Bryan Ferry

Frantic manages to touch upon virtually every musical style of Bryan Ferry's career. Ferry has proved to be as interested in covering other artists' material as penning original songs, and he straddles a smart mix of originals and covers here. Two brilliant Bob Dylan songs appear among the opening tracks: "It's All Over Now Baby Blue" sees a return to the eclectic, energetic experimentation of Ferry's early albums with Roxy Music as a lush modern swirl of instruments mingles with the singer's stylized vocals and throwback harmonica; "Don't Think Twice It's Alright" completes the Dylan pair, as Ferry intones with confidence and again takes up harmonica over Colin Good's rolling piano.

Most Bryan Ferry compilations divide their time between his solo recordings and Roxy Music hits, so 2009’s The Best of Bryan Ferry is noteworthy in how it focuses entirely on his solo work, running from the ‘70s and into the new millennium. At 21 tracks, the collection is generous, so it’s not a surprise that it contains all the hits and staples, from “A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall” and “Let’s Stick Together” to “Slave to Love” and “Kiss and Tell,” with the deluxe edition going one step further and collecting 28 music videos, including many singles that don’t show up on the CD. This DVD is an enticement for the diehards who already own everything on the CD, but seen as just an aural collection, this is the best overview of Ferry’s solo recordings yet assembled.

Taxi shows a mature Bryan Ferry, suave and controlled, very much in line with his general career from 1979 on. The choice of songs to cover doesn't make for any surprises – the same selections of classic rock, pop, and soul numbers dominate, with an interesting ringer here and there like "Amazing Grace." As with his other recent solo records, a cast of thousands supports him, ranging from the Grid's Richard Norris on synth programming to Brit guitar legends Robin Trower and Michael Brook, plus vocalist Carleen Anderson. All four feature on the opening "I Put a Spell on You," which manages the neat trick of sounding almost exactly like a Ferry original – what Screamin' Jay Hawkins would have made of it is anyone's guess.