Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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21 of 23 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
The 2nd best Queen solo album, April 29, 2000
May was arguably the best songwriter from Queen but had the softest singing voice which can be difficult if you're as fond of heavy metal as he is but thankfully for him he doesn't go for an album full of "rockers". The gem of the album is "Too Much Love Will Kill You", the definition of heartbreak. He *gets* the very idea of love in song...afterall, what single emotion can bring about as much joy and sorrow as love?Unlike his second solo album "Another World", May writes the majority of music here which were songs collected over a period of many years but somehow all work together. Multi-layered vocal harmonies and guitar licks abound which will easily remind you of any Queen album (unlike another member Roger Taylor who strayed VERY far from the "Queen sound".) Very few albums have bookends which wrap it up as nicely as Brian does with "The Dark", a lullaby of sorts which uses a line from "We Will Rock You" in a whole new way. A great buy, not just for a new Queen fan but for music lovers in general.
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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
"GUITAR MAYHEM", August 3, 1998
By A Customer
As oppossed to having to share album space with the other member's of Queen, this is strickly a Brian May album. Although,at the same time, this album is diverse just like a Queen album. The album also features the late Cozy Powell on drums. The album features army's of guitars,tons of harmonies, and that fat sound with vibrato that only Brian has. Also the song's are well written."The Dark, Back To The Light,Love Token,Ressurection(co- written by Cozy Powell and Jimmy Page), Driven By You, And I'm Scared are the heavier track's of the album. There is also a cover of a song by "The Small Faces" called "Rollin' Over" that could wake the dead. "Too Much Love Will Kill You" is a balled featuring Brian on piano."Nothin' But Blue Blue", features an Ibanez guitar that was a gift from Joe Satriani."Let Your Heart Rule Your Head" has a "hand clap" country music feel to it. "Just One! Life" is an acoustic dedication."Last Horizon"is a beautiful intrumental where Brian let's his homemade guitar sing the melody. Brian is truly one of the best rock guitarist ever. His innovation is matched by few.
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Masterful May!, October 16, 2006
Those who really know Brian May's music know that he has never been into pure shredding or full-throttle metal busting. He is an accomplished rock guitarist, sure, but also a true artist, an extraordinaire musician and a bright individual. So said, though he does deliberately play his guitar all along this release, he is always as concise-but-tasteful as about what soloing concerns - excepting the explosive "Resurrection", where May overplays as he rarely does. Certainly, all the songs here are guitar-enriched enough to please guitar freaks (like I am), but they are also listenable and enjoyable, from the thunderous "Back to the light" to the delicious "Love Token", the tender "Nothing But Blue" and the driving "Rolling Over".
Of course, his signature "wall of guitars" of thick harmonies is present all along the album, as well as his hard-rocking riffs and his unique, razor-sharp, singing lead tone. But as usually, his music is more about depth and songwriting than just plain "axe banging", the same than in any good Queen album - in its own right, of course. In fact, if this album was branded like another Queen album, I bet that only very few people would complain. Even the choirs remind Queen- they are so FAT in "Resurrection"! Ok, May never was a true frontman like Mercury was. His vocals are much softer than Mercury's, but he does a superb job on them anyway - including on his version of "Too much love will kill you" here, which is superbly interpreted IMHO. The lyricism, finesse and good taste Queen always had are equally present on this release, track after track. This truly rocks for good!
Thus, if true AOR had a flagship, perhaps it would be this album. "Back to the Light" simply is a soulful piece of art coming from a middle-aged artist, who is revealing many of his intimacies in the best way he is able to: just songs. All the arrangements are interesting, well-tempered, mature and sophisticated, as you would expect from a rock icon of May's calibre. What else do I have to say? A coherent masterwork, sober but with attitude, classy and musically clever, and all that without sacrificing power and ear friendliness at the same time. I say then to the artist: Mr. Brian May, thank you for this wonderful set of pieces. You've given me so many good moments in my life! And to the rest of you: you're missing something if you don't have this yet. No less than a five stars release, really. Go buy it now!
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by Brian May 
