[Review] Billy Sherwood: No Comment (2003)
Yes, I actually have an opinion on an album called No Comment.
Kronomyth 3.0: Listen to it? I Sherwood.
Billy Sherwood may well be the most talented musician to pass through the ranks of Yes, which is saying something. What I’m not saying is that Sherwood is a better vocalist than Jon Anderson, a better bass player than Chris Squire, a better guitarist than Steve Howe, etc. Very few people (and I mean that literally) are. But he’s able to approximate their greatness with a consistent goodness while writing exciting, melodic neo-prog songs. The closest parallel may be Adrian Belew, although they’re very different artists. Both were complete songwriters who made some of the most intelligent and catchy pop music that too few people have heard.
I’ve enjoyed all the Billy Sherwood albums to date, including The Big Peace and Conspiracy with Chris Squire. I enjoy No Comment a little more than both of those. Despite Billy doing everything himself—playing, producing, engineering—he does everything well, which is fast becoming a hallmark of his. In the parlance of baseball (an analogy for everything), the closest parallel may be Tony Phillips, who played his way into the lineup day after day based on sheer ability. Philips, like Sherwood, was never the best player at any position, but was always among the better players at all positions. No Comment is one of the better albums I’ve heard in a while.
Sherwood’s third album starts off with an instrumental track that, not surprisingly, reminded me of Steve Howe’s instrumental workouts. The next half-dozen songs are melodic with flashes of prog energy (Beware False Prophets, In the End) and pleasant melodies that are familiar as old friends are familiar. The lyrics mix the wisdom of experience with a certain cynicism (also, likely, the product of experience). The production is uniformly excellent, even as the arrangements sometimes overreach what any one person can lodgically do.
The overreaching reaches its apex on Merlin’s Undone, which could have been an epic wonder in the many hands of Yes. Here, it’s more like Merlin underdone, though there’s still magic afoot. Fortunes is a collection of different ideas in need of an editor. Fortunately, No Comment ends on a strong note with Empty Castle and Fireworks, the latter one of several moments where Billy Sherwood invites comparison to Sting.
Yes fans being a (trevor) rabid lot, they’re the most likely to be interested in the solo music of Billy Sherwood, particularly where Chris Squire is involved, so there’s probably nothing I can say that will make you forego purchasing Conspiracy for No Comment. And, truly, I wouldn’t stand in the way of you buying Conspiracy; it’s a very good album. That said, No Comment is the best Billy Sherwood album I’ve heard to date, despite its disappointing promotion, and a fine place to set forth in Sherwood’s forest.
The Songs
A1. Metaphors
A2. Beware False Prophets
A3. Man Over Bored
A4. Dying Breed
A5. Everyday Life
A6. In the End
A7. The Pendulum Swing
A8. Merlin’s Undone
A9. Fortunes
A10. Empty Castle
A11. Fireworks
All songs written by Billy Sherwood.
The Players
Billy Sherwood (bass, guitars, drums, percussion, keyboards, mandolin, banjo, vocals). Produced, engineered and mixed by Billy Sherwood.
The Pictures
Photography & artwork by Michi Sherwood.
The Plastic
Released on compact disc in 2003 in the UK (Voiceprint, VP277CD).
