[rating=7.00]
In lieu of the usual assortment of outtakes and alternate recordings, only a small array of which appear on this deluxe edition of Steve Winwood’s Arc of a Diver, the two CD set includes a BBC Radio documentary which follows a customary blueprint of interspersing scripted intros to interviews of peers including brother Muff and co-musicians such as the late, long-time Traffic collaborator Jim Capaldi. Much of what’s here is easily well-known or researched (of particular interest the various music that’s referenced) but also, as is usually the case, nuggets of insight appear alongside the over-emotive segues.
For instance, Winwood’s brother suggests the unique quality to his sibling’s voice came from immersing himself into R&B, especially Ray Charles, just as his voice was changing during adolescence. It’s a voice that, remarkably, sounds much the same now forty years-plus after first publicized via The Spencer Davis Group’s “I’m A Man. On Arc of a Diver, Winwood’s singing is exalting, most resoundingly during the album’s highest profile track “When You See A Chance,” where the uplifting theme of the lyrics are fully realized in the recording of the song.
The most interesting theme of the near hour-long career survey, may actually lay those segments involving lyricist Will Jennings’ accounts of his collaborations with Winwood, equal parts serendipity and careful craft. If the lyrical images of their collaborations often seem disparate, (apart from the title song here which clearly alludes to the graceful rhythm of the diver), the sound of Winwood’s voice transcends literal translation, as his vocals often sound best heard as another instrument in the mix.
Details of Traffic’s early days woodshedding in the Berkshire countryside are only a little less fascinating. Descriptions of the pastoral settings heighten the rustic overtones of the music of this second Winwood solo album, particularly during “Slowdown Sundown.” The acoustic guitars on this alternate “Spanish Dancer” bring those latent motifs further to the fore. On the other hand, “Night Train,” one of the select tracks featuring Winwood on electric guitar, ultimately reminds what a paucity of those tones appear on the official set of tracks, so its inclusion twice is a bonafide bonus.
None of the ten total cuts of Arc of A Diver deluxe edition sound dated, despite the time in which they were recorded, as the documentary’s descriptions of the recording process illuminate why. Of course, that shouldn’t be so much of a surprise anyway, as Steve Winwood’s always had a natural groove, but it’s never been more clearly and honestly on display than the recording enclosed in the unusually-conceived and unusually-enlightening package.
