Emitt Rhodes
Farewell to Paradise - ABC/Dunhill 1973 Comments:"Farewell to Paradise" from 1973 was Emitt Rhodes fourth and so far his last album. After two great albums his third, "Mirror", was somewhat disappointing, containing only a couple of memorable songs.
"Farewell to Paradise" doesn't match his two first albums either, does it does contain some great songs.
The great ballad "Only Lovers Decide" is as strong as anything on the first two albums, and the title-track "Farewell to Paradise" is gradually becoming one of my favourite Emitt Rhodes songs.
I guess, you can say that "Farewell to Paradise" is Rhodes' most personal album and the least Beatles influenced. I'm not very keen on his music when he turns too much towards jazz, which he does on a few songs on this album. A song like "Blue Horizon" which does not sound much like anything he's recorded earlier, is one of the greatest on this album - one the most country-influenced songs he's recorded. The quiet acoustic "Trust No More" is a nice song that is very likely to grow on you.
Unfortunately most of the other songs are relatively forgettable and thus the album as such is no more than decent. Some versions of the album include the fine single "Time the Lion" - a comment to America's war in Vietnam. The song really ought have been included in the first place.
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