Album review: RAMIN PARTOVI – 27 Faces Of A Broken Heart (Simon Phillips, Mike Stern & c.)

RAMIN PARTOVI - 27 Faces Of A Broken Heart

[Release date 18.02.18]

This album is an interesting concept. Take a song and invite a couple of dozen musicians to add their extemporisation. Yes, that’s 27 versions of the same tune! Surely the tune can’t be that good? Well, the idea is for each guitarist to capture the essence of longing and loss encapsulated in the album’s title.

For the listener this is just a case of dipping in and out, or the provision of inoffensive background music and see if your guests notice the subtle changes (or think your streaming system is faulty).

For the most part, the musicians stick to the plot and there’s a strong element of Jeff Beck c. Blow By Blow period. This is understandable because the song is not dissimilar to ”Cause We’ve Ended As Lovers’.

It is left to the likes of Scott Henderson to rock things up slightly on his own excursion. Elsewhere the presence of Simon Phillips and Mike Stern should ensure buy-in from their own fanbase. And a stamp of credibility.

Ramin Partovi himself tops and tails the proceedings but the guy’s main occupation is apparently flying : he’s a commercial airline pilot.

Does he reach the heady heights with this album? An interesting concept, maybe, but by the middle of CD2 it all starts to wear a bit thin. Partovi should compose a proper album during his rest hours. ***

Review by David Randall

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Power Plays w/c 9 December 2024

In this sequence we play ‘The Best of 2024′ GRTR! reviewer selections

Featured Albums w/c 9 December 2024

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2024 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003-2024 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2024 (Singer Songwriter)