Al Stewart

‘Past Present & Future’ is probably the album that saw Al Stewart move from bedsit troubadour to an internationally recognized artist. It has been reissued many times, but this remaster includes a remix of the original album and a show ‘Live at The Howff’ that features his band of the time, including Francis Monkman on keys and the members of Home.

The 2024 remastering is superb. It is the cleanest version I have heard to date, and the bass lines are much more of a piece. Stewarts vocals are almost wider in range as the masking of the original master has been, seemingly, removed.
Any Al Stewart fan will know the album intimately, but for those unfamiliar with the album, it contains some of his most visionary pieces as well as one of the most poignant in ‘Old Admirals’. ‘Roads To Moscow’ is stark and chilling as he describes Hitler’s assault on the Soviet Union from the point of view of a Soviet infantryman – the description of the German’s fall to the winter and the partisans is triumphant.
The key number is ‘Nostradamus’, a song based around the alchemist’s prophecies. 10 minutes that begin with vocal and guitar, building to a full band blast, through a phased acoustic solo and finishing with a huge crescendo.

The remix, included here, is by Steven W. Tayler.
I am shocked. I am very familiar with the original but this remix has improved separation between instruments, elevated Stewart’s vocals in the mix and created a wider soundstage. Quite superb.

Add to those, the live show, recorded just after he (and band) had returned from the US. Most of the tracks from ‘Past, Present & Future’ are here – ‘Warren Harding’ & ‘Swallow Wind’ are missing, but there is a stunning version of ‘All Along The Watchtower’ along with ‘Clifton In The Rain/Small Fruit Song’ and the closer ‘Amsterdam’. An excellent performance, well recorded.

Essential for any Al Stewart fan and an eye opener for any newbies.