" This album and I, we go way back. In my tenure as a cashier, it seemed no matter what store I worked in, whether it was Frys, Safeway, Nordstrom, or Starbucks, there was always a Go West song on somewhere in the background. " - Anne
While I have my thoughts about the querstionable ( yes querstionable not Questionable) album title, I cant deny that this is a banger of an album. It's rare to find an album with practically zero skips and this one definitely tops the list of those that do.
I can't believe it took me so long to finally listen to the album in its entirety. This album is powerful and kicks it into high gear IMMEDIATELY upon opening. A nostalgic trip to an era long gone that just feels like home, it's so comfortable and warm.
Opening up the album is the incredible Faithful which I'm sure I heard more than 100 times working in grocery. Nonetheless, this song makes me want to get up and dance. Faithful is an absolute JAM that is full of energy and sparks life into any space it's played in. This song is pure clean fun and I love it.
The second song on the album is Still in Love a jazzy track that's hard-hitting and tells the tale of a man who's contemplating his love life. This track is fueled by a rugged funk/jazz fusion sound that I absolutely love. Then the midsong jazz break just does everything it needs to do, by the third verse of the chorus and end of song falsettos I too am " Still in love" with this song.
Coming in at number three we have the song Tell Me. Even on an album that I consider to be perfect, we always stumble upon at least one skip, and for me, that is this song. It is not that it is bad per se, but it is just not my jam and moves far too stagnant for me to get into.
At number four we have what quickly became one of my favorite songs. That is the outstanding That's What Love Can Do. There's no way to describe this song as anything other than INCREDIBLE, it moves so smoothly from start to finish, and the " Hey aye yeah yeahhhs" is the aesthetically pleasing sound my soul desires.
Number five is an astonishing cover of the classic What You wont do for Love. This may be a rather controversial opinion but I love song covers, I'm not one of those " only the original 1!1!!!!1!" kind of listeners. I love it when artists take an already well-known song and re-interpret it in their own unique way. Go West definitely did that with this one and the adlibs/hums that come in during the second verse give it a wonderful fresh feeling.
Coming in at number six is the song The king of wishful thinking . I would always catch the end of this tune walking back and forth from the storage rooms and back to the main floor of the store. I Love this song and its inspiring message. While the song may be about heartbreak it can apply to a variety of situations in which a person feels wronged and could be upset but instead chooses to believe that better times will come. My favorite lyrics in particular " I'll get over you, I know I will You made a hole in my heart, but I won't shed a tear for you" I myself have been in any number of situations ( not heartbreak in particular as I've never been in a relationship lol) but these lyrics have definitely applied and I feel them deeply.
At number seven we have the song The sun and the moon. This song combines a bit of jazz , blues and country, I like this song but you kind of have to be in the mood to hear it. It's not bad but it's not my first choice. It is however a good sad/mellow day kind of song. The background instrumentation is incredible as always and offers a wonderful blend of piano, guitar, and sax.
Jumping back into an uptempo groove at number eight we have the song Count me out. This song is a JAM and I love how it kicks off so fast-paced and hardly ever slows down, this is a song you have to hold on for because it just goes and goes, and I for one absolutely love it. I also adore the mid-tempo piano break that happens at two minutes and fifty seconds into the song, it offers a quick respite and then BANG straight back into the slammin' and Jammin' main groove of the song.
For number nine we have the absolutely beautiful Crystal Ball . This is one of my favorite songs on the album the soft bass and smoothly arranged jazz horns section just steal my heart. This song is so warm and feels like a nice walk during the fall on the way to a fair or local baked-goods sale.To quote the song " All I want is youuuu" Thats how I feel when I see this album pop up in my playlist , I absolutley adore it.
Sliding in at number ten is Forget that girl . This song is very interesting and sometimes I like it and other times I could skip it. I like the instrumentation the vocals are a bit up and down in places. The lyrics can also be interpreted in a number of ways . The song sounds like a either a man telling his friend not to stick with a bad relationship just because there are better women out there OR A man trying to convince his friend to leave his girlfriend and date him instead ¯\_(ツ)_/¯. Either way I still like the song and think its a fun listen.
Eleven is the interesting Bluebeat This song has that distinctive 1980's elevator / computer muzack sound. A bit like diana ross' " Its your move" combined with whams " Everything she wants " and " Blue". I like the music in this song but not the vocals in particualar, Maybe the song needs a few more listens but I dont see it being added to my rotation any time soon.
At number Twelve is the cool little RnB bop I want you back . This song would have been a solid 10/10 but for some reason the chorus just ruins the song for me. In this present moment I cant imagine how it could have been fixed but the " I want you back" repetition sounds a but muddled and sloppy. The rest of the song grooves just fine but certain sections just sound like the sound mixer was cooking a lasanga and went " Oh snap I forgot I need to have that song mix ready by 5:30" and ran back to the studio to finish it.
Closing out the album we have A taste of things to come . The song opens with a woman screeching " oh yeah yeah yeah " and 5 seconds in im thinking " oh no no no no" I cant get past the first 35 seconds of this song , I tried but no .... it's just not great. 0/5 song on an otherwise excellent album.
My song rankings are as follows :
1. Thats what love can do
2. Crystal ball
3. What you wont do for love
4. Faithful
5. Still in love
6. The king of wishful thinking
7. Count me out
8.The sun and the moon
9.Forget that girl
10. I want you back
11.Tell me
12. Blue Beat
13. A taste of things to come
To conclude this album is a fun one and I'd reccomened it to any and all music lovers. It has a great pace and just enough easy listening tunes that it works just right for any road-trip. I love it and I hope you will too - Anne. As always thank you for reading and stay tuned for more!
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