My Amazon Reviews: Bryan Ferry "Olympia"

Boys and Girls are now Men and Women 
3 Out of 5 Stars

Bryan Ferry still sounds like the slick Lothario he invented for himself some 30 odd years ago. With "Olympia," the suave and dapper Ferry seems to be walking the same ground he always has. While there are some really cool numbers here, there's something missing. The crooner is still oozing sophistication in a very dapper outfit, but the suit is, upon closer inspection, the same one he's always worn. Now the cuffs are getting frayed.

The earliest hint is the first sound on the album; "You Can Dance" opens with a sample from Roxy's brilliant farewell, "Avalon." There's also the much ballyhooed guest appearances from Brian Eno, Phil Manzanera, and Andy MacKay. If that isn't enough to make you wonder if Roxy wasn't in the fore of all involved party's minds, there is the photo of Kate Moss, draped across the cover like those grand old 70's album covers. Yes, Ferry's evocative. However, he's rarely been this eager to invoke.

It makes "Olympia" a 50/50 affair. When it works - the sublime "Heartache By Numbers, for instance, or the funky "BF Bass" - that old magic creeps up on you. His choice in a good cover serves him well, as his take on Traffic's ""No Face, No Name, No Number" are enough to make you forget the horror of "Dylanesque." The synths on "Tender Is The Night" are icy and haunting, bringing the album to a satisfying conclusion. But I am so used to being able to play a Bryan Ferry album from end to end without any clinkers (almost all the Roxy Catalog, most of his solos till "Mamouna" in 1994), that even a return to form such as this is merely a beautiful echo.