Acid Jazz Records (label)
31 July 2015 (released)
25 July 2015
It’s probably better to remove this album from the sphere of The Bluetones reunion and judge it on its own merit. The timing of this release however is odd with all the attendant fuss surrounding that forthcoming tour. Anyway cynicism aside, this is a compilation of covers that Morriss says has influenced him down the years and its pleasingly eclectic if not always successful.
The most successful are the poppier ones such as Love Comes Quickly and Madonna’s Angel, these better suit Morriss’s vocal style as does REM’s Good Advices, which is one of the highlights.
Elsewhere he takes on the likes of Buffalo Springfield and Scott Walker: Rock & Roll Woman retains that late 60’s California trip, if a little more earnest, while Duchess isn’t bad but feels lightweight next to the original. And then there’s the curious cover of Lucretia (My Reflection). The Sisters of Mercy original is them at their most grandiose and bombastic, and this interpretation sounds quite delicate in comparison, with what sound like a touch of Mike Oldfield. It takes a while but does grow on you.
Overall, as with most albums of this sort, some songs hit and some miss. It is however worth considering the title of the album for a moment. It’s a personal selection and he probably didn’t record this with an audience in mind, or really care too much what anybody else thinks.
