Atlantic Crossing was Rod Stewart's first release on the Warner Brothers labeland he recorded most of it at the famous Muscle Schoals Studio in Alabama. The album has a gritty, R&B edge, but is balanced out nicely by some ballads. "Three Time Loser", "Alright For Another" & "Stone Cold Sober" has a delta blues sound to them, while his cover of Dobie Gray's "Drift Away" has a Stax Records vibe. He does his original take on The Isley Brothers' "This Old Heart Of Mine" here and he does a heartbreakingly beautiful rendition of Danny Whitten of Crazy Horse's "I Don't Want To Talk About It". "Sailing" was not a hit in America, but was absolutely humongous in the UK. It is his biggest hit by far over there. Atlantic Crossing was a nice bounce back after the disappointing Smiler and a great start to his warner Brothers career.

The title refers to Stewart's abandonment of England for the USA, and the music followed suit. Produced by Tom Dowd and backed by a number of Muscle Shoals musicians, Stewart moved to a more polished pop sound, yet maintained much of the energy found in his earlier recordings.

The song selection is well matched to Stewart's emotional, raspy voice, including several bluesy originals ("Three Time Loser" "Stone Cold Sober") and a host of well done covers ("Drift Away" "I Don't Want to Talk About It" "Sailing").

A surprisingly touching LP that still plays very well.

This is not quite as excellent as the Night on the Town 2-disc collector's edition as the bonus tracks are not as unique or interesting, but like Night, it comes in excellent packaging, and features enough decent bonus stuff to recommend "double dipping." Pretty much essential for Rod Stewart fans, and anyone whose every loved this album.

I waited with anticipation when this was released in the '70's. All in all, I think the ballads held up better than the rockers over time. I think his vocals were too far in the background on the rockers. The ballads here are far better than the re-recordings done for the "If We Fall In Love Tonight" and "Storyteller" collections. It's definitely not his best effort, but it's still worth having, and the sound quality is much improved over the earlier versions of this title.

The original "Atlantic Crossing" record album divided its songs into a "Slow Side" and a "Fast Side" at the suggestion of Stewart's then-girlfriend, Britt Ekland. It was a good idea to separate these two very different kinds of songs because they probably appeal to two very different groups of listeners.

The "Fast Side" as reproduced here includes some rock `n roll songs with the type of random, randy lyrics characteristically written by Stewart himself. The sound mix isn't particularly good for this set, and a lot of the lyrics get lost. For example, unless I'd read the program notes, I'd never have known that the first song, "Three Time Loser," is about a man who repeatedly contracts a social disease. However, the tune is catchy and even though its content is thin, its chorus will likely stick happily on you like Velcro.

The real value of this album though is on its "Slow Side." Although Stewart didn't write most of these more poetic songs, this is where he really shines. These heartfelt, yearning songs make the best use of Stewart's smoke-filled balladeer's voice, and David Lindley's mandolin strikes just the right note of cobblestone nostalgia.

Three of these "slow" songs are presented twice on the CD - once in the regular line-up, then again in alternate mixes. The alternate versions are better in that they are cleaner and give more prominence to Stewart's vocals.

"Sailin'" is a beautiful longing after reunion. This song was a hit in Europe when the album first came out, but never quite caught on to the same extent in the U.S. It deserves to have another hearing here.

My favorite though is "It's Not the Spotlight." The singer tells his love about the light he wants to see again. "It's not the candlelight, it's not the streetlights of some old street of dreams. It ain't the moonlight - not even the sunlight - but I've seen it shining in your eyes... you know what I mean." A beautiful sentiment. I wish Stewart would at least occasionally oust the overworked "Maggie May" and "Do Ya Think I'm Sexy?" in some of his live performances and reinstate these ballads as his signature songs. But perhaps it doesn't matter. We can listen to the songs on this CD, in the more intimate setting of our own homes where their tendril tenderness can be most affecting.