 6:37 rating: *** stars If you'd only heard 'Year of the Cat', I suspect you still would have been able to identify this as an Al Stewart performance. Hyper-lyrical and I'll admit to not having a clue what it was about - daming the political and cultural elites of the world? Nice Phil Kenzoe sax solo. Neither the video, or sound quality are great, but YouTube has a live, extended performance of the song at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dDlTTUH5CRI 4.) One, Two, Three (1, 2, 3) (John Medora - David White - Leonard Borisoff) - 3:16 rating: *** stars Stewart's remake of the 1965 Len Barry hit '1,2,3' was the album's only non-original. Well, technically it was a remake, though Stewart slightly altering the original's puppy love lyrics for a cutting indictment of nationalistic goals. Cuter than I would have thought. 5.) The Candidate (Al Stewart) - 2:06 rating: *** stars Nice trashing of Democracy and the political system. Can't say I remember another song that included references to rubber chicken dinners. The song sported a pretty, almost flamenco-styled acoustic guitar solo. Shame it faded out so quickly. No idea when, or where it was recorded, but YouTube has a clip of Stewart playing the song in a solo arrangement: Interesting to see him turn the tune into a guitar workout. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Li2Qtf7mK6o
In spite of the fact it was probably the album's most commercial offering,, Passport opted to drop 'Lori, Don't Go Right Now' from the US release, '
RCA tapped it as a single in the UK and Spain:
- 1984's Lori, Don't Go Right Now' b/w 'Lori, No Te Vayas Ahora' (RCA catalog number 414)
© Scott R. Blackerby January, 2025
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