Leon Russell

What Leon has given us is a song cycle that eloquently elaborates the daily vicissitudes of
his fulfilled dream of popstardom. While the 8 1/2 motif is hardly new to rock, no one, with
the exception of the Dylan of Blonde On Blonde, has captured the ambivalence inherent to
the pop hero's situation any more sagaciously or incisively than Russell. Carney (carnival
barker) is certainly Leon's most gentle and personal statement, in which even th... More >

Not the radical falloff some report--just slippage, the first side listenable and the second flaky. Not that I expect "Manhattan Island Serenade" or "Cajun Love Song" to get covered like "This Masquerade." And not that I enjoy anything else as much as "If the Shoe Fits," a cheap shot at hangers-on that says more about the performer's lot than "Tight Rope" and "Magic Mirror" put together. (Grade: B-)