I was first exposed to SIMPLY RED in the mid 1980's when under "deprived" circumstances (okay, when in prison, if you must know!) A Black inmate gave me a copied cassette tape. As a long time soul music lover, I was "whacked." Whoever came up with "Blue Eyed Soul" must have been looking at Red! But with release AND switching from Cassettes to CD's Red's stuff dropped into obscurity.Fast forward nearly 20 years and when I again accidently bumped into "Red" watching a you-tube video, I was gobsmacked!NOw having some money, I bought not only PICTURE BOOK but some of his later CD's - totaling about four. And while the others do have their great tunes - here and there - none of them matches the raw, youthful passion and creative brilliance of PICTURE BOOK.I listen to a lot of music and there just ain't nobody out there who sounds at all like Mick Hucknall. Listening to his stuff is like eating a marshmallow you've toasted on a camp fire to intentionally let burn: an intense raunchy high pitched voice which wants to curdle your ears (the burned part of the 'mallow) while at the same time you get a smooth sweetness (the lush instrumental backings.) Taken together, it's sensory overload!As I note, Red's later releases, some of them very tuneful with a wider commercial appeal, for me cannot replicate the raw intensity and striking originality of this first, most youthful offering (Picture Book.)The first cut, "Come To My Aid" has always been a bit TOO frenetic for my personal taste, but the Jazzy SAD OLD RED, the ironic HEAVEN, and the struttin' high-heels funky RED BOX remain timeless classics. But sitting by itself as a pinnacle piece of music remains HOLDING BACK THE YEARS. Lush, melodic and anguished - how do you beat that?Beware! Succumb to this and you will have it singing inside your head, endlessly (for awhile, at least.)Buy this CD for that gem alone, and enjoy all the other fine cuts, as "icing on your cake."