Dave Stewart
never seems settled solo so the abundance of guest stars on
Lucky Numbers
, his 2013 LP and eighth solo venture, makes perfect sense. Collaboration is his lifeblood. He thrived as a producer in the late '80s and '90s and even now, in the new millennium, he'll run at the chance to form a new consortium, as he did in 2011 when he urged
Mick Jagger
,
Joss Stone
Damian Marley
, and
A.R. Rahman
to become
SuperHeavy
.
, his solo album that appeared two years later, doesn't have the same level of star power but it does make room for
Stewart
's Nashville pals, with
Martina McBride
providing the vocals on the single "Every Single Night" -- an excellent adult contemporary tune that will not be played on any radio station anywhere in 2013 -- and
Karen Elson
, best known as
Jack White
's ex, popping up on "Nashville Snow." This suggests that it might be a country album, either in the commercial or Americana sense of the word, but it's not, not at all.
, like all of
's solo albums, funnels his absolutely bizarre ideas through a system that flattens out all their eccentricities. At its core,
remains a singularly strange record -- there are hints of roots music, either in contemplative country or Cajun-spiked rockers ("One Step Too Far"), or rewrites of "Manic Depression" ("Why Can't We Be Friends") -- but the professional producer within
mediates all of his quirks so the album is slick and sweet instead of weird. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine