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Mott The Hoople and Ian Hunter

Sleeve and track listing

Angel Air SJPCD405. (4.5 stars!)

  1. Love You And Leave You (4:15)
  2. On The Rebound (2:59)
  3. Find Yourself (4:39)
  4. Knocking On Those Old Back Doors (4:17)
  5. Wine Ridden Talks (3:29)
  6. Hold On To This (4:13)
  7. Soft Ground (4:57)
  8. Son Of The Wise Ones (6:44)
  9. Do You Want Me 2? (3:40)
  10. Long Time No See (3:24)
  11. Two Miles From Heaven (4:42)
  12. Fine Time To Love (3:55)
  13. A New Way (4:51)

Running time: 56m 11s

Review

Now this is more like it. Verden Allen returns to the studio with his new band (Soft Ground) and delivers a strong hard rock album.

Only the title track appears to be new, the others having appeared on various VA albums over the years. These are, however, re-recordings and for the most part an improvement on the originals which, his first album excepted, had a bit of a "demo" feel to them.

The result is a strong hard rock album that doesn't disappoint from start to finish. By picking what is in effect a "best of" from his four previous solo albums there is no filler, and Verden has recruited a band that can do each song justice. Listening to this album one gets the impression this is a band that wants to rock out at every opportunity.

How can I pick out highlights from an album this good? You can't - just turn the volume up and enjoy the album that Verden has always been threatening to make since his equally strong debut.