Ian Brown - Stellify

Stel´li`fy
v. t. 1. To turn into a star; to cause to appear like a star; to place among the stars, or in heaven.

And now you know. I think this is wonderful, there's a real sweetness to the lyrics. Brown's fondness for slightly odd words can come across as trying too hard on occasion but it's endearing here.
For a man remembered primarily for an album that came out 20 years ago Brown has released a lot of decent singles as a solo artist. F.E.A.R., Dolphins Were Monkeys and Corpses In Their Mouths all spring to mind as very handy tracks. Never held it together over a full album but for a singer who can't really sing that well he's done some seriously good work. He's also evolved a fair bit in terms of his influences, this is certainly a long way from Fool's Gold.
Anyway this effort stands up with the best of his solo output. Mainly because it's got a fantastic brass interlude two thirds of the way in that he shows great restraint in not introducing at the top and it's all the better for it.
The video is also rather good, though Brown looks increasingly like a ghost of himself. The hair is still, somewhat suspiciously, a lustrous brown but his face is increasingly grey, grizzled and haggard. Watching this video one can't help but suspect at any moment he may simply turn and walk away into the ether, pausing only to give a little disembodied wave over his shoulder.