On Confessor(1985), Walsh blends his sound nicely with the emerging technology of the mid 80's... utilizing drum synths and keyboards while keeping the best of what made his earlier records so great: good melodies, plenty of hooks and an endless supply of crunchy slide guitar riffs.

Mr. Walsh brings out his off-kilter humor on tracks like "I Broke My Leg" and "Bubbles"... gets rather philosophical on "Problems" and "Rosewood Bitters" (a solid rocker with a tasty slide guitar solo), and goes for all-out crunch on songs like "15 Years", "Good Man Down" and of course the epic title track, "Confessor".

Many people name only the title track and one or two other songs when they talk about this record, but the truth is the whole album is an enjoyable listen.


Rock at its best   January 21, 2001
5 out of 5 found this review helpful

I think this is the Best Walsh album. I don't know if this will sound better on CD or SACD. The recording(in vinyl) is almost perfect. Almost all the songs in this album are just too good. It's almost like a "Best of Joe Walsh" album. The words and the music gives you a good feel of what is really going on. You travel as you listen to each song. After listening to this record, I've always said to myself, "unbelievable, this is so good." I don't listen to 1 or 2 songs, I've always listen to the whole album, at least twice, in one seating.


THE CONFESSOR, ONE OF JOE'S BEST !   July 19, 2006
ol' nuff n' den sum (the Virginia coast, USA)
5 out of 6 found this review helpful

This album starts off a little slow, but picks up steam as it goes and the second half is very strong. The title track is the best song Joe Walsh has ever recorded as a solo artist and "Rosewood Bitters", "Slow Dancing", and "Dear John" are as good or better than anything he's done on his other solo albums. "Good Man Down" and "15 Years" are also notable. Overall, the album has a more updated sound, but there is plenty of Joe's stellar guitar work throughout. His trademark sense of humor is here, as is his simple, unpretentious charm as a vocalist and lyricist. I only gave this 4 stars instead of 5 because "I Broke My Leg" and "Bubbles", although not bad, are lightweights. I still recommend this album, especially to Joe's fans.


The slide continues...   August 25, 2005
Jeremy Diringer (Fredonia, New York, USA)
4 out of 9 found this review helpful

(I'd say it's more towards 2.5 stars than 2)

For some reason, after "You Bought It...You Name It," Joe Walsh and Bill Szymczyk didn't work together for a while. I believe that if he had retained Bill, this album could've been much better. For one thing, I think he (Bill) would have shoved the drum machine off the rooftop.

I cannot stress it enough: The production is dated and the drums are annoying. "I Broke My Leg," "15 Years," "The Confessor," and "Good Man Down" all could have been stronger songs if they'd had actual drums, and came across as solid rock songs rather than weak imitations. I understand that most labels in the '80s shied away from classic rock and jumped on the new-wave bandwagon at the time, but this album is evidence that sometimes it's better to stick to your guns.

It would be on par with "You Bought It...You Name It" if they had an actual drumset. On some tracks, like "Problems," it almost fits. But "Good Man Down" could've been a good-ol'-boy rocker if they had the solid sound of real drums, not this imitation electronic kit going "pfft pfft". I think Szymczyk would have also known not to imbue the shiny sound-of-the-day on the album--Joe Walsh sounds best when he's jamming, grooving, and having fun; the slick production makes the songs here sound awkward.

It beats what some of the other holdovers from the '70s were doing, but in comparison to even his earlier '80s albums, this simply isn't very good strong album. The lyrics aren't always there, such as in the schmaltzy "Dear John" or the vaguely bland "Bubbles". "I Broke My Leg" is okay, but could have been fleshed out more.

Most of this review is about ripping apart the poor album, so I'll post the good things it:
1. "The Confessor." Other than wimpy synth drums, it's a strong song. Arguably, between this and "Rosewood Bitters", it might be the best track of the album. It's unusually serious and cryptic, but not pretentious. The video is funny-in-a-bad-way, though.
2. "Rosewood Bitters." I haven't heard Michael Stanley's original, but this is a good '80s pop-rock song, and one of my favourite '80s tracks from Walsh. The synths are very '80s, but they actually fit here.
3. "Slow Dancing." Joe Walsh does Ric Ocasek, and it almost works.
4. "Problems". It's "Things" revisited, but I liked "Things."

Overall, if you liked "You Bought It...", and you see this in the discount rack, pick it up: there's the chance you'll enjoy it, if only for "Rosewood Bitters" and "The Confessor" alone. This isn't a bad album, so to speak, but it sounds stiffer and simply less fun than his early stuff (and much of his post-"Gum" output).