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Reviews Submitted by Edward R. Schwab
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Edward R. Schwab has contributed 3 reviews to The Penguin: Everything That is Fleetwood Mac:

Paris (3/5.03/5.03/5.03/5.03/5.0)
Rocks Greatest Chameleon Dons A New Shade......
Review written by Edward R. Schwab from St.Louis, MO, July 26th, 2005

Bob Welch starts a new chapter in his career with this lp - mainstream rock. Although, focussed more heavily on Hypnotized-derived prose and content,
Welch's own personal arranging style and Dylan-esque talk-singing add an unusual flare to what he himself admitted at the time was Zeppelin-borrowed power rock. Welch and longtime friend, Glen Cornick (it was in
fact Cornicks wife Judy that introduced Welch to the Mac five years earlier), create a layered metal song-book, almost structurally designed. This albums only real downfall is its "tinny" acoustics, which the 2001
English CD reissue did NOT repair. A further example of Welchs' almost simplistic approach to this project, which when comparing to Mac classics like Future Games or Mystery To Me, is hard to understand. It was in
fact, Welchs' brother-in-law at the time, Jimmy Robin- son who produced the LP. Yet, it is easy to comprehend why this recording was critically forgotten; Welch had completely altered his songwriting approach for this
album, not without much consternation from his Mac cohorts. Black Book, Solitaire, and Breathless are al-most metal power preaches, whereas Narrow Gate, Nazar-ene, Beautiful Youth and Red Rain showcase Welch's
gift of arrangement, even in strenuous circumstances such as heavy prose-rock. Overall, if the listener can get past the almost total lack of "haughtiness" that seemed to seep itsself into the mixing process, Paris
overall shines in areas where most other metal albums fail - the creative use of carefully-placed verbiage and generous use of chord changes and movements, paint a musical near-masterpiece.....done in lead paint...

Big Towne 2061 (4/5.04/5.04/5.04/5.04/5.0)
Paris Second Attempt Outshines Predacessor
Review written by Edward R. Schwab, November 1st, 2004

Big Towne, 2061 is a futuristic blend of Heavy rock and techno which has never really been duplicated the same since. This is the second recording by the power trio of Welch, Glenn Cornick, and this time Hunt Sales who would later become a member of David Bowie's Tin Machine (it is worth noting that Bernie Marseen was also listed in rock journals at the time as the extra musician heard on the live track "Slave Trader"). This time, Welch learned from the mistakes made on the previous power raunch. Here, the first correction is obvious - the production is very smooth and sharp, unlike the first venture (Bob Hughes, who produced the Mac's Heroes Are Hard To Find album produced this one) and the subject matter, although still esoteric and VERY Bob Welch, tends to lean a little to the seedy side. "New Orleans" talks about mixed breeding, and open invitation to cause general mayhem, among other things. "Outlaw Game" is the predacessor to the song "Outskirts", which was released on his first solo lp, and the aforementioned "Slave Trader" highlights Welch's amazing jazz guitar skills, structured in a song about selling your soul. But without a doubt, the raining princess out of the collection is "Janie", a song obviously written about his then-wife Jane Robinson, whose brother had mixed the first album. "Blue Robin", "1 in 10", and "Heart Of Stone" are pure rock n roll (Welch-ized, of course), and "Pale Horse, Pale Rider", uses heavy synthesizer waves to guide the movements. And finally, the album's tribute to dead presidents, "Money Love" starts off side 2, and showcases Hunt Sales' vocal talents. One should also add that another song "China" came out of this batch of music, and was later released on Welch's second solo LP, Three Hearts. Big Towne, 2061 is simply good from cover to cover. There isnt a single weak link here, and it is actually some of Welch's greatest arrangement masterpieces, probably his best excluding Looks At Bop. A very approachable attempt at heavy rock, this lp is not one to be missed, especially for those Welch fans who want to see him challenge himself to the fullest musically, lyrically, and even vocally. It certainly should be part of every Mac collection

Eye Contact (3/5.03/5.03/5.03/5.03/5.0)
Welch's Pop Swan Song Shines With Techno Flare
Review written by Edward R. Schwab from Contributor to Fleetwood Mac - Behind The Masks, September 18th, 2004

This is the last of a chain of albums Welch recorded just prior to an apparent early retirement. Although the matter at hand was substance abuse at the time, his songwriting skills seemed undamaged. Entering into a new musical age, Welch opted here to fuse pop with fusion, something that so many since him had done with greater sucess. This was his second recording for RCA, and also his second without any contribution whatsoever from any of his Mac bandmates (Fleetwood had been his manager through the Capitol years). On this disc, Welch seems to almost reek Devo or be a predacessor for the likes of Thompson Twins and Nu Shooz. A far cry from his early days in the 60's, hiding in the bottom of tour busses during the Watts Riots. But whereas the music was soulful, and one could (in fact would) say more structured and lyric-oriented, Eye Contact is sharper, brighter, and cleaner than most of the other recordings he became associated with. Taking advantage of new technology, the sound left the listener with the impression that the entire recording was made on a computer, something that now (with MIDI capabilities), is commonplace. But its worth noting that while the album may lack soul or spirit, it does become almost injected with creative license. "Fever" the single off the album (the single version was better), wasnt even the shining star off the disc. "Love On The Line" was by far the gem off the album. Its laden, choral verses only complimented by the ballad-y piano movements. "Bernadette" is quite a refereshing piece that reflects back on something that may have been released on The Other One. "I'll Dance Alone", now reincarnated frequently on Napster and in dance halls, grinds a robotic, bass synth groove that steers the song along like a freight train and still Welch finds more ways to explore his musical identity. It is also worth noting that gone now com-pletely, is Welch's gift for supernatural interests, of which is a shame, becasue he is so well identified with just that. A far-cry from his days with Fleetwood Mac, listening to this album, almost makes it hard to believe he was ever a part of the Bare Trees lineup or ever wrote Hypnotized...Still, once again, Welch pro-vided the listener with exactly what they expect to get from a Bob Welch record...a different listening experience with an always enjoyable approach to pop music....