One False Move

OF ALL the Canadian melodic rock bands that failed to make a global impression, Harlequin must surely rank as one of the most talented. With a rich, confident sound and songs that delivered both muscle and melody, they took their position in a marketplace eager to embrace tunes supported by solid riffs, razor sharp guitar work and pedal-to-the-metal energy. ‘Love Crimes’, Harlequin's previous album, had established a firm beach-head in their home country, achieving platinum status and propelling them into major league venues from coast to coast. With everything to play for, they once again set about recording with renowned American producer Jack ‘Aerosmith’ Douglas, in Toronto. The results were quite spectacular, moving Harlequin’s sound and style one step closer to heaven, and beyond. ‘One False Move’, originally released in 1982, is a consummate melodic rock album, full of vim, vigour, and all things nice. Above all else, it is the quality of their songs that elevates it to classic status. Think Loverboy, April Wine, Streetheart and Sheriff all wrapped up in one glorious bundle of fun, with talent to burn and hearts to break. Thoroughly recommended.

If you owned a blues club and insisted that you would only book hardcore blues purists, you would miss out on a lot of talented people. That's because so many of the artists playing the blues circuit in the 21st century have other influences – perhaps rock, perhaps soul, perhaps jazz. All of those things have influenced James Solberg, who is essentially a bluesman but is far from a purist. Those who expect everything a bluesman records to have 12 bars are bound to find One of These Days disappointing, but more eclectic and broad-minded listeners will find a lot to admire about this German release, which finds the charming singer embracing everything from moody, Bobby "Blue" Bland-ish soul-blues (&"One of These Days," "Everyday") to exuberant blues-rock ("One False Move," "Too Damn Much Lovin'").

Apparently, the Move's discography is so complex that not even a lovingly compiled, rarities-laden, career-spanning box set like Salvo's 2008 Anthology 1966-1972 can fit everything within the confines of four discs. The devil is in the licensing, as it always is, something that always plagues Move compilations because their last album, Message from the Country, was on Harvest, while their first two - The Move and Shazam - were on EMI and the third, Looking On, was on Fly. Typically, the first three albums are grouped together - as they were on WestSide's 1997 box Movements - with Message from the Country left lingering on its own, a situation Salvo almost avoids on Anthology by cherry-picking the low-riding heavy blues-rocker "Ella James" and loading up the fourth disc with the wonderful post-Message singles that captured the band at some kind of a zenith: "Tonight," "Do Ya," "Chinatown," "California Man"…

This may be more Move than the casual fan wants, but it's not just another rehashed collection. From the remastered sound to the presence of various outtakes (including lost live tracks), the 30th anniversary triple-disc Movements is as definitive a set as we'll ever have on this band, containing everything except for the Message From the Country album…