By 2005, it had been nearly eight years since Adrian Belew had unleashed an all-new solo studio effort. That's not to say he wasn't busy, though, as he toured/recorded with both King Crimson and the Bears during this time. And in the process, he became quite friendly with two of rock's top players -- Primus' Les Claypool and Tool's Danny Carey -- who happened to be major Belew fans. As a result, Belew invited the duo to play on several tracks on Side One. But be forewarned: they do not appear on the entire album, which is a shame, because the two best tracks -- "Ampersand" and "Writing on the Wall" (the latter of which is a fierce funk-rocker, quite reminiscent of early-'80s-era King Crimson) -- are the ones that contain this stellar lineup. But that's not to say the other tracks aren't worthwhile; other standouts include the noisy, repetitive epic "Madness" (which could have fit snugly on Crimson's 2003 effort, The Power to Believe) and a tribute to pachyderms everywhere, the appropriately titled "Elephants." At barely over 30 minutes in length, some fans who have patiently waited this long for a new Belew release may be disappointed initially, before finding out the good news -- the guitarist will be releasing two additional solo releases in 2005 (Side Two and Side Three). ~ Greg Prato, All Music Guide (http://www.artistdirect.com/nad/store/artist/album/0,,3128732,00.html)
01. Ampersand
02. Writing on the Wall
03. Matchless Man
04. Madness
05. Walk Around the World
06. Beat Box Guitar
07. Under the Radar
08. Elephants
09. Pause
Gary Lee Tussing: Cello
Ian Wallace: Voices
Peter Hyrka: Violin
Gary Tussing: Cello
Andrew Mendelson: Mastering
Julie Rust: Layout Design
Danny Carey: Drums, Tabla
Les Claypool: Guitar (Bass), Bass
Ken Latchney: Audio Engineer, Mixing, Engineer
Adrian Belew: Audio Production, Guitar, Producer, Various, Vocals, Instrumentation, Paintings
Frank Zappa & Adrian Belew
official webb: http://www.adrianbelew.net/
