MINSTREL IN THE GALLERY

Minstrel In The Gallery is great album. It is musically varied and took quite a few listens to grow on me. It was more than worth it. This was a spectacular change in sound by the band. There are some hard rock moments as well as acoustic verses. Martin Barre's guitar has a bit more edge than on previous JT albums.

The title track is excellent and I do like "Cold Wind to Valhala" very much. It is slightly melancholic and a little dark. Repeated listens did it justice. "Black Satin Dancer" has some piano in the verse parts which gives it a romantic and emotional feel. The first three songs as well as the epic "Baker Street Muse" have a few complex changes while "Requiem" and "One White Duck" are more straightforward, floating acoustic numbers with some string arrangements. They are very mellow, graceful and dreamy.

Overall, this is super stuff. I would like to urge some reviewers to listen to this album more. As another reviewer said, it's a lot better than you think initially! I couldn't agree more. 4 solid stars.