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Non-Prog CD Reviews

Cutting Crew Add to Favourites Review by Gary Hill I remember Cutting Crew from their hey day. Their style of music wasn’t really my thing, but they were good. This never version only includes their lead singer from that original band. I have to say that I like the classic rock sound to this thing. It has a fairly wide range and works pretty well. It’s not overly original, but it is well done. If there’s a complaint, it’s that it lands a bit too hard on the mellow end of the equation. Still, that’s pretty minor. This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2016 Volume 1 at lulu.com/strangesound.

Track by Track Review

Till the Money Runs Out This rocker is horn laden and quite catchy. It has a definite retro quality to it. It’s really quite classic more than it is anything else. It’s a great way to start the set in style.

Looking for a Friend Another with a real classic rock sound, for some reason, this reminds me a bit of The Grateful Dead. It has some old school country in the mix along with a lot of other timeless sounds. The horns add a lot to it.

Berlin in Winter Audience sounds open this and piano rises up from there. Saxophone joins as the cut works forward. The vocals come in over a stripped back arrangement. This is poignant and powerful as it builds on that stripped back arrangement. As it builds out, it becomes one of the harder rocking jams here. It’s also one of the more complex songs. The funny thing is, this really reminds me a lot of Hogarth era Marillion.

Kept on Lovin' You This is really very much a blues song with a jazz treatment. Sure, it has some rock and soul in the mix, too. It’s quite a poignant piece. I love the female vocals later in the track and the smoking hot guitar soloing. This is really a powerhouse as it builds to its close.

San Ferian Acoustic guitar based, this is essentially a folk ballad styled piece. When the arrangement builds out later there is even some bluegrass in the mix.

Already Gone This is definitely packed with Americana. It’s very much a mellow country piece.

Far as I Can See Here’s another mellow balladic cut. It starts with just piano and voice, with that arrangement carrying it for a time. When it builds out, it again makes me think of Hogarth era Marillinoi quite a bit. They break into a samba at the end.

Biggest Mistake of My Life This is another that’s slow and a bit mellow. It has a real soulful vibe to it. It gets a lot more energy as it builds out but retains that soul sound. It also has a lot of old school rock and roll. Somehow this reminds me quite a bit of Meat Loaf.

Only for You More of a bombastic piece, in some ways this makes me think of Pink Floyd – or perhaps more accurately, Roger Waters. It has a mellower movement that opens it and returns that is closer to Americana, but the powered up segment really has that kind of Waters vibe.

(She Just Happened to Be) Beautiful An acoustic guitar based cut, there is a lot of folk music here. There are hints of country on this, too. I like this song quite a bit, but I think it’s a bit too low key to close the album properly.

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