Sparks of Ancient Light

Al Stewart | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 16, 2008)
• Original Release Date: 2008
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Appleseed Records
• ASIN: B001CW7LPC
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (31 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #9,145 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #12 in Music > World Music > Europe > British Isles > Scotland

Editorial Reviews

Jonathan Takiff, Philadelphia Daily News

"British talent Al Stewart has always been obsessed with romantic literature and history, marking him as the most incongruous of folk-flavored "pop" singers. `Year of the Cat' delivered Al a fluke hit - once. And the man is still going his own merry way on Sparks of Ancient Light (A-), citing the likes of Greek mythology, former president William McKinley, an Elvis sighting and `(A Child's View of) The Eisenhower Years.' But the guy sings and writes as well as he ever did, and in his quirky, bemused and literate way he's delivered one of the finest albums of his career."

"Why bother with Cliff Notes when Stewart gives you a quick summation of the last 2,500 years in 12 songs? For those that like their pop way out in left field with something to say, clearly, this set isn't for everyone, but it's for anyone that ever got into collecting Classics Illustrated. It's a long way from `Year of the Cat' and Britney won't be using any of these songs for her comeback, but grown ups need something to listen to also. NPR to the max."

"The music heard on Sparks of Ancient Light is actually better than that heard on his top selling works like Year of the Cat, making this album a deeper, richer experience. . . . A masterpiece all its own . . . Classic Al Stewart in the best sense. Rich in stories and the inimitable Al Stewart style of song . . . A must have acquisition. (4½ stars)"

Product Description

Magical history tours have been Al Stewart's trademark since the early 1970s, when he switched from writing about his own romantic turmoil to a wider view of the world and its rich cast of characters and events. While his 1976 international hit single, "Year of the Cat," was tied to no specific time, the albums surrounding it combined finely drawn character studies and detailed settings that ranged across continents and centuries, forming the template of history mixed with mystery for Al's subsequent recordings.

Everything changes with time - except basic human motivations. Sparks of Ancient Light, Al's latest collection of songs (following 2005's A Beach Full Of Shells), spans at least 2500 years of history in its tales of exotic locations and situations, all tied to an underlying theme of "certainly and uncertainty." Something's happening in each of these songs, a sense of change and movement beneath the sometimes sedate, sometimes dramatic facades. The larger context isn't always obvious, but the emotions behind the action are always recognizable - love, greed, wanderlust, jealousy, complacency, curiosity, regret, hope.

With winningly varied arrangements mixing folk, rock, classical and jazz, and immaculate production from multiple-Grammy-winning guitarist Laurence Juber (formerly of Paul McCartney's Wings), the CD both starts and ends with songs set in 1896. The opening "Lord Salisbury" examines Great Britain's prime minister flinching from the oncoming events threatening his policy of "splendid isolationism," while the protagonist of the "Like William McKinley" finale awaits the rush of progress with calm resignation. In between those bookends, we are shown "(A Child's View of) The Eisenhower Years," a bouncy evocation of post-World War II optimism; a freaked-out Elvis Presley undergoing a religious revelation as he witnesses Josef Stalin's face morphing into Jesus Christ in a desert cloud formation (true story!) in "Elvis at the Wheel"; an international con man hoodwinking the well-to-do who embrace him as their latest diversion ("Sleepwalking"); and Hanno the Navigator (in the same-named song), sailing from Carthage off the end of the world to indescribable adventures 500 years before the Christian calendar, among others. The song set closest to the present, "Shah of Shahs," finds the Shah of Iran caught in a decline of power in 1979 that eerily resembles today's scenario in the White House.

With Juber and Stewart on guitars, accompanied by gliding, jazzy keyboards, a rhythm section and occasional horns and strings, the mood of each song is well-matched to its accompaniment. Al's erudite lyrics, instantly recognizable Scottish/British drawl, and seductive tunes present him at the top of his art, braiding historical fact and speculative imagination into yet another memorable collection of musical short stories that whisks us up, down and sideways in time and place.

See all Editorial Reviews

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

45 of 46 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another Al Stewart masterpiece, September 18, 2008

By 

Mark J. Moerman "musical fanatic" (Vancouver, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Sparks of Ancient Light (Audio CD)

This superlative new effort stands as one of Al Stewart's best albums. It continues in the vein of its predecessor A Beach Full of Shells but has a richer, crisper sound, warm and natural and with playing both organic and solid. Having now produced the last four albums, Laurence Juber has developed a keen sense of how to present Al's songs in the best light, and has outdone himself here.

This album contains at least three all-time Stewart classics in "Lord Salisbury," "Shah of Shahs" and "Hanno the Navigator," the latter of which inspired the album's cover art. Like many of Stewart's historical epics, "Lord Salisbury" might send one to an encyclopedia to better understand its title character, but one need know nothing about that Victorian-era prime minister to enjoy Stewart's tune and wordplay and the tremendously effective horn arrangement.

"Shah of Shahs", inspired in part by Ryszard Kapuscinski's book of the same name detailing the downfall of the last Shah of Iran, subtly makes its point that all such figures pursue their own version of the perfect dream.

Throughout the album, as in all of Stewart's best efforts, there are moments both grand and delicate, and pleasures to be found in both extremes. Several of these songs, such as "Angry Bird" (with its imagery of radical penguins leading an errant avian youth astray) will hit you in full immediately, while others such as the sublime "Silver Kettle" will reveal themselves gradually with repeated listenings.

Al Stewart's talents as a lyricist and composer are in full flower, and this collection stands proudly alongside the most celebrated works of his past.

30 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 4 1/2 Stars - So Al, September 16, 2008

By 

Bornintime (The East Coast) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Sparks of Ancient Light (Audio CD)

I've been a fan of Al Stewart's work for 30 years ever since I bought the album Time Passages after hearing the title track on the radio as a 16 year old. Since then I've picked up every new Al album as soon as I was aware it was out. There is something comforting about getting a new Al Stewart cd. You basically know just what you are getting - intelligent songwriting, great music and Al's timeless distinctive voice - which sounds just as perfect now as it did in the early 70's. Even on some of his weaker albums there are always at least a few tracks that impress. But Sparks Of Ancient Light is not weak in any way. Al has put together a great collection of songs - beautiful, often historical, writing coupled with exquisite musicianship. Laurence Juber's production is the perfect setting for these songs. There are at least a half dozen that have already become personal favorites in the past few days. I would go so far as to say that Sparks Of Ancient Light along with Down In The Cellar (from a few years ago) may be Al's 2 best albums since the late 70's.

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sparkling, September 18, 2008

By 

Vinzo "[e-mail]" (Boston, MA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sparks of Ancient Light (Audio CD)

More brilliance from Al and Laurence Juber. Another great collection of songs spanning eons of time,with tales of oceans, desserts, football fields and angry birds. (Did you expect anything less?) Unlike the stories of recent albums which focused on life between the wars, wine or the shells of lost opportunities, this one has a running theme of seeing in the light of the moment, when ever that moment may occur: thousands of years ago, the fifties or a lost moment on a football field. Al Stewart remains a preeminent storyteller, history lover and songwriter. He continues on an unmatched roll with stellar album after the next. "Sparks" is beautifully produced with great splashes of gorgeous violin,hammond organ and guitar work throughout. As will all of Al's albums,repeated listenings are a must! For me, "Sparks" ranks up there with the Fleet Foxes as great albums of 2008 and is another delightful addition to the Al Stewart catalog. Yes sir, tis a beauty indeed.