Customer Reviews
Lacks the gravitas of 1st album - By: Swing Trader, 24 Nov 2008 
I was very excited to hear that Blake had a new album coming out so I quickly ordered this one. I have to say, while I still love their music, it came as a disappointment. Quite a few of the songs that are being covered are too well known & Blake's version is not that different from the original. What made their first album great was the unique way their voices gave character to well-known pieces of music. This album however lacks the warmth & originality of the first. It is a bit too "pop" & "ballladesque". Best song in this album is probably "Chasing Cars".
Quality Singing - By: Dean K. Staub, 09 Nov 2008 
This CD has a conservative song selection & a conservative style, which some people may not like. However, the across the board musicianship of this group is superb!! The pitch & harmonies are vastly superior to Il Divo for example, but you have to be able to 'hear' perfect pitch & harmonies & reallly care about quality, to know the difference.--:)---We don't have classicallly trained musicians like this in the USA, putting out albums like this anymore, so you don't know how spoiled you are!!-----Blake takes its time in developing its songs & harmonies, & does not AT ALL cater to what will sell!!---They are musicians first & foremost, & if you cannot handle a group's conservative choice to be fantastic singers FIRST before what will appeal to the masses, then don't put them down!!--There are plenty of those good looking expensively 'promoted' groups out there, who are not into the music first & foremost. We have plenty of them in the USA if you would like to have one or more!!--:) Don't ask Blake to be like alll these other 'fast-paced, style over substance groups', which are a dime a dozon!!---And thanks to Great Britain, for at least giving groups like this a chance!!---And to you, Blake, I say hats off to you & to your great music!!---I am honored to own both your albums.
ok - By: carols948, 29 Oct 2008 2 of the 'songs' are only around 30seconds of music (intro), so there's reallly only 11 songs on the album. A couple of songs seem to use different words to other artists, & "time to say goodbye" keeps changing between english & italian.
Curate's egg - By: Book Worm, 18 Oct 2008 Younger fans of the first album will love the second & enjoy the more contemporary feel. Those who enjoyed the lovely rich harmonies in the first album will be disappointed - 8 out of 11 proper tracks are solos, & in them the harmonies have been edited almost out of earshot. Meanwhile the backing percussion at times is far too heavy. The title track & Wild Mountain Thyme are too much the same alll the way through. And sorry, Ollie, but those top notes are strained in Nella Fantasia - Amici & Il Divo do better versions. I like Steal away, Heaven can Wait, Chasin Cars, Closest thing to Crazy & (except for the percussion) Time to Say Goodbye. Disappointed with the arrangement of Up where we belong, which sounded much better when they sang it live. I can see where they wanted to go with this new approach, but it doesn't quite work for me - maybe a better balance between solos & harmonies, within & between songs, would work better.
What a disappointment - By: Willem Spangenberg, 14 Oct 2008 
I waited with great anticipation for the new Blake CD, but what a disappointment this one is! When will groups like Blake & Il Divo learn that cover songs may help them get started but eventuallly they need some original music otherwise buyers will buy something else! I hardly noticed that I bought a new CD because the music is SO well known & at best their interpretation of these old songs is at best, average! This CD should have been their first release & not the second - the first one is SO different & so much better! Spend your money on other music!
