HIGHLY STRUNG

Initially I had a few reservations about hearing Hackett's 80's material, but after look through his discography I decided to go for it with this release due to inclusion of the excellent live track called Camino Royale.

First off I want to give a hand for Steve's vocal contribution. Although it might sometimes feel overproduced and lack the emotional touch I still think that he pulls it off quite nicely. The material and the production is what makes Highly Strung a lesser release for me. Let's face it, the pop-songs featured here are bad. Luckily there are a few instrumentals and rock-tracks that are good enough to keep this album from a complete disaster. It was actually a nice surprise considering that I had the lowest possible expectations before hearing this album.

Highly Strung is far from the excellence featured on Steve Hackett's '70s albums and that alone should be enough of a motivation for placing this release in a collectors/fans only category.

**** star songs: Camino Royale (5:25) Always Somewhere Else (3:57) Group Therapy (5:40) Hackett To Pieces (2:35)

*** star songs: Cell 151 (3:30) India Rubber Man (2:30)

** star songs: Walking Through Walls (3:45) Give It Away (4:05) Weightless (3:25)

Total rating: 3,18