John Barrowman - Another Side

A fantastic voice, an absolutely cracking track-list and, after two simultaneous listens, I was spinning around lampposts, clicking my heals and thinking I was in West End musical.

But the trouble is that it's all just a bit too bloomin' perfect.

And yes, it's a strange criticism I grant you.

Barrowman is a successful and accomplished singer and actor in musical theatre and so, as you might expect, his voice is decidedly light, smooth and elegant, without a single crack in it.

Each word is clearly enunciated, something that you probably can't say about most of the artists he is covering, and the album is full of beautiful love songs and power ballads.

But while his voice is very pleasant enough to the ears, throughout much of the album his Achilles heel is his trouble touching the listener's heart or provoking an emotional response.

Indeed, the tricky thing about covers is that unless you can add to them or re-interpret them – à la Mark Ronson's Versions, or the Easy Star All Stars' Radiodread – then what's the point?

As such, Barrowman seems to miss that distinctly haunting quality from "Time After Time," or the edgy sarcasm and world-weariness that gave a real kick to "You're So Vain."

Similarly, Bryan Adams' "Heaven," and the pop crooner's standard "All By Myself" are sung competently enough, but without really adding anything to their originals.

Furthermore, there's that inexplicable thing that appeals to us about a lot of great songs, as there's no such thing as the perfect song, is that they are made great to an extent by their flaws.

Here they're re-created flawlessly by a piano and an orchestra that's perfectly in time (but doesn't sound real), produced in a studio that could drive a mission to mars.

But if you're thinking this is another soulless Lee Mead effort – think again.

It's on Sondheim's "Being Alive," the album's best track, that Barrowman really takes off to shoot the album beyond obscurity with soaring vocals on an up-tempo tune on the mostly slower-paced disk.

And then he gives a sultry, assured rendition of Nina Simone's "Feeling Good," along with Latin cover of The Police's "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic," kicking in with a full mariachi band for the chorus.

Clearly Barrowman should stick to the full-on and energetic style for his next album, rather than the slower stuff, as it's here where he obviously feels at home; it suits his exuberant personality.

It's this arena where he sounds most turned-on – so to speak – and keyed-in even, and shows through in these tracks that he is enjoying himself, rather than just going through the motions.

And when Barrowman's on song, I dare you not to sing along to at least one!

'Another Side' is out now.