ROBIN BECK - review added 26th January 2011
Album Review: The Great Escape (2011)
For fans of: Hard Rock... and "older" ladies who look and sound considerably better than "younger" ladies
Brooklyn born Robin Beck has been performing since her age was in single figures, and writing for nearly as long. Her first album “Sweet Talk” came out in 1979, although she only really came to the public's attention in the late 1980s with her hit single 'First Time'.
"The Great Escape", Robin's first full studio album since 2007's excellent "Livin' On A Dream", was recorded and produced by husband James Christian (House Of Lords) and co-produced by the ultra talented Tommy Denander.
Recorded at Dream Beam Studios in Florida and Hit Men Studios in Sweden, James and Tommy helped write and perform the album with Robin, alongside appearances from Joe Lynn Turner, Dai Smith, Paul Jones, Katherine Ownes, Liv Beck (and a few more besides).
The sound is clean crisp hard rock with a hint of country in places. In fact it sounds not dissimilar to her releases of old. There are few surprises here, but when you're this talented and consistent that's probably a good thing.
Good:
The vocals, obviously. Robin is one of the best female rock vocalists out there. She is serene, musical, and gravelly all at the same time. It's a rare trick but she pulls it off perfectly. The musicianship is first class, especially the guitar playing (hardly a surprise with Tommy D involved). The production is clear and understated - there is no artificiality to the record. Some of the songwriting is superb and makes for a number of really memorable moments.
Not So Good:
Not all the songs hit the mark perfectly, although to be fair nothing on "The Great Escape" could be described as rubbish. Not by a long way.
The Songs:
Best moments include the slightly-saucy 'Got Me Feelin Sexy', the classic sounding 'Inside Of Me', the racy 'That All Depends' with Joe Lynn Turner, the bright and likeable 'Everything Is Alright', and the modern and near-pop-tastic 'Cross My Heart'.
In Summation:
I'm still split on whether this merely matches or actually exceeds the last album overall, but the best song here doesn't quite hit the highs of 'Always' from "Livin' On A Dream". Regardless...female-fronted hard rock does not get much better than this.
Entertainment/Enjoyment:
Musicianship:
Vocals:
Song Writing:
Production:
Overall (Not An Average Of The Above):
Check out... All of it.
Track List:
01. The One
02. Got Me Feelin Sexy
03. Inside Of Me
04. That All Depends
05. Baby I'm Not A Bitch
06. Everything Is Alright
07. The Great Escape
08. Don't Think He's Ever Coming Home
09. Cross My Heart
10. All The Rivers
11. Till The End Of Time
Artist's website(s): Robin Beck | MySpace
