This band are about as local as it gets for me as. Bill Nelson was from Wakefield, about 8 miles from where I spent my childhood. The word genius is bandied around far too often (especially in the music business), but Bill Nelson is a bonafide genius and visionary. He was never one to stand around and repeat himself. Even if what went before was successful, Bill felt the need to move on to something new. If you listen to all the Be Bop albums, they are all different, and it’s only Bill that holds them all together. He’s often talked about as a great songwriter and innovator, but he is also a fantastic guitarist.
This album would be the last of the early glam style albums before they would reflect more of what was happening around them. Often compared to Bowie (and I know Bill did admire Bowie), I think this is more to do with the tonal quality of Bill’s voice and the way he paints pictures with his lyrics. Ships In The Night was the band’s highest charting single in the UK, and the one Bill hates the most as the record company were putting him under pressure at the time. For me, it is possibly the weakest song on the album, as the two songs that precede it on the album, Fair Exchange and Heavenly Homes, are amazing tracks with a very Prog feel to them. Crying To The Sky has one of my favourite Bill solos that just soars beautifully above the music. Superb tone and feel! Other stand out tracks are the incredible Blazing Apostles, which has a very new wave vibe to it – but again a great guitar sound, and my favourite track on this album, Life In the Air Age.
Bill is still cranking out tunes in his seventies, and I urge everyone to go and check him out – he has made some incredible music.
9/10 from The Grooveman.
