Arc Of A Diver

Noticeably an adult contemporary rock sound from the 80s, right out of the gate and through the finish. But otherwise nothing wrong with this album. Pretty solid, generally speaking.

Completely uninteresting and with some casual misogyny thrown in. I think part of the power of rock music is the creative energy of people collaborating, so I'm always skeptical of albums where some egotist played every instrument themselves. In this case, that combines with tinny eighties production to make an utterly sterile sounding record.

Overall: 4/10 A very strange album (in a bad way) that I really felt nothing for. Apparently this dude was in Traffic, a band I know nothing about, and I hope that their music is more interesting than this. Fav Song: Spanish Dancer

Charter member of a group of albums (Asia’s first, Donald Fagen’s “The Nightfly”, any Jeffrey Osborne, etc.) whose production and sound positively scream “eighties”. As such, it’s pleasant enough synth/keyboard-driven (very) soft rock, and apparently they’d like us to know that Winwood played all the instruments on this. That said, does it belong this list? I think not.

You know, it’s an album.

It's sound amazing for the time it came out, but it's just doesn't have anything special

very good

Respectfully nice. I’m more of a fan of the earlier bands, and not so much the later pop stuff. This is right in the middle. And I’ll use a word that I don’t like as a descriptor of music, but “mid” because it is well produced, easy to listen to, but doesn’t move me. Mildly interesting album made by a legendary musician.

Winwood going 80s pop and is pretty dull. A few nice moments but not much to hold onto here.

Meh

The first song is kind of catchy, I guess. I struggled to finish the rest of the album: boring boomer baloney.

Reminds me of my childhood otherwise it would get fewer stars

Eh. I was between a 2 and a 3 on this, but I didn’t like it after all. It’s a 2.

Ni genial ni horrible

A nice solo experiment, nothing groundbreaking but still smooth for easy listening

not the normal stuff i listen to but i surprisingly actually rlly enjoyed it! i think the beats were so much fun and the experimental-ness of it all just roped me in

7/10

I am not white enough nor have I snorted enough booger sugar to truly appreciate this album. But it was alright.

Soulful voice for a white boy, but too poppy for me

I only really knew Winwood from Traffic, which is a band I never really got into as much as other people, his music was great, but felt too generic. However, this album took me by surprise, there's much more of a Pop Rock approach, instead of a Blues-y sound, and the opener 'While You See A Chance' is genuinely one of the greatest songs I have heard in a while! The rest of the album is solid, but I can't explain how much I love 'While You See A Chance', it's going to be one of my most frequently played songs this month - I've already been replaying it! 'Spanish Dancer' was the other highlight for me, but it doesn't seem to be very well-received. I don't understand the criticism that this album receives, it's incredibly fun and catchy, and even the low-points are still great in their own right!

I can’t believe it’s taken this long for my first Steve Winwood solo album to appear in this challenge. That said, Traffic have already made an appearance, and I think they’re superb. I’ve always loved Steve Winwood, so I was really looking forward to listening to Arc of a Diver today, and it certainly didn’t disappoint. What a great album this is. Every song is strong, and there’s a real consistency to the quality throughout. Winwood is such a talented musician and songwriter, and you can hear that in every track. The combination of his brilliant voice, keyboards and catchy melodies makes this a really enjoyable listen. I wonder whether bringing in different songwriting partners helped give Arc of a Diver such a strong collection of songs. Whatever the reason, it works brilliantly. This is top-quality pop music, full of great lyrics, memorable melodies and catchy hooks. There’s also a lovely mix of pop, rock and soul, with that unmistakable Steve Winwood sound running through everything. “While You See a Chance” is a fantastic opener and a brilliant pop song. The title track is another highlight, and I really enjoyed “Second-Hand Woman”. What I particularly like is that the quality never really drops. There’s no unnecessary filler, and every song earns its place. This is exactly the sort of album I love discovering through this challenge. Great songwriting, superb musicianship and plenty of melody. I went in with high expectations and came away loving it. I'll definitely be listening to this again, and it has reminded me just how good Steve Winwood is. Favourite tracks: “While You See a Chance”, “Arc of a Diver” and “Second-Hand Woman”. Three superb songs. Least favourite track: Nothing really. I enjoyed every track, and there isn't a weak song on the album. Album artwork: Cool album cover. Simple, colourful and very much of its time.

Everything I want out of an 80s soft pop album. Relaxing, mellow vibes, good melodies, and energy here and there.

I dug it! Nothing particularly mind blowing but definitely enjoyable.

i LOVED “while you see a chance”. it sounds like jack stauber and the chord progressions are awesome. beautiful album overall, his voice is very smooth and very sing-alongable to.

This guy has a great voice and can write really good songs, both of which you wouldn't believe from this record. Plastic songs in a plastic sound, just awful.

While you see a chance - saves this album - rest is meh

Solid!

It was pretty decent, maybe like a high 3-low 4.

I’m simultaneously surprised and not surprised this is rated so low. What shocks me is how little credit many users are giving to Winwood for how musically gifted he is. His voice is one of the most distinctive, amazing ones in rock. Beyond this, he plays basically everything on this record, which is an equally as amazing given all the layers he has in a lot of these tracks. He even mixed and produced it all himself, a further testament to his musical ability. On the flip side, in choosing this particular record, the authors of this series missed a golden opportunity to pick the much more complete and refined sound of the Back In The High Life record which is an incredible collection (even the Roll With It or Talking Back To The Night albums would have been better). For anyone who isn’t sold by this album, go listen to Back In The High Life in its entirety. I promise you that you won’t be disappointed. As for this entry, there are some definite highlights. The title track, Spanish Dancer, and While You See A Chance all standout. The find of this record for me was Night Train, a track that admittedly isn’t great all the way throughout, but has more than enough meat on the bone to be worth the listen. Of course, some of the rest are misses on this record, which means it’s far from a cover to cover listen. 4 stars for me.

Bland, film montage music

Brilliantly played - particularly the hammond. Great production. Features "that" Steve 80s synth sound. The songs are just not there though - it's background music.

Steve Winwood was a successful artist in the ’80s who has since, quite rightly, faded into obscurity. His album *Arc Of A Diver* is as trivial as the title and cover art suggest. Nothing about it is really bad - his voice is quite pleasant, and the production is flawless - but there’s simply nothing remarkable about it either. Just shallow ’80s synth-pop rock.

This album brings back memories. It’s my first exposure to Winwood, then realizing I had heard him from Traffic and Spenser Davis on the radio. Some of the 80s production and reliance on synths hurts the sound, but besides the hits of the first two songs, the real gem here is the back to back of “Spanish Dancer” and “Night Train”. “Spanish Dancer” has such a foreplay mood to it. “Night Train” takes it all the way. Strong guitar work is sometimes hidden by the synth heavy mix. “Dust” feels anticlimactic afterwards. Still an impressive work of his multi-instrumentalist talents, although I prefer Back in the High Life of his 80s albums.

Solides Album 2.5

A lot of the tracks feel quite dated and run long. That being said its still enjoyable enough

no like

This was just plum good music. Not sure 3 or 4.

boring

Ok, I've heard it. Thanks. Next.

I don’t like this guys voice. Album is boring

Steely Dan is pretty much the only yacht rock that is actually any good. Favorite track: Arc Of A Diver 2.5/5

Ive never gone gaga for Steve Winwoood. A touch of soul, some interesting synth, but his vocals are too mellow, nothing really excites me. 2.5/5

Hit n miss album.

Very 80s, very corny, but somehow still really enjoyable.

this is a fun album!

Is not good

Above average album, but don't expect expletive filled urban rap...this is an album for adults. "When you see a chance..." is the clearly best known track, but the Viv Stanshall-penned title track is a personal favourite. A solid 3.5 star.

Good but kinda boring

This was a good enough listening experience.

Big 3 star energy. I like Winwood, but parts of this haven't dated well at all.

rym 3.24 Pop Rock/Sophisti-Pop 清爽而不失旋律性的流行音乐。 pick: Night Train

"Arc of a Diver" is a glossily produced album; well written, arranged and performed. Did it strike my ears as essential? No! It's all very nice and safe, staying just the right side of dull. Side one 1 "While You See a Chance" (3/5) 2 "Arc of a Diver" (3/5) 3 "Second-Hand Woman" (3/5) 4 "Slowdown Sundown" (3/5) Side two 1 "Spanish Dancer" (3/5) 2 "Night Train" (3/5) 3 "Dust" (3/5) Total - 21 Average - 3 431/1001 228/431 albums reviewed were new to me.

Easy listening

Nothing mind blowing by any means, but still a really nice pop rock album to have on in the background. A lot of the influences are definitely very obvious (I could compare this to Peter Gabriel all day), but I love Peter Gabriel do that's absolutely fine with me. This is truly the epitome of a perfectly good and listenable album that isn't really anything special, and I mean that in the good way.

A couple great tunes.

This is good. I wonder why it’s not as iconic as some other 70’s 80’s bands. Not quite a 4, but it’s one of the more enjoyable 3’s. Feels like a lot was built off of this, so it deserves recognition, but it just hasn’t found itself yet.

I have to buff this one’s score because soft rock is so underrepresented on this list. But also it’s so good

Really good synth pop, lovely sound

Listenable but nothing outstanding.

Oh No! This hurts! In 1980 there was punk, metal, new wave, synths - all so much better than this shite

This is really cool. I didn't really know what to expect, but this record is really full and really fun. Its flows and could maybe be described as cheesy at points, but I wonder if that's just because this kind of music got ripped off throughout the 80s. This feels like the real deal. You can definitely hear the influence that this would have on The Dead or even more contemporary acts like Goose or The Killers or Vampire Weekend.

Sounds like a bootleg Peter Gabriel/Phil Collins hybrid, but not bad

Meh

Nostalgia factor. I would definitely recommend for anyone who loves yacht rock.

Smooth, some might say too smooth, a bit too easy listening. Bring me a better album Bring me a better album (oh oh)

Meh, it was there, can’t remember much else 2.5

So '80s - very synth-y and yacht rock. Meh.

The end of the 1970's and the beginning of the 1980's, this was a transitional album and the songs fit both eras. "While You See A Chance" is such a great pop / classic rock song. Catchy, still played a ton, great musicianship, excellent vocals. 64M listens on Spotify. The title track is also a classic, it's just smooth and "effortlessly" cool. Add in "Spanish Dancer", fan favorite "Night Train" and "Slowdown Sundown" and you have a solid (but short) 7 song album. Is this a must-hear album, though? I don't think so. Not really groundbreaking. Legacy yes, influence maybe, hits yes. 3.5 stars

Someone asked how, if at all, does album art affect a rating. For me, it might feature in a review. I like the style of this a lot, for example. But it's not going to sway a rating. There are plenty of albums where the art being awful is part of the whole package quality, but those are already getting 1s and 2s. Musically, this lives in a very adult contemporary 80s place. It simply is not as gloriously so as his later 80s output (the first tracks of each of his next three albums would make one of the great A-sides if they were all on the same album), but the music does immediately feel like Japanese city pop to me, which I can get behind. Winwood does have an excellent 80s voice though. And this does hit a surprising amount of the right notes. That's not to say it's isn't cheesy as all get out, but maybe it's the sunsetting of summer that makes this sort of daycruise vibe so appealing right now. Sometimes an album is about the right moment. This is the right moment i guess. This is the sort of album I rarely have a strong reaction to without already having an “in” to it. I guess “strong” is a bit incorrect for the reaction, but so much of what sounds this strongly of the 80s immediately hits me with a dated feeling that is hard to overcome. This definitely feels of its time, but not in a way that makes it feel trite. I don't know if i'd call it essential, but it was a happy surprise, and I'll grant that ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

God, some of the most cliché and of the era music on this list. It exists in this weird space where it's clearly done by Prog musicians but cannot be called Prog. It's half influenced by Pop like Air Supply as well as shit like white people Disco. At most this is like the 14th best album Steve Winwood is featured on. No real hits on here to speak of. Yet, I cannot really dislike it. It's competent and I guess something of the era of 1980 had to be somewhere on this list. I can find enough enjoyable stuff out of this.

I had never heard of Steve Winwood before this, and the whole point of this list is to introduce you to new things, new treats, new tastes... Oh. This is just Temu Peter Gabriel. No. Not offensive enough for 1 star, but this bland nothing burger is why i don't like 80s pop for the main part.

I can sometimes like this genre but this is just really boring. Like a commercial for taco chicken products.

3 out of 5. This one went by faster than I realized, but it also didn't leave much of an impression other than it was pleasant to listen to.

Steve Winwood is a rock legend .He is a keyboard/vocalist. He was in the Spencer Davis Group, Blind Faith and Traffic. Then, he went solo. This is his second solo album.. I used to have this album. I remember While you see a chance. Not much else. Steve Winwood’s vocals are excellent. He wrote all the songs. Keyboards are the principal instrument. While you see a chance is the best song on the album. It has hit written all over it. Lots of hooks in it. The song Night Train has some nice funky guitar on it. None of the rest of the songs stand out. There are not terrible but they are kind of dull. Disappointing from such a great artist. This is an average album. Three stars.

Rating: 4.3/5 Short Review: Smooth as hell without becoming boring. The synths are warm and the whole album has this dreamy late-night quality. A few stretches drift, but when the grooves hit, they really hit. Favorite Track: Spanish Dancer

I found this totally unessential.

More like arc of a snoozer zzzzzzz the first song is supposedly his "best' song and it sucked!! The rest of the album didn't get any better either. sorry Steve!!

*sigh* this is mid-tier even for Steve Winwood. Feels like a "I bought this once" addition to the list.

I liked his earlier stuff with Spencer Davis Group, he was terrific with Traffic and if I'm in the right mood I like Blind Faith. I've never warmed up to his solo stuff, I just find it mushy and lacking in any bite and this album is no exception.

Yacht tock

Within the first few seconds, you just know this is Steve Winwood. That synth tone is 100% him. The problem is that I grew up in the 80s, having to listen to guys like Steve, Marc Cohn, Don Henley et. al, on the radio all the time, and I kind of hate this sound - the overproduced, Boomer, synthetic, t-shirt and jacket, mid-life crisis piano rock. I just can't get over how cheesy everything sounds. Moving past my biases as much as I can- Steve is an incredible keyboard player. His songs are fun and interesting. He sounds a lot like Peter Gabriel (I'm finding this is happening to me a lot lately), and certainly some of the songs have a prog aspect to them. But do I like it? Sometimes I do! Much more than I expected, especially when he veers away from the formula, as he does on "Spanish Dancer" and "Night Train." Overall this is not my bag, but I am glad I listened to it.

A little blah

This was just okay, it sounds of it's time and no songs really stood out to me.

I love the sound of shitty Casio keyboards, but they should not be on a fuckin’ yacht rock record. Would rather be listening to Steely Dan or Doobie Brothers. Boring.

very mid

1.5, nicely rounding to two. It’s one of the more forgettable albums on the list, for sure. I found nothing about it truly awful, it was just gone as soon as the next song came on. Clocked that this was the singer from Traffic before I went and checked. It’s just bland bland bland bland, and super 80s. Imagine all the amazing albums not on this list, while this one is!!! Really?

Second average 80s album in a row. I grew up hearing a lot of Steve Winwood as my Dad was a fan. I was never that much of a fan of his 80s reinvention anyway but this was disappointingly average.

Offensively inoffensive. White boy got soul though.

Heartfelt note to Robert: You bloody berk. You seriously picked 'Arc of a Diver' over 'Back in the High Life'? Are you daft, man? Or are you just trolling us with these weird-ass selections? Or maybe you're trying to sound sophisticated and non-obvious? Sometimes, bro, the correct choice IS the obvious choice*. Daily Robert rant aside, I do appreciate Steve's talent, playing all of the instruments and whatnot, and (outside a few exceptions that this challenge has somehow managed to uncover) synths will always be a win with me, but in a pool of its peers, this feels somewhat average. Beyond satisfying my synth addiction, I don't sense much substance here, and the songs tend to meander a minute or two longer than is valuable. Coming off of the barrage of unlistenable garbage we've had lately, my wounded soul wants to give this a 5, but on its own merits and compared to its contemporaries, it's honestly a 3. *To clarify, 'Back in the High Life' is by no means a life-changing experience, and it can at times suffer from the same unnecessary ramble that's found on 'Arc of a Diver', but it's certainly richer and more "must-hear".

This was kinda cringe but Im not going to lie. I had more fun listening to this than most of what’s this randomized has been throwing at us of late.

Qué se yo. Pop rock super cheto y clavadito. Está bien pero no genera nada. 4/10

Enjoyable enough, but no idea why this would be something recommended as essential to hear.

Coincidentally, I got a Traffic record the day prior to getting this one. This seemed to have pushed all their worst elements to the forefront, yielding the musical equivalent of expired mayonnaise.

Day974 - the first two songs alone make this a great album

It's not bad per se, but it's the poppiest album I've heard, which makes it kinda annoying and soulless. 2.5/5

Laden with an 80s pop ascetic and flavored with a pinch of blues, a touch of disco, a hint of rock. A diverse, yet lukewarm album from a talented musician that falls a bit short.

It's very fine 2.5

Before even listening I am going to guess that Steve Winwood's second solo album is NOT an album I needed to listen to before I die. But I'm going to just... roll with it. Eh? Ehhh? (I saw a chance and I took it.) Winwood is of course an incredible musician and has had a fascinating career starting at a very young age. It's impressive that he played every instrument on this. But aside from "When You See a Chance," which I already knew, nothing else on here did a whole lot for me.

It sounds like yacht pop. This is not a compliment. Winwood started his career at 14 singing Gimme Some Lovin with the Spencer Davis Group, co-founded Traffic at 18, played with Eric Clapton in Blind Faith, and arrived at 1980 having spent his entire adult life as one of the most respected musicians in British rock history. He then retreated to a Gloucestershire manor house, built a studio called Netherturkdonic, and invented smooth keyboard driven soft rock that sounds like it was designed to play in the background of an upscale marina restaurant. This is either artistic evolution or a very long walk in the wrong direction depending entirely on your feelings about marinas. The voice is genuinely extraordinary throughout, which is the most uncomfortable thing about giving this a 2. Winwood could sing anything and make it sound important. On this album he mostly sang things that did not require that level of instrument and the mismatch is audible. 2 out of 5. Both stars belong to the voice, which deserved Netherturkdonic and something considerably less gentle to sing over it.

2.3/5 A pleasant album to listen too without anything really great.