Liverpool Sound and Vision * * * * *
To own the emotion of sentiment is surely another way of declaring that you understand how important another period of time was to you and how, in the case of art, it has inspired you to believe that its extraordinary presence can still not only make you a finer person, but give you Love, Luck and Time in which to make your own romanticism, someone else’s emotional adventure and discovery.
There are those that are squeamish around sentiment, not realising its power, its potential to evoke memories of times beyond the sepia tinge of reactionary passions, and for them Time, it can only be hoped, will eventually lead them to a place of contemplative compassion. However, for those that stand in the light, those that open themselves to the possibility of what sentiment can truly bring, Time is on their side, and for Mark Pountney, Time is the greatest of emotional pulls, and in his latest release, he draws on every experience, every sinew, and creates arguably his finest, most complete album to date.
Mark Pountney’s music has always been evocative, the trio of albums under the Markseries were beguiling as well as industrious and cool, yet in Love, Luck and Time, what is evident is the very nature of Time itself, the reveal of songs that are of the moment but which have at their very core a place in the decade of when Liverpool’s musical voice, its temperament and delightful skill, first gained prominence, the moment where it announced it would always be the force for good.
To be able to place tracks such as the opening astonishing salvo of The Master Key and Be Good To Yourself, the brilliance of You Got It All, The More I Learn The Less I Know, California On My Mind and Try Being Yourself, in one album is not to be regarded as luck, it is to the persuasive nature of love and dedication that Mr. Pountney has tapped ceremoniously into, and with it has delivered an album of extraordinary verve, style and groove.
Love, Luck and Time is an album of wealth, a musical heritage laid open, and one that will be seen as an embracement of the artist’s ideals. Simply perfect!
Ian D. Hall