I remember being called weird when, around 1991, I was listening to Lenny Kravitz's album Mama Said rather a lot. Few people had heard of Kravitz back then and he was something of a groundbreaking artist, with an eclectic range of instrumentation and myriad influences.
Then Are You Gonna Go My Way arrived, all Hendrix-like riffs, followed a few years later by the Peugeot ad tune Fly. And from that point on, much of his output sounded like repackaged or even recycled material. Perhaps his huge success has made him a little too comfortable.
Which brings us to Stillness of Heart. Once again, digitised strings back up a guitar-driven rhythm and note-perfect vocals - so note-perfect, in fact, that it sounds like Kravitz has gradually turned into a robot. Cutting edge it isn't. That said, it is - as we've come to expect - a slickly produced little number with a catchy chorus line and should add a little more money to his already huge coffers.
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