Elton John's lyricist could have come up with a more interesting project given the enormous talent involved. Many of the Elton John mafia from the early '70s participate -- producer Gus Dudgeon, Davey Johnstone, Caleb Quaye, Clive Franks, and others accompany Bernie Taupin on this lyrical excursion. Side one contains the poem Child, which has nine separate elements listed "A" through "I." The second portion of Child, which is subtitled The Greatest Discovery, is the only Elton contribution, credited to John/Taupin. It is also one of the more musical pieces. For the most part, Caleb Quaye and Davey Johnstone provide backing for the relentless recitation. Former Velvet Underground keyboardist Willie Alexander has earned a good reputation for his spoken word discs, and if Bob Dylan and Lou Reed pursued this avenue, it would be a revelation to their fans, but Taupin doesn't convince as he reads his poetry as if it were the Sunday paper and the impatient wordsmith feels like he is heading for his fourth cup of coffee. There's no contest if compared to Kongos, the brilliant musical work by John Kongos, produced by Dudgeon with Caleb Quaye on guitar; this album, released around the same time on Elektra as well, conveys John Kongos' message unmistakably. Bernie Taupin, on the other hand, needs to deliver lines like "...for as the days feed time command/I thank all those within whose arms I learnt to live and love..." with a little more enthusiasm. This bit, entitled Conclusion, has the same energy as a priest during a weekday Mass, saying some obscure prayer for the 6,000th time. Given the bevy of albums released around 1971 by Davey Johnstone, Caleb Quaye's Hookfoot, James Newton Howard, and the aforementioned Kongos, all with musicians from the Elton John/Bernie Taupin stable, one would think When the Heron Wakes or Like Summer Tempests from this methodical essay would have more compelling lines than "Not I to wear the gospel/When I only wrote my own, your chapters shall go unwritten." Taupin has a unique voice that fails to command the respect he has earned with his work with Elton. However, all is not lost: a double-CD "best-of" featuring material from all of the musicians who recorded with Elton in the early '70s and who released records such as this one would be of interest to the legion of fans out there. Bernie Taupin reciting the lyrics to some of his more fascinating songs with Elton John might really be something. It's not that this is a bad recording; with all the talent converging here, they could have come up with something better than just average. ~ Joe Viglione, Rovi

1		Birth
2		The Greatest Discovery
3		Flatters
4		Brothers Together
5		Rowston Manor
6		End of a Day
7		To a Grandfather
8		Solitude
9		Conclusion
10		When the Heron Wakes
11		Like Summer Tempests
12		Today's Hero
13		Sisters of the Cross
14		Brothers Together Again
15		Verses After Dark
16		La Petite Marionette
17		Ratcatcher
18		The Visitor