Published on Feb 28, 2006
It should be noted that seven of the songs on this
12-track LP were featured on Miller’s popular Best Of
1974-1978 collection. The only other albums I can think of that
had seven hits were Thriller and Born In The U.S.A.,
both landmarks for their particular artists.
But Steve Miller is no Bruce Springsteen or Michael
Jackson. He loves to write hit singles (and has said so), and he
makes his easy blues/rock style palatable to the masses. That means
there is no unifying theme here, no artistic achievements, no
lyrics to speak to the heart, and certainly nothing longer than
five minutes (except “Sacrifice”). What that leaves is simple pop
music.
Fortunately, Miller’s take on pop is a lot more
memorable than his contemporaries of the mid-70’s. Coming from the
bluesy psychedelic background, Miller knows how to add little
flourishes to his songs, but indulges in none of his former tricks.
That makes Book Of Dreams an entertaining, solid and short
listen, and was probably the last great album the guy ever
made.
The full versions of the hits are present here, but
they only add slightly longer introductions than the radio edits.
“Threshold” and “Jet Airliner” start the party off with a little
bit of synthesizer and a lot of boogie pop, before things come back
to Earth with the slower “Winter Time,” one of Miller’s best
latter-day ballads. “Swingtown” is just a great song, but “True
Fine Love” has awful lyrics (“Someone, another / Who’s as sweet as
your mother / A true, fine love”…that’s the way to a girl’s
heart, Steve). “Wish Upon A Star” tries for a medieval sound but
fails to catch on.
Side two kicks off with “Jungle Love,” again with
inane lyrics but with a very catchy beat and well-placed whistles
and tambourines. “Electro Lux Imbroglio” is a short keyboard solo
and “The Stake” has a cool bluesy beat and some good bass work that
gives the song muscle, although Miller’s singing leaves a bit to be
desired. “Sacrifice” and “My Own Space” are decent, while the
closing instrumental “Babes In The Wood” goes for the medieval
sound again, and while the acoustic guitar picking is done well the
overall sound is a bit wimpy and annoying.
So while Book Of Dreams is not consistently
filling, it has enough good tracks to recommend as one of the first
albums a new fan should purchase (after Fly Like An Eagle
and Brave New World). It may be fluffy and substance-free, but
sometimes that’s not a bad thing, and these songs are so darn
catchy that they’ll be lodged in your head all day. There are worse
ways to spend 40 minutes.