Author: Peter Podbrežnik
Artist: Sadler, Michael
Label: Progrock Records
Release: 2004
Duration: 56:51
Rating: 4/5
Welsh-born Michael Sadler is best known in the rock world as the longtime, now former, singer of the legendary Canadian art rock band Saga. With his unique voice and charisma, he became so closely tied to the band’s legacy that many of their fans still hope he’ll come back one day. Michael wasn’t just a great studio singer, he was great live too, and he always knew how to conjure up unforgettable magic between the stage and the crowd.
Less well known is that Michael, who is, by the way, an occasionally solid keyboardist (back in the day he’d pick up a bass guitar too when needed), decided to start a solo career while still a member of Saga. Its first and so far only result is “Clear”. The album originally came out under the name “Back Where You Belong” back in 1998, but only for internet users, and then vanished from the shelves extremely fast. “Clear” is thus Michael’s first official album, containing all the songs that were on “Back Where You Belong” as well as some new pieces created afterward.
The greatest strength of Michael’s vocals is the incredible heart this excellent singer puts into every piece, plus a wide range when it comes to conveying very different emotions, and a naturalness you don’t usually find in singers who focus purely on technique.
Compared to most of what he did with Saga, on “Clear” Michael comes across in a much more AOR guise, occasionally wandering into pop rock waters too. The production is mostly responsible for that, with a much softer guitar sound, plenty of female backing vocals, and a not-insignificant number of ballads. The most common similarities with Saga are in the choruses, which sometimes lean toward some of their more AOR creations, while the style of the two guitarists is quite different, as is the way the individual keyboard-focused arrangements are laid down. Michael played those together with Thomas Schmitt-Zijnen and did a very good job of it.
Quite a few tracks have solid commercial potential, like “Too Much Time On My Hands” with its female vocal harmonies, as well as the AOR-leaning “I’m Not Your Enemy” and “Surrender Your Heart” with their excellent guitar solos. The latter two could easily sit on some of those more AOR-oriented Saga albums. I’m thinking of “Behaviour” (1985) and “Wildest Dreams” (1987). Michael doesn’t peddle any heavy philosophy in his lyrics; as an emotionally very self-aware person (and now a family man too), he mostly tells stories about the never-untangled behavioral patterns between the sexes and the frustrations that usually follow, as titles like “Who’s Sorry Now”, “Who’s Foolin Who” and “I’m Not The Enemy” already show. It’s more than obvious throughout that this is a very personal record and that Michael put his whole heart into the singing as well as the creating and writing of the individual pieces (nothing new there, then).
On the one hand, “Clear” is a completely different beast from everything we’re usually used to from Michael’s work with Saga; on the other, because his vocals are so tightly woven into that band’s legacy, in certain spots it pulls strongly toward some of their softer, AOR moments. That’s understandable when you consider that Mike co-wrote almost all of their material.
With “Clear,” Michael proved he can be a very convincing musician on his own too, with an album that boasts a collection of excellent songs sure to delight all his longtime fans. It’ll be interesting to see what Michael’s next move as a musician will be, now that the birth of his daughter and a stronger wish to devote himself to his family led him to take an indefinite break: will he continue with his more-than-promising solo career, go back to Saga, or even combine the two, which is surely what most of his fans would wish for? I simply can’t picture him only as a happy family man.
Lineup
Michael Sadler – vocals, keyboards
Lino – guitar
Marcus Deml – guitar
Thomas Schmitt-Zijnen – keyboards
Tim Emmons – bass guitar
Chris Frazier – drums
Fred White, Will Wheaton, Valerie Pinkston, Lynn Fiddmont – choir
Production
Thomas Schmitt-Zijnen
Track List
1. Who’s Sorry Now
2. Who’s Foolin’ Who
3. Too Much Time On My Hands
4. I’m Not The Enemy
5. Can’t Let Go
6. Lonely
7. One Minute
8. In The Name of Love
9. Why We Lie
10. One Heart
11. Surrender Your Heart
12. Clear
