Graham Brazier: East of Eden

By RUSSELL BAILLIE

(Herald rating: * * *)

Graham Brazier's personal legend still outweighs his recorded legacy - this, his third solo album, is only the seventh album he's recorded since the late 70s heyday of Hello Sailor.

Interviewed in these pages the other day, he put the view that veteran local artists like him were disregarded by youth-fixated music media.

It's an argument that would have more merit if there had been more material to rudely ignore. Ironically, he's been picked up by Murray Cammick's noisy young Wildside label, a move, says the company's publicity, akin to Tom Waits signing to punk label Epitaph or Rick Rubin's patronage of the late Johnny Cash.

But if East of Eden's purpose is to show a new generation - or remind old fans - of a great New Zealand rock voice and songwriting talent, then it's really only a moderately successful exercise.

Brazier's singing is still hearty and commanding, especially as the opener Long Gone for Good swaggers along, its electronic groove neatly blended with Brazier's harmonica as well as slide guitar and organ. Likewise, his croon and performances make the ballads like Closin' Time and the Dobbyn-ish title track sound lived in and genuine, as does the skiffle-rock Winter of Discontent. But too many of the balance of the album's 14 tracks suffer from flabby arrangements and over-ripe production which casts Brazier as the band frontman he doesn't need to sound like any more.

And, although Brazier prides himself as a songsmith, too many of the lyrics suffer the tyranny of the rhyming couplet.

It doesn't lack for variety, what with the soul-shaped Desert of Love, the disco-rocker Late Night Music, and the comedic Mr Asia which Brazier starts singing in a Cockney accent.

On the whole, East of Eden is a little too patchy to be convincing, and at its best when Brazier gets past the clutter to stamp his personality on proceedings.

Label: Wildside