Records

Rip It Up, Issue 145, 1 August 1989, Page 28

Records

BONNIERAITT Nick Of Time (Capitol) - Lasttime we heard from Bonnie Raitt was when she got together with Was Not Was for a track on last year’s Stay Awake compilation. That album, dedicated to re-interpreting old Disney film music, provided some pretty lumpy gravy attimes but Bonnie's rendition of

‘Baby Mine’ (from Dumbo) was simply sublime and the collection’s major highlight. So the news that she’d recorded Nick Of Time with Don Was as producer augured well. Andthe results are about as good as we'd any rightto hope for. Although recorded in LA, the album’s sensibility resonates more from Bonnie’s southern, blue-soaked slide guitar. There's none of the sessioneer blandness that marred her 1986 album Nine Lives. Producer Was has found an identity for each separate track and

there’s a wide variety of styles and arrangements here: from the roadhouse raunch of John Hiatt's ‘Thing Called Love' to the yearning reggae of ‘Have A Heart' to atorchy ballad accompanied only by Herbie Hancock onpiano. : And despite the roster of famous musicians present (including both Was Not Was vocalists), Ms Raitt remains firmly centre stage. Hers is an authority honed from years of experience combined with the innate talent and taste which fine musicians love to work with. (Even Prince has expressed an interest.) Her singing is always passionate but without pomp or egotistic excess. For example, inthe self-penned title track, Raitt reflects on herfears of growing old, yet the emotional intensity is delivered viaa gentle melody and quietly rolling rhythm section. ~ The whole album marks a consistent return to the form she first found in her early 70s work. In those days Bonnie’ Raitt felt relaxed enough to call one LP Takin’ My Time. If, by comparison, the title of this new album implies some sort of recent crisis for her, then at least the musical results have been well worth it. PETER THOMSON : BLACK AND WHITE Don’t Know Yet (WEA) — Could it be that members offlley Crue and Guns n’ Roses are involved in this project? That's the rumour and supposedly they can’tbe credited due to record contract rules. It is possible thatit’s Vince Neal and some of the GNR boys on backing vocals through they're hardly prominent in the mix and while the live guitar playing is wild enough to be Mick Mars, there’snota - greatdeal of it. Whether it's those dudes or not, this album s still a bit of good dirty fun which isastreet rock and rap crossover combined with samples of Hendrix, Led Zeppelinand AC/DC's ‘Back In Black’. It works best on the single ‘Rainbow Bar And Girls’ (which isn't even on the LP), ‘Rock The House’ and ‘Black And White'. But attimes the sampling ? sounding silly. An interesting novelty

item but ultimately pretty throwaway stuff. : ' GEOFFDUNN - AL GREEN IGetJoy : e (A&M) Il ever encounter an angel, 'msure itwill have the voice of Al Green. The man could sing a shopping listand make it sound good. Now that my prejudices are clear, let's talk about the man’s new album. It's areturn to true form after its recent predecessors, which have seemed somewhatflat. Al's still in his “Reverend Al" phase, there's some serious religion going down here, but Al has some good songs to offer. There's a mighty nice variety of styles happening, from almost traditional gospel on the likes of ‘Mighty Cloud Of Joy’ throughto the übiquitous 1989 swing-beat sound on ‘As Long As We're Together'. There is, of course, the trademark Al Green sound, too, the unmistakeably beautiful ballad style, effortless and pure, providing some moments of absolute beauty and proving beyond a doubt that Alis one of the finest ballad singers alive. Overall, | Get Joy is basically astrong album. Sure, it's no Belle, butis most definitely still happening. KIRK GEE

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Nigel Russell

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