Another Place and Time (30th Anniversary)

Q - 3 Stars - Good

In the late '80s, the Mike Stock/Matt Aitken/Pete Waterman team was as important to European dance-pop as Giorgio Moroder and Pete Bellotte had been to Euro-disco in the late '70s. Many pop critics hated Stock/Aitken/Waterman's slick, high-gloss approach with a passion, but what critics like and what the public buys are often two different things -- and the British team had the Midas touch when it came to Dead or Alive, Samantha Fox, Rick Astley, and other '80s favorites. So, for Donna Summer, working with them was a logical decision when, in 1989, she made a temporary return to a Euro-dance-pop setting. Produced, written, and arranged by Stock, Aitken & Waterman, 1989's Another Place and Time is arguably Summer's most European-sounding release since the late '70s. This CD came 14 years after the erotic "Love to Love You, Baby," and from a Euro-dance perspective (as opposed to a Top 40, adult contemporary or urban contemporary perspective), Another Place & Time is one of the best albums that Summer provided in the '80s. Critics can hate Stock, Aitken & Waterman all they want, but the team certainly does right by Summer on exuberant, club-friendly Euro-dance/Hi-NRG gems like "Whatever Your Heart Desires," "I Don't Wanna Get Hurt," and the hit "This Time I Know It's for Real." Not all of the songs are aimed at the dancefloor, but 90 percent of the time, this album is unapologetically dance-oriented. Contrary to popular wisdom, disco didn't really die with the '70s -- disco simply went high-tech and changed its name to dance-pop in the '80s, and it isn't hard to see the parallels between this release and Summer's work with Moroder and Bellotte in the mid- to late '70s. Another Place and Time is an excellent CD that Summer's fans should not overlook. ~ Alex Henderson