River

Editors’ Notes Anyone who's spent hours poring over the works of Van Morrison and Tim Buckley will find a similar soul on this often-overlooked but fine 1973 release. Reid is best known as the man who turned down Led Zeppelin (and Deep Purple) for a solo career that never quite took flight as he'd hoped. Yet he's a powerful blues singer, with an ability to shift into folk and soul with ease. Multi-instrumentalist David Lindley powers half the album with his salacious slide guitar, which pushes Reid to several transcendent performances. Reid's voice is a flexible instrument, and he works over the tunes with an exploratory hand. "Dean" is husky. "Avenue" is grand and sweeping. "Live Life" mixes funk and gospel. However, nothing prepares the listener for the shift that starts with the title track. After urgent British blues, Reid heads into pastoral folk. "River" adds spirited percussion, but "Dream" and "Milestones" are Reid and acoustic guitar on songs that roll like free verse into the water. Essential.