IF I WERE BRITTANIA I'D WAIVE THE RULES

Budgie's classic period, marked with this album, is now over. The album signifies that the band were done pulling out classic album after classic album and classic tune after classic tune. Though, there are still shimmering songs here and there, the CD really does nothing to your collection if you own it or not and is one of Budgie's less noticable jams that they have ever recorded.

1.Anne Neggen - A fine opener, almost classic Budgie. The song has some great vocals from Burke Shelley, and steady beats from Shelley and drummer Steve Williams. The riffing from Tony Bourge is actually an intense mixture of blues and heavy metal rock, which, to say, is well played and very dramatic. Despite the positives to this song, it seems a bit disjointed when looking at other Budgie classics, and the chorus certainly dosen't help with this statement. An odd mix of great and medicore. (8/10)

2.If I Were Brittania, I'd Waive the Rules - Another steady rocking track, this one slightly better and less disjointed than the opening. The drumming from Williams is excellent, as his almost jazz and swing helps the atmosphere of the track, while Shelley and Bourge pull out great melodies that are catchy and interesting. A top track that is definatly different than most of their other work. (8.5/10)

3.You're Opening Doors - Budgie definatly lost something at this song. The track features power ballad guitar playing, and some increasingly boring vocal phasing and sleak editing that does nothing to save the song. The lyrics are some below average, almost Dokken like, pop influenced stuff. The only saving grace is the excellent bass playing from Shelley, who keeps the bottom end thumping and the top end shining. (4.5/10)

4.Quacktor And Bureaucats - A blues mash-up of average. Bourge's riffing in this song is so uninspired, and solos throughout the song are definatly awkward and are not as comfortable as they were in the older days of the band. Shelley tries hard to add the littlest amount of energy to the track, but it's no good with such nonsense of playing. (4/10)

5.Sky High Percentage - The band tries another blues-rock exploration, which, to say the least, is another fail. The lifeless drums of Williams don't help with the almost robotic sound of Shelley and Bourge, churning out mediocracy all over the place. Lyrics are a mess from the start, and I don't see a reason to keep going on with a poor experiment as this. (4.5/10)

6.Heaven Knows Our Name - The album picks up speed with this almost heavenly track, as it's one of the bands best ballad like tracks. Lead vocalist Burke Shelley does not sing on this track, and it may be a blessing. The song is mellow and very trance like in the rhythm. The band have finally found and injected life into their songs. (9/10)

7.Black Velvet Stallion - Easily the best track of the whole album. The song is a reminder of what used to be, as the band pulls out some excellent prog with intense jazzish chords and blues influenced rhythms. Williams drumming is subtle, and works well with the the intense and passionate vocals of Shelley. Bourge's guitar playing is bar none the best of the album, as his slow playing has such flow with the other group members. But by now, it's too little too late. (10/10)

The album dips in quality near the middle, only leaving 4 listenable tracks. The album deserves a 2.5 stars in all honesty, but i'll bump it up to a 3 stars because the last two tracks are impressive and some of Budgie's best. It's not really needed in your collection, but if you do decide to get it, skip tracks 3, 4 and 5 to get to the good stuff.