City to City

Scottish-born Gerry Rafferty, sometimes dubbed ‘Glasgow's Paul McCartney,’ made his solo debut with Can I Have My Money Back? in 1971 after leaving the Humblebums. Little noticed, it was nevertheless a fine album that evoked the British countryside. He then attracted attention through Stealers Wheel and their hit ‘Stuck in the Middle of You.’ Finally, the No. 2 American success of ‘Baker Street,’ taken from this second solo album, brought him great fame.

His sweet, slightly damp-toned voice and gift for melancholic melodies steeped in British feeling are fully realized in this highly accomplished record. Nothing can be discarded: ‘The Ark,’ beginning with the sound of bagpipes; the album version of ‘Baker Street,’ with fierce interplay between saxophone and guitar; the No. 12 American hit ‘Right Down the Line’; the pub-rock-flavoured title song; the airy ‘Stealin' Time’; and the McCartney-like pleasures of ‘Mattie's Rag.’