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 Third Time The Charm For Astley Mar 16, 2009
Alright despite Rick Astley's current status of poster boy (or whipping boy) for 80's cheese pop I found his early 80's pop/disco hits and albums such as Whenever You Need Somebody to be peppy,refreshing and pretty strong for it's day,if endelibly linked to it's era. Well obviously the title of this tells you so;this is DEFINATELY not that first album. The youthful spirit of his first two releases is replaced by a decidedly more mature and often more anguished tone.While Astley penned and produced most of the music here Michael McDonald and Mark King,bassist and lead singer for the Brit-funk band Level 42 are welcomed guests. "In The Name Of Love" is a great way to start the album;contemporary and dancable for sure but with a great soulful feeling to match Astley's terrific,bassy pipes. As with the rest of this album the production style (probably luckily) remained decidedly mid 1980's;Astley didn't bother going along with the New Jack and alternative rock sounds that were then the only things that could get you on the radio.So even if this album was commercially ignored,and in the end it has aged very gracefully."Cry For Help" really helped give this album "art-cred";the genuine report being Rick's yearning vocals and the backup vocals of the Andrae Crouch singers bring out a total building intensity.It's one song that people will really come to this album for a good case for Astley's creative control here.On "Move Right Out" and "Never Knew Love" the easy groove of Brit Soul make an appearance.As for the two Mark King co-compositions "Be With You" is a furious funk-rocker that really excites while "Really Got A Problem" tends more towards the poppy side of things;would've been a good single.Another big potential single here is "This Must Be Heaven",kind of a retro soul bounce to the whole thing and a hook that cannot be beat.Again it's very far away from "Never Gonna Give You Up". I would say the same thing about "The Bottom Line" except this 5+ romp through the classic 60's Motown beat changes gears in the last quarter of the song turns into a bluesy nightclub be-boppy jazz jam where Rick narrates his own little outro.It shows artistically Rick's true colors are likely on the jazzy side of things but if edited down-yeah I hear a single..The album concludes with two wonderful ballads "Wonderful You" and "Behind The Smile" that recapture the feeling and soul of "Cry For Help" as well as the epic production. Rick Astely's fate with pop culture,like many from his decade of recording has been more then a little unfair.And considering that many of them have credible music such as this to offer perhaps it's time to change our outlook on the pop stars of the 80's who made the effort to break away from the stiffling production of their producer oriented era,just as their predesessors had in the late 60s/early 70s and see that the 80's/early 90's were not totally an artless,pointless time in popular music.
Editorial Review Nov 06, 2006
"A major change of direction...Free found Rick Astley working with producer Gary Stevenson instead of the Stock / Aitken / Waterman team and going for a very adult contemporary-type pop/R&B sound instead of the dance-oriented direction that put him on the map. No longer were the Average White Band and '70s Philly soul/disco valid comparisons; the new...Astley had more in common with Michael MacDonald and the Doobie Brothers...There are a few songs on Free that pack a bit of a punch, including 'The Bottom Line' and the rock-influenced 'Is This Really Love'... ~ Alex Henderson, All Music Guide"
free at last!! Dec 17, 2005
so ricks 3rd album is a different course i think more personall course that the pwl albums.
it starts great with the ones you love a michael mcdonald penned song witch really suits rick vocals very soulfull!
than the masterpeace cry for help!wonderfull sound and gospel backing rick at his best!
move right out is a dark moody r&b track good horns there.
be with you and really got a problem are the 2weak point of the album not music for rick astley.
is this really love is powerfull rock/soul great horns!!
this must be heaven is a good song with powerfull vocals.
never knew love reminds me a bit of september(rythim)of earth wind&fire,the bottom line is a good selfpenned attempt to recreate the50's big band style.
than the 2great ones wonderfull you is great soulfull ballad with super instr. backing and behind the smile is very sensitive stripped down ballad with just rick and elton john on piano.
good album
nico
reall
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
His freedom album from formulaic pop! Mar 27, 2005
I call this album from Rick Astley his freedom-type album. Free from the formulaic verse-chorus-verse dance pop that he had to sing with the hit machine producers of Stock Aitken Waterman. In its place is a more streamlined live sound for him. When I first heard Cry For Help, I went nuts! I was shocked, and still am to this day. One of Astley's best vocal performances and performing with piano, a live band and a gospel-like choir at the end. Astley sounds good on this album, as he and the producer of Go West's songs produced this effort. I like the danceable Move Right Out. Many of the songs are more personal and you can tell that Rick wrote most of the songs. I still think that his '93 album is the best, but this is a close second to me. Brilliant pop album!
5 of 9 found the following review helpful:
 Get Greatest Hits Instead Jan 17, 2003
Rick's worst album, without a doubt, and I've heard all of them. Some of these reviewers must be Rick Astley nuts. If this is a four-star effort, then Whenever You Need Somebody and the Greatest Hits album are worth 10 stars. Good grief.After breaking away from Stock, Aitken & Waterman, this album was a learning experience for Rick, and he was struggling to find a new direction to get away from his lightweight, bubblegum pretty-boy puppet image. Unfortunately, he couldn't decide if he wanted to be pop, adult contemporary or soul. As a result, many of the songs here lack focus and direction, not to mention memorable hooks and melodies. However, to give Rick credit, there are 3 really good songs here which stand out head and shoulders above the others. These are the poignant ballad, "Cry For Help", the sassy and brassy "Move Right Out", and the joyous "Never Knew Love". However, these songs are also on the greatest hits CD, and presented there in better mixes, so save your money and go with that. Also, as one reviewer wrote, the CD booklet and packaging is rather chintzy and unappealing. It's as if some bargain-basement company like K-Tel put it together.
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