**General Album Notes**

I think this album sounds notably different from Celebrate Me Home, which is interesting because it was released less than a year after it. It’s his highest ranking album on Billboard, reaching 7. 

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From a production perspective the songs are more crisp, more stripped down, and seem less hazy compared to CMH. Backing vocals overall are lower in the mix than the previous album, which was apparently important for commercial success? I do think I’m hearing more panning. As usual the bass is prominent on nearly all songs.

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The album song order is different from the CD, and is different from what is listed on the back of the album itself, as well as the lyric insert. This album provides no attribution on who plays what on what song, just the band members and what instruments they played. 

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**Song Notes**

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**Nightwatch** \- A dreamy ride. The prechorus is nice. I always feel that the vocal F (the minor third) note held out “dreams” leading into chorus is potentially wrong, but it’s in the key of the song (D minor). It’s just that up to then the vocals spend most of their time on D, E, and A. 

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I think the chorus itself is a bit of a let down in terms of melody. And the chorus vocals are missing a bit of heft. The guitar tone for the solo is probably unnecessarily gritty in the first half, but the second half of the solo does well emotionally. 

Production wise I hear a few pan sweeps, which I don’t think we heard at all on CMH. A pleasing song throughout. 

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**Easy Driver** \- I feel like I'm missing some pad or keyboard to provide texture to this one. I seem to somewhat ignore this song every time even though I listen a few times for these write ups. 

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**Down and Dirty** \- Strange song. I didn't realize the prechorus clav until hearing it like this. My little Rosalee.🌹 Whisky bar feels with this harmonica.🥃 The vocal treatment seems to have too much echo in the verse. 

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**Down in the Boondocks** \- The percussion is dope, good grove. Another harmonica. The song definitely creates that bayou feel. I think the question is why did Kenny choose to cover this song for this album? I would have been happy with another r&b type song. The vocal performance is great though. 

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**Wherever I Call You Friend** \- Iconic start to a song! Hit single from this album, probably the reason it sold so well - from a time when people bought an album for one song. I love it. 😁

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Vocal harmonies, they are excellent. The bass in the chorus is quite important. 

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Melissa Manchester, the lyric cowriter, was unable to sing this due to a contract obligation. 

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Rumors had come out the year before, so Stevie was probably the biggest female vocalist at the moment, and she does a great job on here. But apparently Kenny pushed her very hard, worried this was his big chance to have a solo hit. She nearly quit the session and was discouraged from ever working with him again. I didn’t know this story until writing this up, and it’s making me a little sad. 🙁 I like to think that he got warmer as he matured. Imagine where he would be if she didn’t do this song. 

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**Wait a Little While** \- My favorite track on the album.  Sounds like it could have been on CMH. Great vocal performance again, lots of volume control. We’ve got a flute solo, and an elegant chorus switch up with shaker, triangle. There really doesn't have to be a cold and bitter wind in front of me, anymore. ❤️

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**What a Fool Believes** \- Released five months before the Doobie Brothers version. But I don’t think anyone would deny this version is not as good as the DB recording. The electric guitar intro seems out of place. Pluck keyboard, and I don’t love the keyboard tone. Stick clicks on the pre-chorus are so loud. 

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Chorus 1 lacks something. Backing vocals in pre-chorus sound like they could be fuller. Chorus 2 is better. I think the mix is not ideal. 

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The remix version for Outside from the Redwoods is so much more enjoyable. 

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Sax solo short but good. Better than the solo in the Doobie one, in fact, they do not attempt one in the DB version. 

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**Somebody Knows** \- I thought I wasn’t looking forward to hearing Easy Driver on this album, but I forgot this one was on here too. Tempo feels rushed. The song seems like a B side… 

rather than wait for someone to point out to me that it was, I’ve looked it up… IT WAS. The B side to Easy Driver! Honestly I don’t think Easy Driver is a single, but it peaked at #60. I remain undeterred from finishing this album review. 🤪

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**Angelique** \- A great atmospheric song to end, sort of how the album begins. Nylon guitar solo is tasty. Accordion works well to set the mood. The keyboards are well placed and do a great job setting the tension. Vocally it’s got it all, some light growling, some beautiful head voice, some soaring. This is like an evolution of the ballads from the previous effort, and feels like it fits right in with the ballads at the end of the next album. 

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Vinyl record listen: Nightwatch