Richard Ashcroft: Alone With Everybody

After seven years of turmoil and a called-off breakup, the career of Northern England's The Verve climaxed in 1997 with the pop classic "Bitter Sweet Symphony." Based on a sample from an orchestral version of a Rolling Stones song, the hit brought Richard Ashcroft and company nearly as much sorrow as fame. Thanks to legal wrangling over the uncleared sample, The Verve lost both songwriting credit and control of the song, briefly leading to the tune's ubiquity in everything from soda ads to trashy teen movies. With that sort of success, it's no wonder that the already troubled band broke up again in 1999. Wasting no time, Ashcroft's first solo album goes to great lengths to establish him as a viable solo artist. In fact, it may be trying too hard: There's a lot to like about Alone With Everybody, and a lot to take in. Most of these busily layered tracks exceed five minutes, and most outstay their welcome. Clearly in the grips of First Solo Album Syndrome, Ashcroft throws every stockpiled idea into the mix for good measure. But better too many ideas than too few, even if his Bacharach-by-way-of-Britpop ambitions occasionally get the best of him. The lead-off track, "A Song For The Lovers," may sound too calculated to really work, but the bouncy pop of "I Got My Beat" and "C'mon People (We're Making It Now)" allows both songs to earn their hooks. Nothing here quite matches The Verve's "Symphony" or "The Drugs Don't Work," and too many tracks slip by unnoticed, but Ashcroft's solo bow shows promise.