The Album Review Club - Week #147 - (page 1942) - Blonde On Blonde - Bob Dylan

So did Rick get it right with his attempt to invent Yacht Rock? Well, it’s not quite Yacht Rock but it has the mellow if not quite the right melody.

I was rather underwhelmed the first time I played this album when I purchased the 2023 release and it is definitely an album that reveals its pleasures slowly, in fact it never gets much wind in its sails. It’s a pleasant listen, no more, no less.

Wright’s vocals are ok but unremarkable and not very expressive. The album is at its best on the instrumentals and when it is Floydesque; although the closing instrumental is very much throwaway funk.

There’s some nice work from Snowy White on guitar and Mel Collins on sax. Wright does demonstrate at times his importance to Floyd.

A solid if understated 6/10.
 
The only song I found myself checking the name of, was the last one. It was at least different. Funky and upbeat and a nice bit of guitar.
The rest? Well it’s all been said. Decent background music thst you wouldn’t turn off, but I can’t think of an occasion that I would turn to this to put on.

It’s pleasant, safe, tame, bland almost.
You can hear weak imitations of Floyd rhythms at times but it’s generally very timid.

5/10 seems to me a bit harsh given that I gave last week’s 6/10 more for the bravery of choice than the content alone.
But I’ll stick with that as I feel last week’s choice is geared better towards its intended audience than this is.
I would have been this album’s intended audience back in 1978 and I feel I would have been just as underwhelmed then as I am now.
 
Wet Dream - Richard Wright

Unassuming. Underwhelming. Unremarkable. Unnoticed. A Floydian Slip...

Lots have been said about this artist and this album in both the year it was released and since. Credit to Steven Wilson for taking something that was nearly forgotten from the time it was made and remixed for what would have been Richard Wright's 80th birthday last year. This is the first time I've ever heard this album, and credit to @journolud for the nomination for something I missed and didn't know I was actually missing.

This is an album I've had off and on in the past week at various times. It is definitely an easy mood feeling, and one I listened to a couple times quite intently on the bike yesterday while pedaling around town. Usually I go for something fasted paced and loud, but this strangely has hit the mark for me.

I've already commented on how much I enjoyed Wright's return to form with Gilmour and the band for their post-Waters era, especially on The Division Bell.

It was that familiarity that made me both anticipate and already appreciate his low-key vocal delivery on songs such as "Against the Odds", "Summer Elegy", and "Holiday". "Against the Odds" in particular worked quite well and conveyed the despair he was feeling in and with his marital relationship. The "sail on, sail on, across the sea" in "Holiday" just seemed like the easy going mode he was on in such setting.

The Floydish feeling also present in the album on the sax and guitars brought to us by the touring musicians for the band in Mel Collins and Snowy White really worked to keep the band familiarity most fans were accustomed to.

While Wright and Gilmore were out recording their two solo albums in the studio back to back at this time, Waters was starting down his own "solo journey" in writing his first most personal Floyd album in The Wall, mostly by himself and that shows up there, save for a few tracks Gilmour co-wrote and got a chance to actually sing on.

My favourite tracks here on Wright's album were:
  • "Mediterranean C" - just a nice song to paddle to along the waters on a SUP, as I hope to soon.
  • "Against The Odds" - his vocal delivery is a precursor to "Wearing the Inside Out", always welcome to me and just right for the song's mood
  • "Summer Elegy" - nearly reminded me a bit of Gerry Rafferty in spots
  • "Drop In From The Top" - loved White's guitars and Wrights keys at the end
  • "Pink's Song" - Juliette Wright's lyrics here were very nice and delivered well, and I loved Collins' playing on flute on this song, which really made this the standout to me. "Let me go, I cannot stay" with those unassuming vocals really hit home too.
  • "Funky Deux" - a nice bass-led funky song which sounded different than most of the album, a good closer with the Floyd instruments all melded in together, later on sax, and then guitar. We'd not ever hear anything close to this again on any Waters' Floyd albums. A fun ending.

Unlike others, I think this will be an album I do revisit over time, as I have a special spot for Richard Wright and those "un"assuming members of the band often don't get credit for, but make up a key part of the sound.

Don't believe me? Go listen to The Final Cut without Wright and tell me how it stacks up to their 70's powerhouses. As an homage to the year, and this is a good thing here, I'm scoring this a 7.8/10. I remain undaunted to any criticism of Wright being anything more than himself on this, and he was who he was, not the main guy in the lights, but the producer and ideas behind some great sounds that we may or may not take for granted.
 
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Solid 7/10 from me. Always been a Floyd fan, and it was good to hear this one again. Okay, his voice isn’t the best, and the lyrics are a bit gloomy, but that aside musically it’s decent. Was it Foggy who said this would have been better as an instrumental album - not sure, but I agree with whoever said it.
Snowy White adds some wonderful guitar tones which is always a plus for me, and the sax is a lovely Floydy sound. Throw in Wrights ivory tinkering and you’ve got a lovely overall feel.
There were times when this reminded me of Gilmour’s Island album but a bit more downbeat - no bad thing just more of an observation.
Great pick and a blast from the past. An homage from an unsung hero of a great band.

Ps - hope you’re on the mend Rob
 
Richard Wight - Wet Dream

Pink Floyd without the hits. Nevertheless, it bought me much joy to hear the Floyd sound - especially all conjured up in the beautiful ‘Summer Elergy’ what a great track and guitar solo.

All tracks are consistent but not many stand out, Lot of good use of Piano, Sax and the guitar (Black Strat?) to create an overall layered and atmospheric Album which I could comfortably listen to over again. Good pick!

7/10
 
mrbelfry said:
He haunts me still as well. I just went in my shed and saw I still had the stool he'd sit on when washing cars (he could have won awards for the inside of the door well)
Click to expand...

Believe me when I say this is a compliment, but at the same time as I'm beginning to accept that Coatigan isn't Brian Limond I'm beginning to wonder if you might actually be Bob Mortimer?
 
WET DREAM



sorry it’s late I’ve also been laid up with a lurgy, hope your feeling better Rob.I’m not a big fan of PF but I do like some of their albums especially DSOTM and WYWH. Even if I didn’t know who Rick Wright was it’s evident listing to this album that he was a major contributing factor in PF sound.However although it was an easy pleasant sounding listen, it didn’t really float my boat.

The opening track had ‘echoes’ of Genesis, RW lyrics were on ‘the Darkside’ and the track ‘Holiday’ didn’t make me ‘wish I was there’.Although I like the sax and Mel Collins is a great Saxophonist, there’s just too much on this album so much so that at times I thought I was listening to his solo album.



4/10
 
Black&White&BlueMoon Town said:
Wet Dream - Richard Wright

Unassuming. Underwhelming. Unremarkable. Unnoticed. A Floydian Slip...

Lots have been said about this artist and this album in both the year it was released and since. Credit to Steven Wilson for taking something that was nearly forgotten from the time it was made and remixed for what would have been Richard Wright's 80th birthday last year. This is the first time I've ever heard this album, and credit to @journolud for the nomination for something I missed and didn't know I was actually missing.

This is an album I've had off and on in the past week at various times. It is definitely an easy mood feeling, and one I listened to a couple times quite intently on the bike yesterday while pedaling around town. Usually I go for something fasted paced and loud, but this strangely has hit the mark for me.

I've already commented on how much I enjoyed Wright's return to form with Gilmour and the band for their post-Waters era, especially on The Division Bell.

It was that familiarity that made me both anticipate and already appreciate his low-key vocal delivery on songs such as "Against the Odds", "Summer Elegy", and "Holiday". "Against the Odds" in particular worked quite well and conveyed the despair he was feeling in and with his marital relationship. The "sail on, sail on, across the sea" in "Holiday" just seemed like the easy going mode he was on in such setting.

The Floydish feeling also present in the album on the sax and guitars brought to us by the touring musicians for the band in Mel Collins and Snowy White really worked to keep the band familiarity most fans were accustomed to.

While Wright and Gilmore were out recording their two solo albums in the studio back to back at this time, Waters was starting down his own "solo journey" in writing his first most personal Floyd album in The Wall, mostly by himself and that shows up there, save for a few tracks Gilmour co-wrote and got a chance to actually sing on.

My favourite tracks here on Wright's album were:
  • "Mediterranean C" - just a nice song to paddle to along the waters on a SUP, as I hope to soon.
  • "Against The Odds" - his vocal delivery is a precursor to "Wearing the Inside Out", always welcome to me and just right for the song's mood
  • "Summer Elegy" - nearly reminded me a bit of Gerry Rafferty in spots
  • "Drop In From The Top" - loved White's guitars and Wrights keys at the end
  • "Pink's Song" - Juliette Wright's lyrics here were very nice and delivered well, and I loved Collins' playing on flute on this song, which really made this the standout to me. "Let me go, I cannot stay" with those unassuming vocals really hit home too.
  • "Funky Deux" - a nice bass-led funky song which sounded different than most of the album, a good closer with the Floyd instruments all melded in together, later on sax, and then guitar. We'd not ever hear anything close to this again on any Waters' Floyd albums. A fun ending.

Unlike others, I think this will be an album I do revisit over time, as I have a special spot for Richard Wright and those "un"assuming members of the band often don't get credit for, but make up a key part of the sound.

Don't believe me? Go listen to The Final Cut without Wright and tell me how it stacks up to their 70's powerhouses. As an homage to the year, and this is a good thing here, I'm scoring this a 7.8/10. I remain undaunted to any criticism of Wright being anything more than himself on this, and he was who he was, not the main guy in the lights, but the producer and ideas behind some great sounds that we may or may not take for granted.
Click to expand...
A 7.8.lol.
 
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