Richard James (2003)
by Richard James

This is a very interesting masculine floral; compared to its kin (D'Orsay Le Dandy?) it should be very thick and heady, but somehow it manages to be light and transparent. It opens as a kind of thin musk, with that group's usual sweetness toned down a lot, and offset by what I take to be just a bit of spearmint. The florals are already there (carnation?) but everything's held in check by a good dose of sharp spices that are close to the blend in Santos, though less dusty in the base. The spices seem to back off after a while, leaving wood to accompany the florals from before. I'm amazed at how dark and serious the florals are, yet not cloying or heady; I don't think I've ever seen a fragrance pull this trick off so well, though now I know I'll have to revisit Santos (and the Concentree!) and Floris #89. It's also not powdery in the usual sense (iris?) but has a different sort of sweet chalkiness that you might still attribute to talcum powder. I think the only useability problem with this stuff would be encountered in the men's room at an upscale restaurant or hotel. Namely, I've debated sometimes whether it either smells like an expensive liquid soap, a pleasant commercial air freshener, or as the worst case, a urinal cake or pad (unused, mind you). I also remember having the same thoughts about Le Dandy, and I think that it suffers from these associations a bit more because it has more fruitiness, so RJ is off the hook for that. Generally, though, I'd more likely treat it as a very thick Bulgari-type linen/laundry scent. And when I think of everything I disliked in Van Cleef and Arpels, Hammam Bouquet, JHL, C+S #88, or Ungaro III, this stuff manages to skirt around all of their pitfalls.

29th October, 2011.

The quintessential british perfume if you ask me, the perfume that Henry Higgings (Rex Harrison) from My Fair Lady would wear. Not the british of bangers and mash or fish and chips but the british of tea and crumpets or strawberries and cream. Gentlemen going to the Ascot Race driving a Rolls Royce should be wearing RJ.
Maybe a little stuffy, but a classy fragrance nevertheless. Something you can not wear everyday to the office but reserved for some very special occasions.
Very complex but at the same time very well blended, it has the appropriate sillage for what it intends and it lasts all day long (8-10 hours on me)

28th September, 2011.

Elegant, restrained, refined floral for men. This is a seamless blend of citrus, tea, herbs, spices, florals, suede, tobacco, oriental, and woody notes. Smooth and even in development. The top is fresh with a hint of herbs; the heart, floral and spicy; the base leather oriental. Overall, as near to chypre as such a wide-ranging palette can come. A pleasure to wear as a suave work scent or a well-tailored evening dress fragrance.

17th May, 2010.

I don’t like this one. I think it is stuffy. I get plenty overwhelmed by the tuberose, which ruins it for me.

13rd December, 2008.

Wore this some years ago now and really enjoyed it's richness and individuality. There is one caveat though -- someone thought i was sucking 'Tunes' (cough lozenges) and I had to agree there is a similarity. The herb notes are maybe too strong and tend to dominate. Definitely worth trying though.

2nd October, 2008.

A wonderful and restrained fragrance. It does not project as much as one would like. Nevertheless, a masterpiece of elegance. Sooner or later the question must be faced: Do I want to smell like a worldly executive with impeccable taste, or do I just want to get laid?

Reading the Female Fragrance Forum, and its credo that " It's not the scent, it's the man." I believe it's a reasonable assumption that you will not be promoted to CEO of the Universe, nor even offered a free line of Saville Row suits, simply because you wear this EDT.

And yet . . .

1st October, 2008. (Last Edited: 14th December, 2011.)