This 19-song Japanese CD is an expanded and reshuffled version of the similarly named 1982 American Epic LP, but with vastly improved sound. The CD covers all the expected bases from
Blunstone's first three Epic albums, opening on a distinctly American-style soulful note with
Blunstone's version of
Michael d'Abo's "Mary Won't You Warm My Bed" from the
One Year album, which is almost worth the price of this CD by itself. This was one of the best performances of
Blunstone's whole career, and it should not only have been a hit, but should have given a lot of black soul singers pause. After the straight-ahead rock ballad "She Loves the Way They Love Her," the collection gets into the more serious part of the same album, including the ornately orchestrated "Misty Roses."
Ennismore's ornamented pop/rock is well represented, and the leaner sound of its successor album,
Journey, brings the listener to a lighter-textured side of
Blunstone's output. The CD ends with the exquisite "Losing Your Way in the Rain," by
Mike Batt and friends featuring
Colin Blunstone, from
Batt's 1979
Tarot Suite album.
–
Bruce Eder, Rovi