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Despite having chosen a hobby that involves a lot of listening to pop productions from the 1980s, I'm actually not very keen on many of the stylistic tics of the time, and there are a lot of them on here, from the heavy keyboard "pad" that dominates the track to the slap bass and the cardboardy drums. It's all the more unfortunate because 'Too Late For Goodbyes' is a good if lightweight pop song, but all the spontaneous-sounding moments (the way the vocal goes up at the end of each line, for instance) are totally overshadowed by the heavy-handed production. A much looser sound would have served it far better, and it would have been better to emphasise the contrast between the verse and chorus. Ooh, get me with my constructive criticism!
One thing I do like about this is the harmonica solo, although I was mildly disappointed to learn that Lennon didn't play it himself (it's by Belgian Jazz legend Toots Thielemans). It cuts through the excess slickness elsewhere on the track. For some reason, at the time I always connected this song with 'Together In Electric Dreams', but I don't quite understand it now.
Also appearing on: Now 20
Available on: Original Hits - Eighties
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