Four years might have passed since his last album, but Galore picks up where he’d left off, even keeping his standard typeface. His style hasn’t changed, balancing the light and heavier approaches of his previous albums, and he even managed to get a few names to help out (including then-recent Bowie veterans Reeves Gabrels, Zachary Alford, and Gail Ann Dorsey, plus David Sancious on piano).
“First Chapter’s Last Page” has one of those melodies that sounds so familiar, with a lyrics about someone who needs some kind of help. “Right My Wrongs” has a good dose of soul without saying much, but “A Simple Prayer” overcomes the danger of being too maudlin with a nicely evolving melody and string arrangement. “Step By Step” expresses a determination to help somebody, a little on the plodding side, which contrasts with the chromatic descent on the slightly psychedelic “Belle De Jour”. The phased vocals on “Everything” bring an unfortunate comparison to Lenny Kravitz, who was much more successful without being as original. “Praise Or Blame” seems to take on the American history of destroying cultures of color; political commentary doesn’t really suit him, and the chorus needs work.
Things get back on track—or more specifically, to singing about relationships—for “Toast And Tea”, from the first-person perspective, “Goodbye”, a warning to a less-than-appreciative spouse, and “To Love Her Inside”, which might as well give a description of the woman scorned. “Anything New” unfortunately doesn’t offer much of the sort, though “Alone” appropriately has him playing all the instruments. “Leave Her To Me” offers a more personal variation on the message in “Goodbye”, demonstrating that that song should have been left off in favor of the superior closer.
Rykodisc really did want Galore to sell, and even offered a bonus in the first pressing. More Galore consisted of five covers, starting with the popular 1992 live recording of “In Your Eyes”. “Villier’s Terrace”, “Win” and “Riot Act” show his debts to Echo & The Bunnymen, David Bowie and Elvis Costello respectively. “Make Him Believe” sends some royalties the way of a friend, though it might as well be his own song.
Galore is good, but not enough to surpass either the debut or the expectations of the new label. Next time we heard from him, he was on another indie imprint, re-recording “In Your Eyes” and “Hero In Me”, and covering “First Time Ever I Saw Your Face”. He’s still out there doing shows, as proved by the two live albums that have appeared since his last studio album a decade ago.
Jeffrey Gaines Galore (1998)—3
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