Search - Bryan Ferry :: Slave to Love: Best of the Ballads

This is one collection to love

Distant Voyageur | Io | 03/24/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Bryan is one of my all time favorite singers of all time. He is a great musician and has created some of the best music that I have ever listened to. This CD is a collection of ballads from both his solo albums and from his band Roxy Music's albums. There are two songs that were previously unreleased as well as the Princess Diana tribute track Sonnet No. 18.The songs vary from very simple in the likes of Smoke Gets In Your Eyes, to jazzy like that of These Foolish Things, to rock-oriented in the likes of Is Your Love Strong Enough which is one of the best songs Bryan Ferry has ever made. It could fit well on his masterpiece Bete Noire. There are even two songs from his 1999 album As Time Goes By(I have since come to like it some) which have a very 30s or 40s vibe to them. My favorite songs are Avalon, Is Your Love Strong Enough, Zamba, These Foolish Things, Windswept and the unforgettable Slave To Love. The truth is this entire CD contains unforgettable songs that will never die in my opinion. I have enjoyed Bryan Ferry's music for about seven years( I,m 19 years old but I hate alot of todays artists). Bete Noire made me a fan of Bryan. The thing though I kind don't like about these so called "Best Of" CDs is it kind of feels like the record executives are trying to cash in on the Bryan Ferry and Roxy Music fanbases( I don't need "Avalon, Slave To Love, or Smoke Gets In Your Eyes on like ten or so CDs). But anyway I love this CD and i now have about five CDs by Ferry. I plan on getting his remastered early albums sometime soon. Personally I feel glad I have this great collection of great ballads from a great singer. I recommend buying it for casual fans. This album is worth having just for Is Your Love Strong Enough with it's haunting ambient intro and the ambient rock guitar aways and for the great cover version of the classic Crazy Love."

Bryan Ferry gets the package treatment.

Tim Brough | Springfield, PA United States | 06/27/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Without question, Bryan Ferry is one of the most sublime singers of the past 30 years. And if you subtract the work with Roxy, he rates as one of the all time best interpretive artists, ever. Which is what makes a collection like "Slave to Love" frustrating. While it certainly spotlight's Ferry's extraordinary skill as a romantic singer, it jumbles and juxtaposes styles from the various stages of Ferry's career. One of the greatest things about latter day Roxy was that the albums (in particular, "Flesh + Blood" and "Avalon") had such seamless flow to them. Even his more recent solo material had that silky continuity, making them best heard as whole albums. On a CD touted as "The Best Of The Ballads," having the wistful romance of "More Than This" pressed against the endearingly campy "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes" becomes something of a distraction rather than an enhancement.Them's the minuses. The plusses are that you do get a really slick 74 minutes of coolly delivered songs to while away the time to. There are a few harder to find single and soundtrack songs here as well. Roxy Music's tribute to John Lennon, their cover of "Jealous Guy," is reason alone to buy "Slave To Love." You'll also find "Is Your Love Strong Enough" and "Sonnet No 18" for those who don't have the originals.So while I wouldn't disavow this collection to anyone searching it out, I'd also recommend "Avalon," "Boys and Girls" and "Siren" as albums to explore above this one."

Bryan Ferry: Today's Sinatra

D. Sean Brickell | gorgeous Virginia Beach, VA United States | 02/16/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I'll be brief. Your time is better spent lsiteing to this CD than reading about it. Bryan Ferry is today's Sinatra. Timeless ballads and exquisite arrangements, sincere vocal featuring superb phrasing. This is what artist collections should be, something fans and first-time listeners will enjoy forever."