Customer Reviews

Morning Dove White

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a truly beautiful, uplifting and seemingly forgotten album. No review of it I've seen has been able to resist comparing it to 'Screamadelica' (and who am I to break with tradition?) and that is certainly the easiest reference point to use to describe the sound, but of the two albums I much prefer 'Morning Dove White'. While the music itself (elements of dub, ambient and pop, combined with Proper Songs) is inspirational enough, it's the voice of Dot Allison that makes this album so special. From the opening bars of 'Fallen' (the first track on the album and also the band's first single) as she confides 'I don't know why I'm telling you any of this...' her voice sends shivers down your spine. Emotive, expressive and incredibly seductive, her voice is all over this album in breathy background whispers, lead vocals and harmonies to just lose yourself in. But there is more to One Dove than just Dot, as shown by 'There Goes The Cure', one of my favourite tracks which is also largely instrumental.

One Dove recorded a follow-up album which was never released and split up shortly afterwards, which while being pretty tragic does at least mean that their mystique as a lost treasure remains intact. But even 'Morning Dove White' is flawed - at the insistence of the record company it ends weakly with the single remixes of 'Breakdown' and 'White Love', which while being fine pop songs are elsewhere on the album in better forms. 'My Friend' is an instrumental and feels half-baked in comparison to the rest of the album. Now if they'd lost those tracks and put 'Jolene' and 'Skanga' from the single release of 'Why Don't You Take Me' (if you find a copy, buy it) on, they would have had an almost perfect album. But who wants perfection?

With Dot Allison finally release solo work, it's time to take notice of this Scottish band which she fronted before launching herself into her own glory.

Allison's trademark multi-tracked choir vocals are already here, backed by instrumentalists Jim McKinven and Ian Carmichael. The result is a stunning, beautiful, sometimes wrenching dance/pop hybrid with much more flair in the arrangements than nine out of ten techno acts out there. Check out the keyboard work on the two versions of "White Love", or the acoustic guitar that gives "Breakdown" its extra rhythmic punch.

"Breakdown" was the single that should have made this band a superstar act. Instead, the album made a few ripples quietly among record hounds (those who bother to look for albums, instead of just grabbing them off the shelves closest to the exit) and then faded. It's now very hard to find if not for internet resources. And it's a shame, for One Dove was a hidden gem.

Let's hope Dot Allison, set to release her own Afterglow album, won't be overlooked a second time with her solo career. Hers is a subtle, powerful, and rare vocal ability, and when she sings with herself (here on this album or on the "Colour Me" single), it's harmonic magic.

Preparations for One Dove's Morning Dove White: Make sure it's your day off. Turn on the answering machine or better yet, unplug the phone. Wear something comfortable, lie back on the bed or sofa of your choice, plug CD in your stereo system at a volume that will have the full effect, and prepare to enter free float.

A constant backbeat of synthesizer opens "Fallen". Dot's spoken word dialogue comes in around the first minute. All the while, the music builds up, new instruments start coming in, and by the second minute, the ambient atmosphere, "I'm falling" and we're in full swing, or is it full float? Dot's whispery voices, sighs, funky beats, breathy synthesizers.

You'll be taken away by the psychedelic guitar that begins the Guitar Paradise Mix of "White Love". It's trippy enough but doesn't rival that of Jimi Hendrix. It clocks in at ten minutes long and one will be ensconced with "I want to keep hold of this for you." whispered or spoken more audibly, soaring and swooping synths, guitar samples, and voices sped up.

"There Goes The Cure" is probably my favorite long song here, beginning with space age sounds, compressed high-hat, The piano is haunting, wistful, and melodic. Dot's voice has been altered so it sounds like there are many of her, during which we mostly hear the gauze-like lament of "he's gone." In the middle, we hear male cries of agony interspersed, as if he's falling, while a string-like synthesizer rises to a crescendo, before stopping and going on with the piano melody.

"The Transient Truth" contains a burst of a buzzing guitar that's not unlike a bumblebee in water, an ambient funk beat, and softly spoken words. "My Friend" is nine plus minutes of the same melody played over ad nauseum, psychedelic sounds, a snare drum, long-drawn out sighs, ambient siren-like vocals, and might be best listened to while on pot or acid.

"Why Don't You Take Me" while a reggaeish synthesizer plays. The piano reprise of "White Love" is a perfect prelude to the radio mix of the same song. This song could be used in any movie's love scene, with sensual sounds.

Upon opening of the eyes, the listener's surroundings may be glowing a morning dove white!

Dot Allison would go on to make a solo album, Afterglow. Fans of ambient would be well advised to take a trip on this album as a prerequisite.

The highlight of the movie "The Chase" was the song Breakdown and yes the scene that accompanied it. Excellent overall composition , this will definately get inside you and stir a part of the soul you thought never existed.

I don't own this CD anymore, I salvaged "White Love" and "Fallen" and put them on my own mixes and sold the disc - but now I wish I still owned this. This is solid quality electropop that seems to, in retrospect, have bridged the gap from the old dance grooves of bands like New Order to the "trip-hop" scene to have emerged later. I recommend this CD for those two songs I mentioned - very expansive, spacey yet personal. Dot Allison has a beautiful and dreamy voice -- my favorite vocal artists all tend to share common elements of crystal clarity and sincerity. I give it only three stars because the rest of the songs - while not irritating - still didn't do anything for me. Who knows, maybe you'll find more fav's than I did. I am interested in hearing Dot's solo work (now that I know it exists) ... I am amazed at how little attention overall this music this received/s. I accidentally fell upon One Dove from an old "Volumen" Indie compilation ...

I'm not sure of the differences between the two releases, but I live in England and have the UK release, 'Morning Dove White'. Considering the boom in the UK Ambient scene when this was released, combined with there being a healthy underground Dub scene, it is surprising that this excellent recording did not receive wider recognition.

The album, by turns, sways and floats by in an almost ethereal manner, breaking ground that people are now crediting bands like Dubstar and the Sneaker Pimps with unearthing. As well as the Ambient and Dub connections, comparisons with Trip-Hop (particularly the smoother Portishead/Massive Attack variety, rather than the more prickly Tricky-type stuff) are inevitable, although it is unlikely that this album was an influence for those bands.

The tracks vary from the sensual, sinister 'Fallen' to the lamentatious, despairing 'There Goes the Cure', as well as more obvious chart-friendly singles like 'Breakdown' and 'Why Don't You Take Me?'. As with most classics, there isn't a single bad track, although perhaps some of the remixes could have been replaced with some of the excellent B-Sides from the singles (particularly their breathtaking cover of 'Jolene' on the B-Side of 'Why Don't You Take Me?').

In short, an experience of an album, very good for certain moods, which should be heard, loud and with the lights low, by far more people.

I first bought this CD when it first came out years ago, and I listened to it constantly. The music is spacey but not weird, it packs a punch, and Dot Allison's voice is heavenly. During one of my many moves, this disc went missing and I've hunted high and low for it in record shops everywhere. Don't bother with itunes or MSN music, you can probably only find it used online, but it is well worth hunting down. It can function as sex music, nap music or background mood music.

I bought this CD in the Fall of 1993 and it has been a good friend to me. The tones are both soothing and seductive. The haunting melodies and etherial voices are blended to perfection. I love this CD. It has gone everywhere with me. The only other thing to say about this CD is that I can't live without it.

This CD offers a variety of different sounds. It has an overall blend of beautiful female voices and harmonies combined with different tempos in each song. I describe the voices and harmonies as cool and heavenly. I also like a lot of the instrumental work that combines to produce a sound like no other. Many of these songs appear in motion pictures such as "The Chase". It is the kind of music you hear in movies, and you want to buy the score or soundtrack. This is on CD I listen to a lot without becoming tired of it.

I purchased this album when it was first released, I bought it for one song, but fell in love with it for all the songs! If I could only pick 5 CDs ever, this would be one of them. One Dove offers such a fresh and original sound, it should be ranked in a class of it's own. I bought the U.S. release in 1994, and a friend of mine sent me the U.K. version in 1996. Even though both contain the same songs, the order of the songs is different. Personally, I like the U.K. version better, the order of the songs seem to flow better.

So what I really want to know is: WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO ONE DOVE??????? I have been waiting for another release, or some info on it. Anyone know what is happening with them?