Bruce Howe

This is more like it – a lithe, lively collection of material, sung in good voice (Howe is joined by his 1960s Tomorrow bandmate Keith West) and played with the kind of robust, cheerful verve that characterized the best moments of Yes's classic sound. There are also guitar breaks that recall the best moments of Yes's work, only they're a little quieter, which gives one the chance to appreciate Howe's virtuoso dexterity…

Steve Howe's first solo album was a failure next to rival solo releases by Jon Anderson and Chris Squire, both of whom yielded work that was more majestic and memorable. The playing is strong throughout, but towards what end is the mystery – none of the songs are particularly memorable, nor is the production (even a guest appearance by members of the folk-rock group Gryphon doesn't help), and Howe is such a weak singer that he'd have been better off following the lead of his Yes predecessor Peter Banks and sticking to instrumentals.

Fans of AC/DC's original singer Bon Scott who pick up Livestock expecting to hear AC/DC redux will be rather surprised with this release. These cuts, recorded in 1971 with Scott's previous band, Fraternity, reveal a drastically different sound than the bluesy hard rock Scott made his name with. Fraternity veer all over the stylistic map, from the funky "Summerville" to the extended prog-rock epic "Raglan's Folly" (which wouldn't sound out of place on an early Genesis album). Only "Race" (both parts) and "Livestock" bear any resemblance to Scott's most famous band, and even then just barely, since they sound closer to the Doors or mid-'60s Rolling Stones. Part of the discrepancy is that, as the extensive liner notes explain, Scott had very little creative input in Fraternity, which was chiefly the vision of bassist Bruce Howe and guitarist Mick Jurd…

Fans of AC/DC's original singer Bon Scott who pick up Livestock expecting to hear AC/DC redux will be rather surprised with this release. These cuts, recorded in 1971 with Scott's previous band, Fraternity, reveal a drastically different sound than the bluesy hard rock Scott made his name with. Fraternity veer all over the stylistic map, from the funky "Summerville" to the extended prog-rock epic "Raglan's Folly" (which wouldn't sound out of place on an early Genesis album). Only "Race" (both parts) and "Livestock" bear any resemblance to Scott's most famous band, and even then just barely, since they sound closer to the Doors or mid-'60s Rolling Stones. Part of the discrepancy is that, as the extensive liner notes explain, Scott had very little creative input in Fraternity, which was chiefly the vision of bassist Bruce Howe and guitarist Mick Jurd…