Ian Brown - The Greatest

Granted, Ian Browns solo albums have all been rather patchy hit followed by miss affairs, but this collection smashingly rectifies that, creaming off the best of the harvested crop, mining carefully for the diamonds. And boy has there been some diamonds, "My Star" and "Corpses" make for an astonsihing opening barrage guitarist, co-writer and fast friend Aziz Ibrahim magnificently poignant on both. "Dolphins were Monkeys", "Be there" and the anthemnic "FEAR" are other high points reminding the listener just how good IB solo work can be. Unfortunately the forgettable plodfest of a collabaration with Noel Gallagher, "Keep what ya Got" snuck in through the back door but hey, at least the CD format spares us the embaressing video!

New single "All Ablaze" is a magical return to form reperesnting Brown at the height of his powers and closing number "Return of the Fisherman" is a slice of the cryptic and mysterious gnostic stuff that fans so adored the Roses for.

He'll never top the Roses, but for my opinion nobody will so just enjoy this collection for what it is! And what it is is the Greatest!