In reply to Sl@te Head:
I've been a big Verve fan since the mid '90's and the 20th anniversary BSS really hit home. Big album from my year of graduation so its a real 'time of life' deal.
It's still a huge sounding album which bear repeated listening very well. The more your learn about the BSS saga as well the disjointed way the album came together makes it even more intriguing. You can really hear the difference between the RA compositions and the band/jam compositions.
I kept faith with RA for a while but in truth I think he could probably find just one decent album's worth of material of his first three solo releases. There's a lot of sham in shamenism.
I hope that people who discovered (The) Verve through UH have made the journey backwards though Northern Soul and A Storm in Heaven. Different sound and intense experiences.
Verve reunion. Not sure. I saw them at the Camden Roundhouse just at the time of the Forth release and they were incredible. My wife rated it the best gig she had been to. The band were tight and playing an eclectic range of tunes from all eras. I saw them a few months later at the O2 and they were insipid, the bad blood was seeping back in! The way they closed Glasto was stunning though.
20 years!! 20 years!!! My waistline knows its been 20 years.