Man Vs Woman Vs Music,3 Out of 5 Stars
The fourth album from the Alan Parsons Project went for the biggest question of them all. Forget Science Fiction, Classic Horror Lit or Egyptian Mythology. This time, it's the battle of the sexes. It was one mighty topic, and The Project had more apple in their teeth than they could chew. It is the most average of The Alan Parsons Project's earlier albums. The problem lies in the songwriting. By trying to divide it into a male and female half, the men are portrayed as misogynistic ("You Lie Down With Dogs") or harpies ("I'd Rather Be a Man"). The women as either weak and needy ("If I Could Change Your Mind") or devious and even deformed (the infamous hipgnosis artwork).
There was also the issue that Parsons and Eric Woolfsons note in the liner that they were under deadline pressure and had to veer away from the original concept. One wonders what might have been should the artists been allowed more time to develop their original ideas. As such, "Eve" seems to be half a great album. "Lucifer" became the first of the wildly popular instrumentals that APP became known for. "Damned If I Do" became a Top 40 hit. And one of the rare APP songs with a female lead, "If I Could Change Your Mind" sung by Lesley Duncan, is beautiful. The orchestrations by Andrew Powell are some of APP's best on record. I love the sounds on "Wind Me Up" in particular.
The remastering brings these details out far better than the old CD version. The new "Eve" offers one extra treat among the bonus tracks, a piano instrumental from the legendary "Sicilian Defense" album. Now titled "Elsie's Theme," it's a pleasant work that was never fleshed out. Again, wondering what might have been had Parsons and Woolfsons not been jammed up by their record company. Two albums later, the APP turned out their greatest success (Eye in the Sky), and "Eve" was part of the journey.
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