Ian Bairnson - guitars, saxophones (4 5), bass (7, 11), keyboards
(3, 7, 11), mandolin (6), backing vocals (10) and string
arrangement (10)
Colin Blunstone - vocals (5)
Maire Brennan - vocals (7)
Richard Cottle - keyboards (1, 11)
Beverley Craven - vocals (10)
Graham Dye - vocals (9)
Stuart Elliot - keyboards, drum programming, percussion (3),
drums, and additional vocals (8)
John Gilbin - bass
Tony Hadley - vocals (3)
Neil Lockwood - vocals (4, 8)
Alan Parsons - keyboards (2) and organ (8)
Chris Rainbow - backing vocals (3, 5, 8)
Robyn Smith - keyboards (3, 4, 8) and piano (5, 10)
(plus additional musicians)

A new album by Alan Parsons always is a treat even if he has the same backing band around him for years on end. The result is, as always, fascinating, astonishing, professional and enormously varied. In fact you couldn't expect any less from someone who worked with the likes of The Beatles, Pink Floyd, Hollies, John Miles, Cockney Rebel, Al Stewart, to name but a few. All of this diversity has fixed itself in the ideas of Alan Parsons who has been taking us from one ride to the other since 1976.

Whilst the debut Tales Of Mystery And Imagination was based on the works of Edgar Allan Poe, this new Time Machine is based on the works of H. G. Wells. The twelve new songs on The Time Machine span a lot of tension thanks to the help of Stuart Elliott, Ian Bairnson, John Giblin, Chris Rainbow, Colin Blunstone who have been with Alan for years and years. Their talent is augmented by guests such as Maire Brennan (Clannad), Beverley Craven and Tony Hadley (Spandau Ballet) and the fantastic soulful voice of Neil Lockwood.

Alan Parsons mainly is a producer and technician so he knows all the tricks of the trade in order to make sure that his very own Parsonics Studio is equipped with the best material money can buy. Analogous with Mike Oldfield, Parsons also rakes in the "garden of beats" as we can hear during the opening track The Time Machine. If I had something to say about it, then "Call Up" would be absolute top priority on all radio stations, even if the riff has been borrowed from Dire Straits' "Calling Elvis." Especially the voice of Neil Lockwood lifts this song to unseen heights. It has been known for a long time that it's the wrong way of breathing which results in the unique timbre Colin Blunstone has to offer. Although "Ignorance Is Bliss" is not Colin's best song ever, it is still a very good song. The folky "The Call Of The Wild" is really made to measure for the likes of Maire Brennan, thus needing as little instruments as possible. "Press Rewind" is heavily submerged in the Beatles sea and is a strong candidate for a single, whilst piano is the only instrument necessary to complement the unique voice of Beverly Craven during the gospel-like "The Very Last Time." The hypnotizing, Enigma-like "Far Ago And Long Away" ends this remarkable album, whilst in the form of "Dr. Evil Edit," the main theme of the album is given a new treatment by adding some danceable beats in order to steer this Time Machine well into the new century. Really a wonderful album!