This deeply personal collection of recently-written Stewart originals, with the added bonus of three superb new covers, is simply peak Rod. Blood Red Roses is a great bunch of songs presented, with a winning flourish, in Stewart’s unmistakable style.
Love, loss, longing, and addiction are all examined in Stewart’s enviable everyman manner, tempered with a master-craftsman’s attention to nuance and detail.
The universally-loved voice, tough and tender in equal measure, is in superb shape. James Brown’s claim that Rod Stewart is the world’s ‘best white soul singer’ still stands.