JIM PETERIK is better known as one of the founding members and former singers of SURVIVOR (7 albums). The same goes for THE IDES OF MARCH (8 albums), although he is still active in that band. If you don't know his repertoire, he also sings with PRIDE OF LIONS (10 albums), does solo stuff (3 albums) and of course is part of WORLD STAGE (4 albums before this one). He has also collaborated with other artists, and the one thing that always was detriment to what he did and still does is that he has a very clear voice that lifts any music just a notch higher just because he participates. And on 12 December 2025 he released his fifth involvement with WORLD STAGE with an album full of duets, simply titled "River Of Music: The Power Of Duets - Vol. 1". This does suggest that this is just the beginning, so let's see what JIM PETERIK & WORLD STAGE are blasting through my speakers.

Musically you know this is going to be AOR and Melodic Rock from start to finish, and that is thoroughly confirmed on "River Of Music: The Power Of Duets - Vol. 1". As there are so many vocalists collaborating, I'm not going to go through the list with a fine tooth comb. If you are a fan of the AOR and Melodic Rock genres, you will be able to identify everyone participating vocally. They all have released stuff before now, and without exception they all have rather impressive voices. What JIM PETERIK has done right is couple the right singer to his person, making all the songs sound nice from start to finish. And as usual in these genres, the musicians all have that quality that makes sure that the instrumental side of things is above reproach, that it can't be faulted.

As for the songs themselves, they are all quite decent, have a proper structure and all sound very good. They also are all very different from each other, avoiding the danger of hearing the same kind of song twice. And on top of that, everybody is doing what they are asked to do in a very convincing way. But somehow, I'm missing that one tune or song that will lift the whole "River Of Music: The Power Of Duets - Vol. 1" to an exceptional level. I now can say that JIM PETERIK & WORLD STAGE have made a solid, good and pleasant album. I'm now hoping that if there is to be a JIM PETERIK & WORLD STAGE "River Of Music: The Power Of Duets - Vol. 2" that will rectify that.