Bryan Ferry - BAate Noire

Even better with extra tracks!

This is a positive review. However there doesn't seem to be any reviews for a product released in Australia for the accompanying tour for this album. That release had four extended versions to close the album: Kiss and Tell, Limbo, The Right Stuff and Bete Noir (instrumental). Now that was an album!!
I am interested as to why it doesn't appear anywhere on Amazon. February 11, 2008

The Boys and Girls of Avalon go for a night of Dancing

Having tasted more American Success with "Avalon" and "Boys and Girls" than in his entire career, Bryan Ferry went for broke with 1987's "Bete Noir." He opted for Patrick Leonard as producer, and while that might have shocked many at the time, as Leonard's best known client was Madonna, it added a dance floor edge to parts of "Bete Noir" that actually enhanced Ferry's romantic detachment as opposed to nullifying it. (Leonard's eventual Toy/3rd Matinee band projects show he was deeper than many folks originally may have thought. Check out their albums on Amazon.)

Those extra measures of bass and rhythm gave Ferry his sole American solo hit with "Kiss and Tell," which was featured in the Michael J. Fox and Keifer Sutherland (pre "24" years) movie adaptation of "Bright Lights, Big City." "The Right Stuff" and "Limbo" also were possessed of a higher energy than prior Ferry solo albums, but that didn't mean Ferry had completely lost his flair for the melancholic. "Day For Night" and "The Name Of The Game" depict the artist as tortured soul, a familiar character in Ferry's repertoire.

The collaborators were also a who's who of the time. Johnny Marr of The Smiths co-wrote "The Right Stuff" and spiked it with a great lead line; David Gilmour, Andy Newmark and Guy Pratt also put in appearances. This mix of musicians (with emphasis on MUSICAL) and Ferry's willingness to make an album concurrent with the times via the linkup with Leonard make "Bete Noir" the best of his solo albums. This album, "Boys and Girls" and "Avalon" make a great trilogy -- get them all. June 28, 2004

An Excellent Album

I am still listening to this album more than 15 years after I first heard it. This album, and Avalon, are the best albums in the Ferry/Roxy Music canon. Unlike other Ferry/Roxy Music albums which have consisted of maybe one or two mind-blowingly great songs along with 8-9 mediocre ones, this album is consistent. It has great uptempo songs such as "Kiss and Tell" and "Seven Deadly Sins" "Day for Night" and "Limbo", and very good slow melodies such as "The Name of the Game" and the hauting "Zamba".

There is obviously some sort of cinema/film theme at work in this album - cinematic references are peppered throughout. "Seven Deadly Sins", "The Right Stuff", and "Day For Night" are all film titles. The refrain in "The Right Stuff" references "The Chimes at Midnight", a 1965 Orson Welles film. "Kiss and Tell" was the theme to the 1988 film "Bright Lights, Big City". Finally, the album title suggests film noir. I confess I have no idea what the point of the cinematic references may be, but they serve as an interesting footnote to what should be considered a classic album. September 2, 2003

.........perfect.................................

When I was going through reviews of this album, the word "perfect" kept popping up amongst the more erudite music minds of the press. A dubious distinction indeed, but after several listenings you realize that Ferry's Noire has crossed that line into "perfect." While his subsequent work has been inconsistent, you can take heart that Bryan has a peak in his career to fall back upon. Go buy this CD and enjoy the perfection. May 15, 2003

This is CD at it's Finest

Anyone reading this is most likely familiar with "The Master".Perhaps your collection is incomplete.Well,without this masterpiece of listening heaven it is just that.
Patrick Leonard deserves much credit here as co-writer/producer of this gorgeous work, as does Yanick Etienne,David Gilmore and an All-Star group of magnificent players.
My congratulations to all the virtuoso members of this ultra-fine creation. February 22, 2003

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