After her tenure with dave stewart as one half of the powerhouse music duo, the Eurythmics, Annie Lennox stepped out on her own to pursue a successful solo career which included 1992's "Diva", which was critically acclaimed as well. Her follow up to that album was 1995's "Medusa" which featured no new material from Lennox. The album was released in two very different guises, one as a standard album, the other as a deluxe two-disc set, which included the "Medusa" album and a recording of her 1995 central park concert.

Initially I was diassapointed when I learned it was a cover album, regardless of Annie Lennox being one of my all time favorite artists. To me a cover album is an indirect sign of a vague laziness only found in a cover album. Sure, you spent time rearranging things slightly to fit your own musical guises, but really you composed nothing. However, as cover albums go, "Medusa" is a first rate release. Annie Lennox has given the songs a calm, cool feel, true to her own style, and now when I hear the originals of some of these tracks, such as The Clash's "Train In Vain" I find Lennox's stylings superior and classier.

Our album begins with a track entitled "No More I Love You's", which is a beautiful track with Annie's spin on it. The layering of Annie's vocals to create a beautiful harmony was pure musical ingenius. The music on this track is calm and soothing, its a relaxing track and a great way to begin an album.

"Take Me To The River" is one of my favorite on this album. Lennox completely drenches the song in personality and vocal excellence. She hits those high notes like its going out of style, and her music, which is a bassy mix of piano and keyboard synth adds to her convincing delivery. "A Whiter shade of pale" is not one of my personal picks however and ends up being rather dull and balnd. The vocals are great, not doubt about it, but the music sounds like it was performed at some 3rd grade ballet recital. Not a real high point of the album, I must say.

Annie's cover of Neil Young's "Don't Let It Bring You Down" picks up a whole lotta slack and more. What a masterpiece. A mid-tempo musical track with an excellent vocal performance that shows lament and emotion. This is one of the greatest tracks included on this collection.

I also enjoyed her cover of The Clash's "Train In Vain". I have heard the original version of this song and frankly it's really not my cup of tea, but Lennox has slowed things down a bit and given the song a real touch of class. The arrangements are beautiful and compliment her vocals perfectly. Production was not too overdone and it's apparent and this song comes off as a real first-class track.

Her rendition of The Temptation's "Can't Get Next To You" was also another great track. Most of my fellow Epinions writers don't care for this one from what I've read, but I however thouroghly enjoyed this track. The music was upbeat but had a classy smooth jazz feel to it. The vocals are prime choice as well. The lyrics were also pretty creative in my book. This is a great track, but sadly the same could not be said about her cover of "Downtown Lights" which left me bewildered. This track started off promising, you know strong vocals, pretty good music and was ok. But then I thought it was over and I was waiting for the next track to begin and then she came back with more. This song got boring and finally clocked in at 6:44.
That track was ok up until it came back to drag on for another minute and a half. The last part should be cut.

Things improved when we got to "A Thin Line Between Love and Hate" which was a damn good track if I do say so myself. The music as well as Annie's pace starts off slow and calm and as the song continues, she builds up along with the music to a powerhouse performance which leaves you wanting more. I usually repeat it once or twice before I move on.

Annie's cover of Bob Marley's "Waiting In Vain". I enjoyed this track because Annie stayed true to the original but gave her version its own identity, which was creative. Her version dosen't have Marley's reggae influences, but it had a nice subdued spanish guitar which gives the song a very atmoshperic feel. This is a great track.

The second disc is the "Live In Central Park" concert, which was recorded live in New York's Central park in 1995. this particular version of the album is rare and is an import as well. a new copy can be had for about $35, or you can find on for less on eBay. It may seem like a lot of trouble to go to in order to obtain it, but it is well worth it.

A few of the live tracks performed include a few songs from "Diva" such as "Money Can't Buy It", "Little Bird", and of course "Why". A few Euryhmics tracks are also performed, including a beautiful acoustic version of "You Have Placed A Chill In My Heart", "Here Comes The Rain Again", and "Who's That Girl". There are 8 live tracks and a bonus studio track which is another version of Paul Simon's "Something So Right", which includes Paul Simon on the vocals with Annie.

Last Thoughts? "Medusa" is a great album, and with the live concert as a bonus, this album represents a great value. Though an album of covers, this album has still been approched with plenty of care and concern and ended up turning out beautifully. Though one or two tracks could have been improved, they still had aspects of true artistry and its evident. Annie Lennox is a first-class artist and its albums like these that show what she is truly capable of.

Recommended: Yes

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