BORN AGAIN

'Born Again' is a great ROCK album, but there really isn't much 'progressive' about it - Graeme Field took the prog idealism along with him when he left Rare Bird after the exciting album 'As Your Mind Flies By'. That said, the songs here are very tight, undeniably well arranged, performed, and sound fantastic. Funky elements exist in many songs, though the main focus is definately on producing quality rock music of a high standard. Steve Gould has a superb voice, and, now with guitar (not a bass, unfortunately) in hand, manages a solo here and there, Dave Kaffinetti is a very strong keyboardist, and always tries to incorporate a brief solo wherever a song allows him to, whether it be on clavinet, e-piano, organ or Korg synth, and the rhythm section of Fred Kelly and Andy Rae (drums and bass, respectively) form a solid foundation which drive the songs along in a flawless fashion. Listening through to this LP, I struggle to find any weak spots, with the strong moments (IMO) being the driving, funky 'Live For Each Other', 'All That I Need', the beautiful 'Peace of Mind' (with lovely harmonies), the blissful and mellow 'Lonely Street' (actually capturing the 'feel' of a lonely street, whether it be legitimate or metaphorically - a very touching track) and, though it may be a little overlong, 'Last Tango in Beulah' with its excellent keyboard arrangement. That's at least half the album, with the remaining tracks being fairly decent too. 3 stars.