Can't Look Away
By Trevor Rabin
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Track listing
Show track credits
- 1 I Can't Look Away 7:19
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drums
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- 2 Something to Hold On To 5:05
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drums
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backing vocals
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- 3 Sorrow (Your Heart) 4:28
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drums
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backing vocals
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The Passion Brokersbacking vocals
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- 4 Cover Up 5:17
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drums
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Basildrums
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The Passion Brokersbacking vocals
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- 5 Promises 5:54
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Basildrums
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backing vocals
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The Passion Brokersbacking vocals
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- 6 Etoile noir 1:03
- 7 Eyes of Love 6:53
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drums
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backing vocals
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The Passion Brokersbacking vocals
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- 8 I Didn't Think It Would Last 4:05
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drums
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backing vocals
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- 9 Hold On to Me 4:42
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Basildrums
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backing vocals
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- 10 Sludge 2:26
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drums
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- 11 I Miss You Now 5:38
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drums
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Basildrums
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- 12 The Cape 2:57
- Total length: 55:47
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11 Issues
- Release view [combined information for all issues]
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Can't Look Away [p]
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Can't Look Away 33 rpm
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Can't Look Away 33 rpm, Promo
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Can't Look Away 33 rpm
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Can't Look Away Amaray Case
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Can't Look Away 33 rpm
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Can't Look Away Limited Edition, Paper/Cardboard Sleeve
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Can't Look Away Bonus CD, Bonus Tracks, Remastered
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9 Reviews
I don't like to break rules that I set myself, but sometimes there is an album that I would like to rate 4.5 stars right after first spin (or even before the first spin is over, actually). This album is exactly one of that kind, and it also comes as a great surprise for me.
While it might sound like a strange mix, music here can be described as a fusion of progressive rock and AOR. I know that's hard to imagine (especially if you were not raised on the sound of the 80's), but it really does exist. The basic layer is atmospheric progressive rock tasting strongly after Pink Floyd (and I would dare to mention some bit of Clannad-like new age too), but most vocal parts, and especially choruses are pure melodic AOR with great, almost epic vocal harmonies.
You will realize it's actually quite simple pattern once you listen to this album, but it works well and pleases my ears in the finest way possible. I love almost every second of the music here (maybe except Sludge, which is an instrumental prog tune just for sake of progging), and I believe I'm gonna replay this album a lot in the future, especially whenever I feel like having a musical daydream. That's exactly what this record is all about.
While it might sound like a strange mix, music here can be described as a fusion of progressive rock and AOR. I know that's hard to imagine (especially if you were not raised on the sound of the 80's), but it really does exist. The basic layer is atmospheric progressive rock tasting strongly after Pink Floyd (and I would dare to mention some bit of Clannad-like new age too), but most vocal parts, and especially choruses are pure melodic AOR with great, almost epic vocal harmonies.
You will realize it's actually quite simple pattern once you listen to this album, but it works well and pleases my ears in the finest way possible. I love almost every second of the music here (maybe except Sludge, which is an instrumental prog tune just for sake of progging), and I believe I'm gonna replay this album a lot in the future, especially whenever I feel like having a musical daydream. That's exactly what this record is all about.
Published
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Rock died about 1980. Since that time very little has come out that has impressed me. Paul Simons GRACELAND was fantastic , as was Pink Floyds MLOR. But for the most part, the creativity of rock music was overrun by the lawers and accountants who wrestled the music industry back away from the musicians.
This album is very much the exception to my above comments, it is one of my favorite albums. It is one of the very few albums of the past 25 years that was able to floor me. The creativity on it reminds me of very early post-Beatles McCartney. The production is fantastic. The songs are catchy. The guitar work is just out of this world. I am not just talking about lead guitar runs, which Trevor Rabin is amazing at, I am talking about the very nice and creative rhythms on guitars.
It has the overall sound of the Rabin era YES stuff, but with a different kind of creativity to it. It is very easy to see exactly how Mr Rabin actually did influence YES sound with this CD.
The tracking order of the songs is great, they flow together as if this album was written as a concept. The stereo imaging is VERY nice. One of the biggest beefs I have with modern music is that it has a very "by the book" generic computer production quality to it. This CD uses the technology creatively to enhance what is already there, unlike so much music out there that the production is just one big turd polish, or more often, gets in the way of what would otherwise be good music.
I really do not know how to describe this album except to say it is obviously not rock era music, but at the same time contains that very creative and freelance artistry that is plastered all over music from the early 70s. Imagine the best of Alan Parsons meets Beatles late 60s experimentation meets late 60s pop sensibility meets early seventies toss out the studio owners manual meets YES.
The plain fact is, this CD is so creative it is hard to use other works to compare it to.
Also, this CD proves that Mr Rabin is a fantastic singer and has a very catchy and pleasant voice. He also knows HOW to sing, which is to say he knows how to make his voice sound appropriate for the song he is singing. He produces his voice as if it were another instrument, not just to be what is out front of the music.
Even the somewhat electronic sounding drums sound great. They don't sound canned or mechanical, they sound very appropriate for the music.
This album rates among my favorite top 5 of the past 25 years. Easily.
This album is very much the exception to my above comments, it is one of my favorite albums. It is one of the very few albums of the past 25 years that was able to floor me. The creativity on it reminds me of very early post-Beatles McCartney. The production is fantastic. The songs are catchy. The guitar work is just out of this world. I am not just talking about lead guitar runs, which Trevor Rabin is amazing at, I am talking about the very nice and creative rhythms on guitars.
It has the overall sound of the Rabin era YES stuff, but with a different kind of creativity to it. It is very easy to see exactly how Mr Rabin actually did influence YES sound with this CD.
The tracking order of the songs is great, they flow together as if this album was written as a concept. The stereo imaging is VERY nice. One of the biggest beefs I have with modern music is that it has a very "by the book" generic computer production quality to it. This CD uses the technology creatively to enhance what is already there, unlike so much music out there that the production is just one big turd polish, or more often, gets in the way of what would otherwise be good music.
I really do not know how to describe this album except to say it is obviously not rock era music, but at the same time contains that very creative and freelance artistry that is plastered all over music from the early 70s. Imagine the best of Alan Parsons meets Beatles late 60s experimentation meets late 60s pop sensibility meets early seventies toss out the studio owners manual meets YES.
The plain fact is, this CD is so creative it is hard to use other works to compare it to.
Also, this CD proves that Mr Rabin is a fantastic singer and has a very catchy and pleasant voice. He also knows HOW to sing, which is to say he knows how to make his voice sound appropriate for the song he is singing. He produces his voice as if it were another instrument, not just to be what is out front of the music.
Even the somewhat electronic sounding drums sound great. They don't sound canned or mechanical, they sound very appropriate for the music.
This album rates among my favorite top 5 of the past 25 years. Easily.
Published
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A1
I Can't Look Away
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A2
Something to Hold on to
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A3
Sorrow (Your Heart)
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A4
Cover Up
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A5
Promises
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B1
Etoile Noir
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B2
Eyes of Love
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B3
I Didn't Think It Would Last
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B4
Hold on to Me
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B5
Sludge
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B6
I Miss You Now
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B7
The Cape
So nine years after the catchy AOR / Hard Rock of Wolf, he returned with this far too long attempt of putting Yes together with the impressive, but slightly hollow Big Music of late 80's U2 and Simple Minds.
The Prog-Jazz-Fusion of the instrumental track "Sludge" was quite interesting, while "Sorrow (Your Heart)" appeared as an almost silly side trip in memory of Paul Simon's African Adventure Graceland, mixed with Yes (!).
Apart from the drums (Louis Molino III, Alan White, Denny Fongheiser, Basil) and the backing vocals, Trevor Rabin did everything by himself.
My favourite tracks are the epic opener "I Can't Look Away", the catchy "Hold On to Me" (not released as a single) and the beautiful closing instrumental "The Cape".
The album went to # 111 in the US Billboard charts.
Published
960 781-1 Vinyl LP (1989)
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Decent AOR
I guess I understand, but I still don’t understand. Why did albums in the late 1980s and early 1990s have to be fifty or sixty minutes long? The ubiquity of the CD format was definitely a big part of the answer, although the growth started several years before CDs overtook cassettes as the industry standard in 1991. Yes’s Drama (1980) was 37 minutes long, while 90125 (1983) and Big Generator (1987) were each about 45. Then Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe* (1989) was 59 minutes and Union (1991) clocked in at over 65—and both were marketed as single albums. At 55 minutes, Yes guitarist Trevor Rabin’s Can’t Look Away was part of the trend: at the same time older people were bemoaning the shortening of the youth attention span, albums had gotten a good 15 minutes longer during the 1980s. And as Rabin’s fourth studio LP demonstrates, more isn’t necessarily better. Side One of the original vinyl is serviceable AOR—with the exception of the wonderful “Sorrow (Your Heart),” which somehow didn’t click with radio programmers despite at least some promotion by Elektra. I’m not sure why it didn’t receive an official single release in the US; not only is it very catchy, it seems like it would have been timely insofar as it related to South African Apartheid.
Anyway, after the first three songs—the Apartheid-related “I Can’t Look Away,” the lead single “Something to Hold on To,” and “Sorrow,” the quality wanes, and by the end of the first side, Rabin’s run out of hooks. Three of the Side Two songs are interesting instrumentals—they don’t simply sound like arena-rockers without the singing. But the other four tunes are schlocky AOR, at least compared to the tunes on the obverse. That’s despite the fact that Rabin, who wrote seven of the songs himself, involved co-composers on the other six. Bob Ezrin, who had produced Peter Gabriel’s debut as well as the career best-selling albums of Alice Cooper, Kiss, and Pink Floyd, co-wrote three songs, and former Slapp Happy member Anthony Moore contributes lyrics to two. Rabin’s father Geoffrey and former Rabbit producer Patric van Blerk are also credited on one track each.
Rabin was a relatively young singer/multi-instrumentalist and a decent singer when he joined Yes in 1983, and many fans viewed him as an interloper who pushed the band away from prog-rock and toward pop-rock. In 1997, newcomer Billy Sherwood was perceived in much the same way. The comparison is superficial at best, but Rabin and Sherwood have a significant similarity as solo artists. Neither needs much help in the studio, as each is sufficiently talented as a songwriter, singer, producer, and instrumentalist. Each has contributed significantly to the Yes discography (most notably, to 90125, Big Generator, and Talk in Rabin’s case, and Keys to Ascension 2** and Open Your Eyes in Sherwood’s). But neither has produced a solo album that holds my interest from start to finish. In Sherwood’s case, it may be a certain sterility and monotony in his sound, and in Rabin’s, it’s his AOR fare.
In terms of Can’t Look Away, I do give Rabin specific credit for not turning in an Eric Johnson or Joe Satriani album. First of all, those guys, and a few others, were already there and were busy doing that in 1989. Second, Rabin is capable of writing and singing accessible pop-rock songs, so why not?
Can’t Look Away is a three-star album, though among three-star albums it’s below average. Nonetheless, there are some good AOR tunes here, a few interestingly odd instrumentals—and “Sorrow (Your Heart),” which stands as one of the most enjoyable Rabin songs I’ve ever heard.
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*certainly not a Yes album, but like Can’t Look Away, it fits the pattern.
**primarily, but importantly, as a producer.
Published
What fucking arrogance! Only I can interpret my musical vision, bullshit. This egomaniac wrote all the tunes and plays all the instruments on this sadly bad, over produced attempt at a prog rock album. Guys like this give the term "artist" a bad name.
Published
This is just amazing.
The guy is a musical genius, and this is an album of wall to wall creativity.
Inspired lead guitar runs, catchy songs that don't sound contrived or trite, complex music that isn't heady and pretentious.
Imagine the creativity of Alan Parsons best stuff combined with the musicianship of all the best musicians you can think of.
Then imagine it being recorded on music gear that is beyond the capabilities of anything available.
If you love music for the sake of the music, you gotta have this.
The guy is a musical genius, and this is an album of wall to wall creativity.
Inspired lead guitar runs, catchy songs that don't sound contrived or trite, complex music that isn't heady and pretentious.
Imagine the creativity of Alan Parsons best stuff combined with the musicianship of all the best musicians you can think of.
Then imagine it being recorded on music gear that is beyond the capabilities of anything available.
If you love music for the sake of the music, you gotta have this.
Published
I've always enjoyed Trevor Rabin's contributions to Yes. I know I'm in the minority here, but since Union, 90125 and Talk were the Yes albums I grew up with they've always remained special to me. Although I don't really like Union anymore, I still play the other 2 albums quite a lot. So it's no surprise that I one day ended up checking out Rabin's solo work.
This album came in between the disaster of the Big Generator album and the many projects that would end up as Union. It sounds very 80s, if you can't listen to Asia or Journey anymore stay away from this as well. With Rabin's voice and guitar it sounds very familiar and pleasant to everyone who still enjoys his work with Yes. It's all well performed and apart from the dated 80s technology not really annoying, but the songs are pretty boring. There's nothing here that has the instant hook of things like "Changes", "Owner Of A Lonely Heart", "The Miracle Of Life", "Walls" or "I Am Waiting".
I'd only recommend this to the fans of 90125 and Talk. Don't expect to be blown away, but there's a couple of things to enjoy here, most notably "I Can't Look Away", "Something To Hold On To" and "I Miss You Now". If you're new to Trevor Rabin's music or don't play his albums with Yes anymore don't bother.
This album came in between the disaster of the Big Generator album and the many projects that would end up as Union. It sounds very 80s, if you can't listen to Asia or Journey anymore stay away from this as well. With Rabin's voice and guitar it sounds very familiar and pleasant to everyone who still enjoys his work with Yes. It's all well performed and apart from the dated 80s technology not really annoying, but the songs are pretty boring. There's nothing here that has the instant hook of things like "Changes", "Owner Of A Lonely Heart", "The Miracle Of Life", "Walls" or "I Am Waiting".
I'd only recommend this to the fans of 90125 and Talk. Don't expect to be blown away, but there's a couple of things to enjoy here, most notably "I Can't Look Away", "Something To Hold On To" and "I Miss You Now". If you're new to Trevor Rabin's music or don't play his albums with Yes anymore don't bother.
Published
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Catalog
22 Mar 2024
29 Feb 2024
25 Feb 2024
16 Jan 2024
-
1
I Can't Look Away
-
2
Something to Hold On To
-
3
Sorrow (Your Heart)
-
4
Cover Up
-
5
Promises
-
6 Etoile noir
-
7
Eyes of Love
-
8
I Didn't Think It Would Last
-
9
Hold On to Me
-
10
Sludge
-
11
I Miss You Now
-
12
The Cape
3 Jan 2024
5 Dec 2023
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1
I Can't Look Away
-
2
Something to Hold On To
-
3
Sorrow (Your Heart)
-
4
Cover Up
-
5
Promises
-
6
Etoile noir
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7
Eyes of Love
-
8
I Didn't Think It Would Last
-
9
Hold On to Me
-
10
Sludge
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11
I Miss You Now
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12
The Cape
1 Dec 2023
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1
I Can't Look Away
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2
Something to Hold On To
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3
Sorrow (Your Heart)
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4
Cover Up
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5
Promises
-
6 Etoile noir
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7
Eyes of Love
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8
I Didn't Think It Would Last
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9
Hold On to Me
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10
Sludge
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11 I Miss You Now
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12
The Cape
24 Nov 2023
9 Nov 2023
21 Oct 2023
17 Oct 2023
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A1
I Can't Look Away
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A2
Something to Hold on to
-
A3
Sorrow (Your Heart)
-
A4
Cover Up
-
A5
Promises
-
B1
Etoile Noir
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B2
Eyes of Love
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B3
I Didn't Think It Would Last
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B4
Hold on to Me
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B5
Sludge
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B6
I Miss You Now
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B7
The Cape
7 Aug 2023
11 Jul 2023
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1
I Can't Look Away
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2
Something to Hold On To
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3
Sorrow (Your Heart)
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4
Cover Up
-
5
Promises
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6
Etoile noir
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7
Eyes of Love
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8
I Didn't Think It Would Last
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9
Hold On to Me
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10
Sludge
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11
I Miss You Now
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12
The Cape
12 Jun 2023
5 Jun 2023
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