Chinese Wall / Inside

When I first heard this album it was on vinyl when I was seriously into the music of Earth Wind & Fire and to be honest I didn't like it very much. The music seemed very removed from what I was listening to at the time which was for the most part very hardcore funk,R&B and soul. And that's strange because this is a review by one of a few people with genuinely good things to say about 80's music in general. That was 15 years ago and upon hearing it again my opinion is a bit broader. I will say one thing for this-the way this album was presented (at least on vinyl) each side-or half if your listening to this CD version starts off with a very obviously pop/rock with a lot of louder guitars and drumming:those two songs being "Photographic Memory" and of course the albums big hit "Easy Lover",the song most people remember from this album and the reason most people probably came into it in the first place. As other reviewers have pointed out these songs are not at all indivative of the album as whole and were likely put on to cross the album over to the pop charts. The majority of this recording is every bit the regally produced R&B/funk that would be common to find on any EWF release,even during this era. "I Go Crazy" and "Time Is A Woman" are actually better examples of the 80's electro funk sound as they both focus on creating a textural mood and tempo as opposed to seeing how many synthesized effects could fit into one song. "For Every Heart That's Been Broken" and "Woman" are both excellent songs that,with the combined sound of the Phenix horns and Philip's jazzy gospel chordal phrasing on the vocals make them both sound like possible EWF outtakes from the  Faces  era of their recording career. Same goes for the heavily gospel sounding "Show You The Way To Love" which would not have been out of place on EWF's  Powerlight  from the previous year before this. "Go" is one of the more heavily funk oriented tunes and kind of glues the sound of a lot of the rest of the album in one great jam. There are also two somewhat epic songs in the title track which is a seemingly awkward mixture of 80's progressive pop and afrobeat. Somehow with the great melody Philip pulls this rather Peter Gabriel sounding tune off very well. The last tune is a great moody version of "Children Of The Ghetto",again an epic song in more of a jazz-funk vein. Overall the sound of this album is quite different from that of Philip's solo debut  Continuation  which has a more fluid sound from cut to cut and doesn't have songs with such an obvious pop and rock influence. Even so there is a lot of great music here,especially from the mid 80's usually electronic/synthesizer oriented R&B/soul and funk environment so this is more than worth checking out.

Arrived early. Condition was very good. Price was excellent.

This was the 2 disc set I was waiting for a long long time. The British / R&B combo on the first disc has great drums and vocals. The second disc is American Pop / little R&B with great vocals. Great deal and the shipping was prompt.

A great album from a great artist! Easy Lover will always remain a classic along with all the other songs on this album.

Finally so pleased I purchased this cd from Philip Bailey,Chinese Wall ,is well written songs with the Voice to deliver an outstanding vocal sound on every recording.

Easy Lover was the reason I bought it and its a very good somg

This album is amazing, great songs, great percussion's, great vocals, what more could you ask for.

Brilliant album by a terrific artist. Duet with Phil Collins is great. All the tracks are absolute favourites. Beautiful melodies, great lyrics. All in all, fabulous. I love it.

Most of you will know Phil Bailey as the ' high voice' of Earth Wind & fire ... But this was an excellent solo album. Good songs, particularly his 2 hit singles - the title track,and Easy lover - plenty of 'Phil Collins' too. Well worth a listen.

Bought the cd because I hankered after the title track for some strange reason. Good solo effort by a big time band vocalist, although Phil Collins is very evident - and some of the drumwork reminds me of Animal from the Muppets. That aside, give it a bash...it's pretty good. The cd arrived before I had time to set up the player. Really good service.

one of the best classic albums of the 80's by far earth wind and fires philip bailey at his best ever.

One of the essential CDs in your collectioni love track 9 - Woman great song

It's okay