George Harrison
The Dark Horse Years 1976–1992

(Capitol)

Part Five: Cloud Nine

First Appeared in The Music Box, June 2004, Volume 11, #6

Written by John Metzger

Cloud Nine
(Capitol)

After a five-year hiatus from recording, George Harrison released Cloud Nine to rave reviews by critics and fans, who touted the collection as his long-awaited comeback album. In reality, however, it wasn’t all that different from Harrison’s other solo outings in that it offered his usual blend of spiritual musings (Fish on the Sand), social commentaries (Devil’s Radio), lightweight relationship songs (Someplace Else), and reworked oldies (Got My Mind Set on You), although this time, with the help of former Electric Light Orchestra leader Jeff Lynne, the music contained a bit more pep and pizzazz, which served to enhance its infectious pop-oriented sensibility. Propelled by the MTV-era, Cloud Nine was a massive commercial success, though in hindsight, its stylistic approach was as tied to the ’80s as George Harrison was to the ’70s. In other words, it was a solid collection of songs, but it also wasn’t anywhere near as astounding as most made it out to be. The reissue features a pair of bonus tracks taken from the soundtrack to Shanghai Surprise — the forgettable title tune and the jazzy curiosity Zig Zag. ½

This is the fifth installment of a seven-part series, which will examine The Dark Horse Years 1976–1992 album by album. The entire set is rated: ½

Part One: Thirty-Three & 1/3

Part Two: George Harrison

Part Three: Somewhere in England

Part Four: Gone Troppo

Part Six: Live in Japan

Part Seven: The Dark Horse Years 1976–1992 DVD

Cloud Nine is available from Amazon.com.
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This album is also part of the box set
The Dark Horse Years 1976–1992 is available
from Amazon.com. To order, Click Here!

For Canadian orders, please Click Here!

For UK orders, please Click Here!

Ratings

1 Star:   Pitiful
2 Stars: Listenable
3 Stars: Respectable
4 Stars: Excellent
5 Stars: Can't Live Without It!!

Copyright © 2004 The Music Box