Customer Reviews

Defector

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(4)
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The four albums Steve Hackett released in the 70's (of which this is the last) represent the core of his enormous body of work. While he has released many more albums since then, these four remain essential listening for Hackett fans and fans of classic progressive rock. In fact, there are times I think this might be my favorite Hackett CD.

On Defector, Hackett's guitar truly takes the lead for the first time. His previous albums all had killer solos but for this album he moves the guitar from out of the band mix and into the spotlight. Listen to his impassioned lead on The Steppes, or his brilliant finger tapping technique on Slogans or even the expressive sound he gets from the nylon string guitar on Two Vamps As Guests. The band as usual is in excellent form, but this is Steve's baby.

As usual, on a Steve Hackett album, the instrumentals are just as important as the vocals, but this may be his most balanced album in terms of strong lyrics and great singing. Sadly, this would be the last album with Pete Hicks on lead vocals and all subsequent albums would suffer as a consequence, at least in my opinion.

My favorites are The Steppes, Jacuzzi and Slogans, but for me there is not a bad song on the album. Even his attempt at disco/dance music (The Show) is a fun tune in only the way Hackett could do something like this. And like his early albums there is a novelty tune, in this case Sentimental Institution with Pete Hicks singing somewhere between Al Jolson and Louie Armstrong.

Highly recommended album from one of the most original rock composers of his generation and light years better than anything Genesis was doing at the time. My only complaint is that the original 10 tracks did not even fill up 40 minutes and while the new bonus tracks are good to have, I wish there was more studio bonus tracks and less live tracks. But that's really just nitpicking since this album has been one of my favorites from the day I bought the original vinyl back in 1979.

So far I've only heard this and SPECTRAL MORNINGS remasters. This one isn't quite as compelling, at least as far as the bonus material. With the exception of HERCULES UNCHAINED, a b-side that hasn't been available on CD the rest of the bonus tracks are live versions. They're nice, but Hackett has made a huge amount of live performances available, both on CD and DVD. Because of this the live material, while good, isn't as interesting as alternate mixes and versions featured on SPECTRAL. The remastered sound is nice, but if you already own the previous release you might want to save this one for later. If you don't, then no worries . . . . this is one of Hackett's best albums and is highly recommended.

Many Hackett fans consider "Defector" to be the last album from his classic solo period. The album is another solid effort from Hackett featuring a nice mix of vocal and instrumental songs. The emphasis here is still on progressive rock in the classic 70's style, but you also hear the beginning of some more adventurous experimentation which would permeate Hackett's later releases. "Defector" would be the last Hackett album to feature someone other than himself on lead vocals. The guitar is the main instrumental focus on much of this album, as it should be, and Hackett pulls of some really nice work throughout the disc. The album opener "The Steppes" has become a live classic with other tracks like "Slogans", "Time To Get Out"; "Leaving" and "The Toast" are all strong ones. Hackett even takes a stab at a rocking commercial single with "The Show" which is almost funk / disco in nature, and actually works much better than you might think it would. The album closes with a novelty 1920's style ditty called "Sentimental Institution" which reminds me of some of the stuff Freddy Mercury used to do with Queen. Overall I don't think this is Hackett's best album, but it is another solid release from a guitarist who has been sadly overlooked by the mainstream over the years.

Hackett's best release. I think Genesis fans would agree that as the seventies wore on he was being utilized less and less.....I hate to say it, but I can imagine Banks saying "no lets do more keyboard in here, you just play some hammer-ons"...(sorry)Defector shows how magical he was (is) as a guitarist and composer, and how influential he's been to artists like Vai,Van halen etc. If you are not familiar with Hackett's work I would recommend this as your first choice, as it really is a very concise piece of work, showcasing all his talent.

Another strong album from Hackett using the same band as Spectral Mornings, it has a similar sound to that album. Sentimental Institution is a great experiment using a mellotron that plays an old scratchy big band backing track, it's an eerily good way to close the album and shows Steve's sense of humor

When I put this CD in the player, I was immediately struck by how well this album benefits from remastering. Unlike other albums, whose remastered editions usually don't offer much improvement, this album (and all of Hackett's remastered editions) sounds richer, with a greater presentation of depth -- to my ear at least. (I admit that I'm not sure what the remastering process involves.) I agree with other reviewers that, aside from the Hercules Unchained, for which I don't particularly care anyway, the bonus material is rather weak. Having said that, I repeat my earlier assertion to say that the remastered recording itself eclipses this flaw.

Steve Hackett's fourth solo album, "Defector," is an excellent disc from the former Genesis guitarist. Solid tunes all the way around. Favorites include the powerful, ominous rockers "The Steppes" and "Slogans," the tasty pop-rock of "Time To Get Out," "Jacuzzi," and "The Show," the beautiful "Leaving" and "Hammer In The Sand," and the fun, 1920's-flavored finale, "Sentimental Institution." "Defector" is a classic, essential Steve Hackett album.