The title track of Islands is surely one of Robert’s most enduring ballads. With this special mix, akin to an audio documentary, we take a peek behind the curtain to hear it under construction. Before Boz’s sensitive vocal, Robin Miller’s plaintive oboe, or the gentle sweep of mellotron strings are added at a later stage, it starts out a rather sparse, unadorned arrangement for guitar with Ian Wallace's original guide part keeping time. Cutting to a proper take, Keith Tippett’s moving piano, sensitively rendered enables Mel Collins’ gorgeous alto flute to etch a rich harmony to the main melody. When Mark Charig’s eloquent and passionate cornet is dropped in, the mood is both heartfelt and oddly vulnerable. Exquisite stuff from the Crims in Command.
