Arc Of A Diver

Too synthy!

Reminds me of local radio, they would play crap like this presumably it was cheaper than playing something well known. Or they had terrible taste. Anyway, early 80s easy listening, hateful stuff 1.5*

Na ja

pretty meh and boring on this one. i'm not inspired by any of the tracks and I haven't heard any of them before. I might go with a 1 on this album, nothing redeeming here for me.

In a nutshell: sterile soft rock/synth pop. Look, Steve. I know you were trying to do something different in the 80’s but this was a clusterfuck to listen to. I couldn’t hear anything redeeming on this album. Overall: 1/10

One hit wonder, entirely forgettable.

Prog nonsense

Not good

Oooo I do like a bit of 80s cheese but apart from the big hit there's nothing here to interest anyone. I'm not sure what the Genre is here? 'Cheese'?

Just not my music

Typical drivel of its time!

Baws

Everything awful about 80’s music in one album.

1.4/5 -- listened 2x. just not great. glutton for punishment here, as it didn't get better.

Sometimes when lots of bad things come together, cheesy vocals, awful synths, dreadful arrangements, well... in this case it just ends up a pile of stinking dross. It's hard to single out what I hate about this most. The vocals sound like someone impersonating Phil Collins, who in turn is impersonating Peter Gabriel, badly. I worry about Mr Winwood's nasal passage, as it sounds totally blocked. Maybe he suffers from allergies? The synths are probably the worst, but are actually so very bad that they become "interesting". There's a cheap "farty" sound as if this is being played on a cheap Casio that came out of a Christmas Cracker. The lyrics are just appalling, hitting the "run out of words la la la um um um" level of dreadfulness. But nope, after listening to the whole sorry affair, it's the keyboards that grate the most I feel. The synth-sax squeals like a stuck pig and, although there's an argument that they complement the other awful sounds being emitted here, this is a horror that should have been left where it belongs, back in the early 1980s. Obligatory one star.

Wow, this makes me wanna die.

For a 1980 album this sounds like it invented the sound of 83/4/5 Everyone else was coming out of punk and new wave and into the cusp of pop. This seems to have been ahead of that. For good and ill. This is truly tedious though.

I'd never heard of Steve Winwood before, and I'm not sure his music does anything for me. The arrangements and use of synths sounded off to me, and none of the tracks were particularly memorable.

I found this really boring and uninspiring. Not sure of the appeal.

First listen Saved 1/7 Top track: Night Train

The 80s had both some of the best and some of the worst music ever released. This is an example of the latter.

Have I heard this album before? No Highlights: Rating: 3.2/10 Thought this was really boring 80s pop rock.

This was very bland, sounded like a lot of bad TV show themes with really corny synth and sax riffs. I had it on while working and it all merged into one, my phone has played one or two random tracks before I realised it had finished. As it was released in 1980 it was probably influential on the other 80s stuff that sounded like this, but I'm not sure that's better or worse. Not for me, can't imagine it's anyone's favourite, even if you like this music you'd probably prefer something that stands out a bit more.

Mais um folk sem relevância para mim.

Blahhhh

Hated it. It was god awful.

I don't normally do this, but I just can't today. This is literally so three-star and mid in every way that it actually became a one-star.

When trying to convince people that the 80's were not musically terrible, one might preface with "Look.. it's not all Duran Duran and Steve Winwood and Vanilla Ice" 1 case of not helping your case out of 5

I was going to attempt another listen, but F it. This guy's voice and music take me back to time I just met my future wife and had the unfortunate experience of having to drop her sister off at her boyfriend's apartment. This dude proceeded to play one of Winwood's albums, (yes vinyl album) over and over and over for like 3 hours straight while her berated his girlfriend, punched up walls and the wiped blood on my new WMU sweatshirt. All because she went to Spring Break in Florida without him or something like that. Now, every time I hear Winwood's voice or music, I want to punch Rick in the face. Over and over and over again. I can't believe she married that dick and I can't believe I made to the end of this album. All apologies to Winwood, but I avoid your music like I avoid Rick. As much as possible.

1. a chance - 0 2. arc of a diver - 0 3. zecond hand uuoman - 0 4. zundouun - 5. zpanizh dancer - 0 6. night train - 1 7. duzt - 0

I am embarrassed for this project that this album is listed. The albums that are just people banging trash cans together are better.

Was relieved when I turned it off

Moche. Je veux bien mettre "While you see a chance" de côté, c'est la meilleure et elle n'est quand même pas bonne. Le reste n'est qu'un grand ramassis de synthé daté et affreux et de production au rabais dans des compo sans grand intérêt chanté avec une voix au mieux quelconque, plus souvent énervante. Et "Second-Hand Woman"? Vraiment? Je passe.

Didn’t like “Valerie” or “The Finer Things”, his hits from his most popular solo album. I like this even less.

The Wish version of Phil Collins... Without a distinct/iconic voice and without interesting drum parts. The synth sounds are bad and cringy. Pop songs without any hooks, barely melodies and feeling uninspired. What the hell? Steve Winwood is a talented musician with an impressive career, but this album is just bad.

Really not my thing… i did not enjoy this

Boring 80s tripe

so... this is like some adult contemporary nightmare where Billy Joel and Phil Collins have merged into the same dude who happens to think he is Stevie Wonder. The cover pretty much tells you what you are getting into.

That’s was the longest 39 minutes and 51 seconds of my life.

First track was recognisable but the rest of the album was forgettable.

I'm not a Traffic fan so I know nothing of Winwood. Get huge Peter Gabriel vibes from the vocal. The production is so heavily what I perceive as what others incorrectly malign the entire decade of the 80s for (1st half anyway), this is going to have to work to overcome it. So far this feels a lot like something that is going to be impossible to get into outside of its time. I don't want to say it's not good, but... ah fuck, 3rd track in, it's not good. Oh god, it's a song about a Second Hand Woman. Amazing. You're worthless love unless you're a virgin or something. What I will say is from what I know of Traffic, this is quite a departure and doesn't necessarily reflect badly on them. The Peter Gabriel vibes continue to shine through oh so strongly, except for, crucially, in the writing. Maybe it's the booze but I did grow into this sufficiently to enjoy Spanish Dancer. Is that enough to avoid the 1 it was headed for, time will tell. Sadly Night Train was less Gabriel and far more Phil Collins, thus earned considerable enmity from me. That and being almost 8 bastard minutes long. This is exactly the sort of record future editions of this book should be phasing out, but no, they delete nearly everything they ever included since 2005 as if no newish music is important. Some of that stuff is 15 years old and older mate, it's nostalgia for today's kids. Won't somebody please think of the children.

I dislike this very much. It's not interesting and I find his vocals annoying. This is primo "secretary rock". Jettison this shit into outer space.

I man what? the complete opposite of "essential". Weak jazzy pop doesn't have the confidence to be out there like Jazz. Would call this easy listening, don't hate it but tempted to give it a 1 as so bland.

I am so fucking bored listening to this .........

Die kut 80s synthesizers kunnen me gestolen worden.

1.5

Sounds like Phil Collins but actually boring. Avoid if you don't like 80s cheese. Best song: Arc of a Diver (Good chorus, still feels like a demo from Phil) Worst song: Second-Hand Woman (Terrible execution and abysmal lyrics)

Soft Rock? This is cheesy synth heavy. I'm ashamed this made the list.

Ahh it's just really weak isn't it. Nothing seems to be expressed with conviction or passion on this album. It's dull and cheesy. It kind of reminds me of a very shit version of a Phil Collins album (I love Phil and find him cheesy in the best way possible) but this is without that extra spark. There's not really any dynamics in the songs either for me, a song doesn't build at all or drop. Also are we for real with a song called Second-Hand Woman??? GROSS

Fuck this dude.

Giving the lowest possible score here because he's got a ton of talent and chose to use it to make yacht rock, which pisses me off. Best track: none

wow that opening synth riff is CRINGE. Sets a cheesy 80's tone right away. Fuck synths.

It was worse than I expected, and my expectations were quite low. Even the best songs on the album are bad.

Nope

Dreadful. I skimmed though a couple of tracks, got as far as Second-Hand Woman, looked up the terrible misogynistic lyrics to check I wasn’t mishearing them and bailed. Bland 80s anti-music.

Dear god no.

Hold on. Is this list actually based on the book "1001 *Elevator Music Albums* You Must Hear Before You Die", edited by Robert Schmuck and Associates at the Cheesefest Corporation, Inc.? 1980 is just three years after the 1977 punk explosion. I can't imagine how many fans of truly vital music (or just simply decent one) must have rolled on to the floor with laughter while listening to this ridiculous stuff. I'm rolling right now as I'm writing these words. It' s nOt easy to whrite by the waY, butt its becuz of the unconttttrolabble fits of laughTer I'm Xperincin rite noW. Now that I've stopped laughing and regained my spirits, I can maybe admit I was unfair in my first assessment up here. *Elevator Music* might be too narrow as an umbrella genre to describe the sounds and performance on this record. This thing can also work for the phone, actually. As in "Your call is very important to us. Please hold the line". Yeah right... You know they actually don't give a rat's ass about you and your problems when they choose this sort of music and make you go through those long minutes of ordeal as you're waiting for someone--anyone--to pick up the line. Guess the only correct tag for this sort of thing is "Music For People Who Have Bad Taste". And for once, I'm ready to fight tooth and nail to prove that such a supposedly harsh assessment is actually nothing but objective here. Let's just be a little serious for one second. Number of albums left to review or just listen to: 854 Number of albums from the list I find relevant enough to be mandatory: 80 Albums from the list I *might* include in mine later on: 36 Albums from the list I will certainly *not* include in mine (many others are more important): 31 (including this one)

oof, that was some bullshit early-80s pop. Yay, Steve, you played all the instruments on this album and it still sucked.

Steve Winwood: "All right, everybody all tuned up and ready to roll?" Band: "You got it, boss. Let's rock." Steve Winwood: "Timmy, you got that synth set to 'Elegant Farts'?" Timmy: *forces saddest thumbs up of all time in Winwood's direction* Steve Winwood: "Perfect, Tim. Let's make magic! And a one, two, three..." Or at least, that's how I imagine it went down. Anyway, this is not for me. I did like the title track well enough. Otherwise it's a cloudy blur.

Without higher love what are we doing here

Urgh. Captures everything I hated about the '80s

Nej nej nej inte min grej, säkerhetsfilmsvibe första låtarna.... night train va väl lite nice men inte alls nice nog.

Just not at all my thing, didn't enjoy. Feels like this is what Simply Red was trying to be. 1/5

Boring

nope

No

not for me

This is dreadful.

chiant

too much synth. when you think of crap 80s.....this is the soundtrack to it.

Not my cup of tea

I struggled to get through this. It's so bland I fear I may have slipped into a coma. I have always claimed I can find good in any album though so... well, it's only seven tracks long. And another thing, 'chances' does not rhyme with 'answered'!

Just not my cup of tea. I got a couple of tracks in but ejected.

Pretty bog standard eighties synth music. Inoffensive. Bit shit.

not my type at all

Synth heavy. Great musician and writer. Songs sound so aged.