Search - Robert Palmer :: Platinum (Dig)

Palmer Past the Peak

Tim Brough | Springfield, PA United States | 04/16/2008

(3 out of 5 stars)

"This interesting collection (housed in a paper envelope with no plastics) is the late Robert Palmer's time on EMI records. He'd just finished a sudden one-two commercial punch with Riptide and The Power Station, had come to the end of his Island Records contract, and the bidding war took over. EMI was the winner, and Palmer delivered Heavy Nova, along with the one big hit on this CD, "Simply Irresistible."



Then the inevitable occurred, Palmer's moment faded and EMI probably started looking at their investment with a large dose of WTF. His four albums there sold less as each arrived, the fourth, Honey, did not even chart. It makes this collection a bit strange, since it leaves off the few singles that did connect (a cover of the Gap Band's "Early In The Morning" and "You're Amazing"), tosses in a tune from the Power Station reunion ("She Can Rock") and incomprehensibly throws in an instrumental over any of the aforementioned missing pieces.



Palmer, on the other hand, rarely met a style he didn't want to tackle, be it reggae ("I'll be Your Baby Tonight," with UB40) to hard rock (his cover of Devo's "Girl U Want"). There's also a solid medley of "Mercy Mercy Me" and "I Want You" that was a minor hit, and a delightfully shoulda-been hit, "Tell Me I'm Not Dreaming." As a guide to just how eclectic Palmer was as an artist, "Platinum" serves its admittedly minor purpose. Casual fans looking for "Addicted To Love" or "Some Like It Hot", however, will probably be better off buying The Very Best of the Island Years."