Steve Winwood
Roll With It

Here is the Winwood album you didn't expect!

And perhaps neither did he, after cursing "Arc of a Diver" for giving him a success that was hard to replicate, he thought he could once again climb the world charts. Instead, "Roll with It," released in 1988, goes far beyond the most optimistic expectations, selling over 3 million copies and even placing the title track at the first place in the United States, thus reviving the worldwide fame of his Traffic's golden times.

The nice thing is that such success corresponds to an album that lives up to expectations, especially for those who were disappointed by Winwood's solo turn and capable of reconciling them with the remarkable qualities of our hero, here surrounded by a platoon of great musicians, of which I will try to remember some elements later: a choice far removed from the autarkic "Arc of a Diver" and whose result is all too evident.

It starts off great with "Roll with It" a classic Rock & Roll, as classic as it gets: a driving rhythm underscored by Bashri Johnson's percussion and an excellent horn section led by Andrew Love's tenor saxophone and Wayne Jackson's trombone. It continues at this level with "Hanging on," where John Robinson's drums stand out, so talented to have collaborated with people like Clapton, Mike Oldfield, Michael Jackson, and the like, but also the intervention of knuckle synthesized by Jimmy Bralower's drum machine and the counterpoint of Tessa Niles's voice. After two pieces of this level comes the unexpected: "The Morning Side" when Winwood’s warm voice manages to magically give us a goosebump-inducing track that, once finished, makes you want to replay it just to listen again to that piano intercalary rather than Robinson's attacks, certainly worthy of those by Phil Collins, who, instead of writing little songs, was effectively doing his drumming work.

Drums that don't disappoint us even in the fourth track: "Put on Your Dancing Shoes" actually raises the question of what the dancing shoes were for with such a trouble-free flowing rhythm, with a measured guitar solo by Paul Pesco leading up to another main course in clear Traffic recollection, if only for Winwood's Hammond scattered lavishly and I’m talking about the aplomb of "Don't You Know What the Night Can Do?" and Robinson's usual drums, once again very salient. But it doesn't end here, we return to the American-tinged rhythm of "Hearts on Fire," where the horns that had just been left behind reappear, but it's the grit and Steve’s Hammond that make the difference. Following very skillfully is: "One More Morning," an excellent slow seduction song, just to rest the senses a bit and appreciate Steve's nostalgic voice, who evidently finds luck in mentioning the morning. An album like this could only conclude with a "brilliant song," "Shining Son," which coherently closes the circle with the first two tracks.

Noting the uninspiring graphic design, I want instead to highlight the excellent technical quality of the recording, which also demonstrates from this point of view the maturation of Winwood who, although continuing to compose all the tracks, has understood the notable technical limitations of the self-produced "Arc of a Diver," thus contributing to making this album worthy of the highest rating.