Raul Midon: If You Really Want

Raul Midon plays guitar and sings like Paul Simon. Born blind in New Mexico in 1966, The New York Times once called him "a one-man band who turns a guitar into an orchestra and his voice into a chorus." He was going somewhere once upon a time. Now he's back, still going somewhere.

One of his songs is called "Everyone Deserves A Second Chance." Midon probably does. He sings well, he plays well and he writes good songs. Good enough? That is the question. Let's leave it unresolved.

Midon always liked to hedge his bets, frequently switching to Latino. He plays here with a Dutch ensemble, The Metropole Orkest, conducted by Vince Mendoza. They play Latino. So Midon breaks into Spanish now and then.

Elsewhere he daydreams: You bring a bottle of sunshine, I'll bring a bottle of rain. If we can mix them up just right, we'll catch a ride on a rainbow.

In "God's Dream" Midon gets serious, singing in his doleful tenor, Imagine yourself Upon a star in a dream. In the dream you are everything. And he goes on to describe how God would experience mankind's world: So you decide to walk upon the earth, to be among the ones you've made. You dress up like a circus clown just to march in their parade. The wilful bliss of ignorance Is everywhere displayed.

But in the closer, "Suddenly," arranged by Mendoza, there are echoes of Lennon and McCarthy as Midon bows out with hope of renewal: Suddenly I see the things I used to see so differently. I feel as if I found a new reality.

Let's hope it lasts long enough to satisfy him. Or will Raul Midon always want just that little bit more?