Album Review: Glen Campbell - See You There

It seems fair to ask whether a record like See You There is really a good idea. Country legend Glen Campbell has been suffering with Alzheimer's disease so severe that it has forced him to end touring and now, decades after they were hits and – to be frank – not long before Campbell's seemingly inevitable passing, a collection of new renditions of some of his most known songs is being released.

Depending on your relationship with the original renditions of these songs, opinions of this album will differ vastly. But it has to be noted that these are renderings that show Campbell in truly astonishing form. While some of his most stately and heavily embellished hits feature, here each and every one of them is stripped right back, ensuring even more focus is placed upon Campbell's voice than on those initial recordings.

Strings and female vocal accompaniment give the despondent Postcard From Paris an understated elegance, What I Wouldn't Give is heart-wrenching – particularly given Campbell's current state – and the classic Wichita Lineman is very much reinvigorated without the schmaltzy strings in the background. On the flipside, the simple rhythm guitar that backs Campbell on Rhinestone Cowboy doesn't quite seem like enough, the song's quality is highlighted, but this arrangement leaves you wanting those iconic horns in the chorus.

The vocals were mainly recorded during sessions for his lauded 2011 Ghost On The Canvas album and he still sounds strong throughout. Whether that is still the case, who knows? But if this is Campbell's swansong, he can go out with his head held incredibly high.