Wildest Wish to Fly

by François CoutureThe 1983 LP Wildest Wish to Fly closed Rupert Hine's early-'80s solo output. The album took another step toward more conventional pop songs. The lush production, intelligent lyrics, and precise songcrafting qualities of Hine still make it an enjoyable record, but the weird sounds, bleak atmospheres, and daring artistic choices found on the 1981 Immunity are now history. The best moments are found in "No Yellow Heart," "Victim of Wanderlust," and the title track. A few songs are based on subjects revolving around technology ("The Saturation of the Video Rat" on television, "Picture-Phone"), which gives an outdated aura to this particular record. The album's release history is confusing and deserves to be straightened out. It first appeared worldwide, excluding North America, in May 1983. A different version, with one extra song ("Blue Flame") and two missing ("Victim of Wanderlust" and "The Saturation of the Video Rat") replaced by tracks from Immunity, was released in the U.S. and Canada in March 1984. A third version was released in the U.K. in February 1985 with "Blue Flame" taking the place of "Living in Sin." Other tracks had also been remixed, re-edited, and even partly re-recorded. The 2001 CD reissue on Voiceprint's imprint Misplaced is based on the original 1983 LP, with "Blue Flame" and a later version of "No Yellow Heart" added as bonus tracks.