Customer Reviews: Read 10 more reviews...
 Jackson Browneys masterpiece July 14, 1999
6 out of 7 found this review helpful
This is a truly great, amazingly underappreciated album. Jackson's lyrics may be too political for some tastes, but they are so heartfelt and beautifully stated that they always, always remain poetry. There is not a single dull song on this album, musically or poetically. The best songs are timeless: "World in motion", "How long", "I am a patriot" (what a statement of faith, not in those who run the country, but in the people of the country, and in the importance of sticking to one's beliefs). Then there is "My personal revenge", a deeply moving anthem of forgiveness (with lovely, haunting music to back it up) and two beautiful ballads, "Anything can happen" and "Lights and virtues" (the latter probably my favorite JB song, and one of my favorite songs ever). These are not good songs, or very good songs, they are classics, every one of them, and this album is brilliant from start to finish. Thanks, JB.
In the top three JB offerings... January 25, 2002
William E. Adams (Hobbs, NM USA)
8 out of 10 found this review helpful
I like this collection. It is political, like "Lives in the Balance" (another of my favorites.) There are three songs here that can rank among his best: "Anything Can Happen",
"When the Stone Begins to Turn" and "I Am a Patriot." I play these over and over when I am in a certain mood. The other CD I would rank in his top three? "For Everyman", his second record.Browne is personal, and political, and "personally political" but he knows how to rock, and how to arrange, and how to write, and how to hook the listener. If you like JB but have not heard this effort, take a chance on it. I don't think you'll be disappointed.
Haunting and deep. Strikes balance between love/politics. September 28, 1999
8 out of 10 found this review helpful
World in Motion is not Jacksons best-that honor is reserved for Looking East, but this is one of the most haunting albums I have ever heard. Anything Can Happen is clearly the best song on the album and it takes the listener away every time it plays. How Long is the best politically tinged track and the insturmentation is outstanding. Enough of the Night excells on the backround harmony that repeats 4 times, as well as the abrupt but well executed shifts from fast/hard to slow/soft. Critics hit this album for being angry and too political. It's not. Not by a long shot. In fact, if every musical album was like this we might have some brains and awareness among our young people today. (I'm 20 years old, by the way). If you only buy one album by Jackson, dont buy this one-buy his Best of cd. But if you buy two, go for World in Motion-you cant go wrong.
Best Browne CD! July 3, 2001
Caley Anderson (San Diego, CA, USA)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Given that many critics have attacked this album for its strongly political message, it's melodies, with or without strong lyrics, are darkly beautiful, especially the guitar leads in the CD's best track, How Long. Other especially good tracks are Anything Can Happen, Enough of the Night, and the title track World in Motion. There is also the lyrically and musically uplifting When The Stone Begins to Turn. These are only the best, every track on this CD is excellent, and it is the Browne CD to get.
 uneven, but still a number of excellent songs October 21, 2004
Dave (United States)
7 out of 10 found this review helpful
Jackson Browne's 1989 album "World In Motion" does have some excellent tracks on it, though it's highly flawed--based on the other reviews so far, this record appears to have a strong cult following, but it's clearly not an overall masterpiece, & that's coming from myself, a huge Jackson fan. One positive thing here is that he almost completely ditches any traces of the arena rock sound that was highly prominent on isolated tracks from his previous two albums (e.g. "For A Rocker", "For America"), and in that sense, the record somewhat points the way to his 1993 masterpiece "I'm Alive". Also, I don't find the record to be nearly as politically preachy/ lyrically excessive as a couple of the reviews I've read suggest. There is a string of excellent songs on the album. The reflective character examination "Enough of the Night" (infectiously melodic & reminiscent of "Somebody's Baby") & the wishful "Chasing You Into the Light" (lyrically reminiscent of "That Girl Could Sing") are both irresistibly catchy uptempo tracks. Also a gem is "How Long", an eloquent cry for peace & change from the government, with moody, contemplative acoustic lap steel guitar from David Lindley--it's one of the most hauntingly melodic songs Jackson's ever written. Also strong are the bluesy, exhorting title track & the splendidly melodic ballad "Anything Can Happen". Jackson, one of my favorite singers in all of music, is in his usual excellent, passionate form vocally on all of these aforementioned tracks. However, like I said, there are a considerable amount of problems, even on a couple of overall strong tracks. "Enough of the Night" is ever so slightly marred by the annoyingly blurry & partly incomprehensible background vocals (a very minor complaint). The title track features some excessive slamming "drum" sounds that clutter up the song (be sure to check out the worthwhile live version of the track from the Japanese version of his "Looking East" CD), & "Anything Can Happen" has too much of a generic adult contemporary sound. Musically, "When the Stone Begins to Turn" is a rather listless & sluggish attempt at reggae despite the presence of Sly & Robbie on the track. The Little Steven-penned "I Am A Patriot" is an incredibly slight, half-baked ode to freedom, loyalty to one's country, & family values, & "Lights and Virtues" is a dull, tossed off attempt at a positive, uplifting album closer. The somewhat Latin-flavored "My Personal Revenge", written by Tomas Borge & Louis Enrique Mejia Godoy (& translated to English by Jorge Calderon) is rather dull as well, & "The Word Justice", though pretty good, is a bit aimless & lacking in conviction. It seems that Jackson was perhaps having a bit of a case of writer's block with this album, which leads to what I think is the album's key problem--lack of strong song material. Production-wise I think the album is overall pretty good & tasteful, & I certainly don't question Jackson's sincerity, but, to put it simply, he had trouble here on numerous tracks getting messages across as effectively as we're used to from him. On the other hand, he still accomplishes some great songs on here. This is certainly not an album you should feel compelled to avoid--flawed though it is, any really big Jackson fan needs it.
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