Saturday, December 16, 2023

The 1981 Listening Post - Trevor Rabin - Wolf

 Reviewed by Brian Kushnir

Released: 1981 Trevor Rabin Wolf Genre: Prog Lite Rating: 2.2 out of 5 Highlights: Heard You Cry Wolf Looking For A Lady - (Wolfman) [Source material for VH’s Hot For Teacher?] Nothing could save Trevor Rabin’s “Wolf.” Not his amazing, flashy, at times astoundingly evocative guitar chops. Not the killer sidemen that he got to join him with their formidable skills on display. Not Mo Foster (!), Simon Phillips (!!), Jack Bruce (!!!), and definitely not Manfred Mann (!!!!). It has a glossy, high-class sound but not even Ray Muthafunkin' Davies of the Kinks, who he got to co-produce, could turn this into something you’d want to come back to, because the songs aren’t compelling and Trevor can’t really sing. In fact, when he sings “I feel the pain” midway through the album I find myself unconsciously nodding in agreement. A short time after this, his fortunes changed. He walked into a studio with the members of Yes, the band he had just joined as their new ace on guitar, and played them the demo for his new song. It was “Owner of a Lonely Heart.”

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