FOREIGNER

ACOUSTIQUE

RELEASED 2011

The prospect of an acoustic album by Foreigner at first doesn’t sound like a ‘must have’ and some of you out there will always run a mile at the prospect of a ‘sounds the same’ acoustic set anyway. But there are masters of this form out there – bands like Tesla who revel in this setting.

Opening with ‘Long Long Way’ from their first album is nice enough but not entirely convincing, even if it does reinforce that Kelly Hansen does have an extraordinary voice. ‘Cold As Ice’ that follows too, despite its wonderful melodies just feels a little clean and clinical. Some would argue that was the point – producing acoustic versions of a wonderful catalogue that replicate the electric originals as much as possible. I would counter with ‘where’s the fun in that?’ and to an extent that’s what we get here a pretty, beautifully played but rather ‘faithful’ rendition of some of the great Foreigner songs, but nothing particularly off the way or surprising.

Don’t take this the wrong way though; I’m not being critical – just trying to paint the picture. Sometimes it does work tough – ‘The Flame Still Burns’ revels in the stripped back glory of what really is a great song. (OK there’s an added string section so I’m not sure I can really call it stripped back) It just feels right, and Kelly does get the chance to cut loose just a little.

Highlights here would have to be ‘Fool For You Anyway’ which is driven by Kelly’s voice, which gets to soar a little, and also has a lovely solo. “Say You Will’ is also cool and ‘Waiting For a Girl Like You’ was always going to work like this.  

Sometimes though it doesn’t work (at least for me): ‘Double Vision’ for example, which is one of my favourite Foreigner songs, seems to loose a lot in acoustic translation.

Closing with ‘That’s All Right’ popularised by the big E must make sense to someone I’m sure…

You can’t deny the quality of the songs and the performances are flawless but we are just lacking a little passion. Mixed feelings about this one, but fans will of course love it.

By Mark Diggins