Classic Albums: Simply Red – Stars
Picture: B-
Sound: B- Extras: C+ Main Program: B-
Simply Red was part of a sub-cycle of New Wave acts along
with Culture Club that was doing a fine job of reviving a Soul sound that
originated in the 1960s. Besides cover
songs, Holding Back The Years was one of 1986’s biggest and best hits,
but the band had other hits like Money$ Too Tight (To Mention) and The
Right Thing. Stars was
released in 1991 and though the band continued in name, the recent Simply Red
– Live In Sicily DVD (reviewed elsewhere on this site) shows it is more
Hucknall solo than ever.
Stars has no remakes/covers on it, but that does not
necessarily mean that it is automatically their best album, yet it is their
most defining for a few reasons. New
Wave was over, they were not guaranteed any hits, they had not been a
consistent sensation (unfortunately for a music industry in wrecked shape) and
they had not peaked. Though nothing
here is as striking as Holding Back The Years, it is a strong album of
original material that was a moderate U.S. success that seems to have done even
better overseas.
Something Got Me Started barely broke the Top 30
in the U.S., remaining their last hit to date in the states, but Thrill Me,
For Your Babies and the title song fared better overseas. It is a good, solid album we hope to review
in a future reissue, but the story told here is another more than worthy entry
in this series. It just may not have
gone on long enough or asked enough questions.
The anamorphically enhanced 1.78 X 1/16 X 9 image is in
line with the best the Classic Albums series has been offering since
Eagle picked it up, with most of the footage in this case being relatively
recent. The Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo
has enough Pro Logic surround information to have a choice in playback
options. Extras include seven bonus
sections, two of which are new Hucknall performances, while the others feature
the other musicians beyond the main feature in ways they more than deserve and
more about the band’s history.
- Nicholas Sheffo
