Bridget St. John's fourth album fell somewhere between vintage British folk-rock and the kind of singer/songwriter approach used by Phoebe Snow or early Joni Mitchell. It was a low-key, agreeable affair of sophisticated romantic ruminations, although not compelling. Though a couple of songs came from outside sources (including a cover of Elton John's "Sweet Painted Lady"), most of the material was self-penned, and rather self-effacing, with assistance from backup musicians including ex-King Crimson drummer Mike Giles and noted acoustic guitarist Stefan Grossman. Oddly, different CD reissues of the album have added different bonus tracks. The mid-'90s reissue on BGO added four tracks recorded in the U.S. in 1976; however, the three bonus tracks added on the 2006 reissue on Hux were entirely different, slightly lo-fi ones done in 1975 that were previously unreleased anywhere. Recorded in preparation for a future album that would never be realized, these actually show her exploring some interesting possible future directions, playing underwater-sounding guitar through a foot pedal on "3DB Australia"; using Ron Geesin (most famous for his composing contribution to Pink Floyd's Atom Heart Mother) as piano accompanist on "Grow"; and featuring Peter Berryman on accomplished picked folky guitar on "Bumper to Bumper."
--- Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide --- |