Snowy doesn't have the greatest rock 'n' roll voice in the world, either, but can carry a song. however, this album, over the years, is one I've often revisited and is very enjoyable.
The production (Kuma Harada on the first 2 tracks and Tom Newman on the rest) is lovely and open, the bass and drums being superbly handled, really hitting home and without the depressing compression that you tend to get nowadays in the age of mp3! Snowy's guitar playing is varied and the riffing and solos are well-handled. Instrumental track "The Journey" never becomes boring and Bird of Paradise is simply sublime.
"Open Carefully" - An instrumental, which has a new wave feel (yes, really) to the start and then turns to jazz-rock before Snowy lets rip with a trademark solo, drenched in blues. It leads neatly into ...
"At The Crossroads" - The first part of which is a lengthy instrumental passage; with heavy guitar which gives way surprisingly to a tuneful song and some nice acoustic Spanish guitar (the Al Stewart-y bit). Snowy's vocals are OK, but spoken more than sung - he's clearly a guitarist first and singer second. A decent writer though (another surprise) and very personal-sounding lyrics.
"The Journey Part One" - A slow-burner to start this two-part instrumental (very Peter Green/Fleetwood Mac) leading to ...
"The Journey Part Two" - Where the pace picks up (Colosseum II-style), with Snowy using controlled feedback to great effect.
"Lucky Star" - Not a Madonna cover, you'll be relieved to hear but still a poppy song, which opened the lp Side 1 and could easily have been another single (although at almost 7 minutes long it would have needed some heavy editing). Again the vocal gives way to some jazzy instrumentation and then Snowy jumps in with a very tasteful jazzy blues solo. It ends with some lengthy blues guitar which, for me, goes on too long without clear direction.
"It's No Secret" - Another poppy song but more of a rocker and shorter, with a blues guitar outro which ends all too soon this time.
"Don't Turn Back" - More pop - reminds me of Sniff 'n' The Tears' "Driver's Seat" (which I really like) meets Martha And The Muffins' "Echo Beach" (which I also like) with a sprinkling of Peter Green style lead guitar for good measure!
"Bird Of Paradise" - A very tuneful ballad, elevated by a tasteful blues solo. Not the single version and all the better for it.
"Lucky I've Got You" - A bass-driven pop number. The only slightly weak-sounding track here. Nice lead guitar though.
"The Answer" - A real stormer to end with. I think Snowy contributed more to Thin Lizzy than he often receives credit for and the intro to this track more than hints at this, before he launches into a Colosseum II-style riff and a heavy vocal - no hint of pop here! My favourite of all these.
"Open Carefully" - An instrumental, which has a new wave feel (yes, really) to the start and then turns to jazz-rock before Snowy lets rip with a trademark solo, drenched in blues. It leads neatly into ...
"At The Crossroads" - The first part of which is a lengthy instrumental passage; with heavy guitar which gives way surprisingly to a tuneful song and some nice acoustic Spanish guitar (the Al Stewart-y bit). Snowy's vocals are OK, but spoken more than sung - he's clearly a guitarist first and singer second. A decent writer though (another surprise) and very personal-sounding lyrics.
"The Journey Part One" - A slow-burner to start this two-part instrumental (very Peter Green/Fleetwood Mac) leading to ...
"The Journey Part Two" - Where the pace picks up (Colosseum II-style), with Snowy using controlled feedback to great effect.
"Lucky Star" - Not a Madonna cover, you'll be relieved to hear but still a poppy song, which opened the lp Side 1 and could easily have been another single (although at almost 7 minutes long it would have needed some heavy editing). Again the vocal gives way to some jazzy instrumentation and then Snowy jumps in with a very tasteful jazzy blues solo. It ends with some lengthy blues guitar which, for me, goes on too long without clear direction.
"It's No Secret" - Another poppy song but more of a rocker and shorter, with a blues guitar outro which ends all too soon this time.
"Don't Turn Back" - More pop - reminds me of Sniff 'n' The Tears' "Driver's Seat" (which I really like) meets Martha And The Muffins' "Echo Beach" (which I also like) with a sprinkling of Peter Green style lead guitar for good measure!
"Bird Of Paradise" - A very tuneful ballad, elevated by a tasteful blues solo. Not the single version and all the better for it.
"Lucky I've Got You" - A bass-driven pop number. The only slightly weak-sounding track here. Nice lead guitar though.
"The Answer" - A real stormer to end with. I think Snowy contributed more to Thin Lizzy than he often receives credit for and the intro to this track more than hints at this, before he launches into a Colosseum II-style riff and a heavy vocal - no hint of pop here! My favourite of all these.
Side A
A1. Lucky Star - 7:00
A2. Bird Of Paradise - 4:56
A3. The Journey – Part One - 3:07
A4. The Journey – Part Two - 3:31
Side B
B1. Don’t Turn Back - 3:50
B2. It’s No Secret - 3:51
B3. Lucky I’ve Got You - 3:57
B4. The Answer - 3:37
B5. Open Carefully - 3:09
B6. At The Crossroads - 4:51
Personnel
- Snowy White – guitars, vocals
- Kuma Harada – bass guitar, double bass
- Jess Bailey – keyboards, moog synthesizer, electric piano
- Richard Bailey – drums, percussion
- Godfrey Wang – string synthesizer
Production
- Tom Newman – producer, engineer
- Kuma Harada – producer
- Snowy White – production assistant
- Martin Adam – remixing and engineering
- Chris Porter – engineer
- Bernd Matheja – sleeve notes
- Alan Ballard – photography
- Chris Craymer – photography
- Kouji Shimamura – cover concept and artwork
- Bob England – project director
Notes
Release: 1983
Format: LP
Genre: Pop
Label: Towerbell Records
Catalog# TOWLP 3
Prijs: €3,99
Vinyl: VG
Cover: VG
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