Relish [Blue Gorilla/Mercury, 1995]
"One of Us" *choice cuts*

Let It Be [Apple, 1970]
"I hope we passed the audition," says the leader as the record ends, and they do. Their assurance and wit would be the envy of veteran rock and rollers, and though this is a little lightweight, it makes up in charm what it lacks in dramatic brilliance. Even when the arrangements get tricky--"Let It Be" is a touch too ornate in this version--their spontaneity of impulse comes through. And while fave rave "One After 909" is pure teen simplicity, it sounds no fresher than "Two of Us," an adult song about couple bonding that I hope applies to their songwriting duo. The one mistake is "The Long and Winding Road," sunk in a slush of strings worthy of its shapeless philosophizing. But even the great are allowed to falter now and then. A-

Through The Fire [Geffen, 1984]
I know, I know, it's only corporate metal. No point in getting upset about these four grizzled dildos. Still, you'd have at least hoped their merger would result in a good name for a law firm. D-

Foolish Behaviour [Warner Bros., 1980]
It's not fair for punks to pick on him--rock Hollywood has spawned worse corruption, after all, and his band is a lot tougher and cooler than the Stranglers ever were. But he doesn't do himself a lot of favors, either. He didn't have to include a poster of all the hotels he's trashed. He didn't have to repeat the phrase "Kill my wife" for the umpteenth time (someone tell Britt it was all a joke). He didn't have to invoke passion as a universal solvent like some surly asshole at a bar where all the women have been taken. He didn't have to bury "Oh God, I Really Wish I Was Home Tonight" on an album nobody will remember a year and a half after it goes platinum. He implores his sweetie to save her best bits for him on a naughty postcard. But I remember the young stud who was good enough for "Maggie May." C

History: America's Greatest Hits [Warner Bros., 1975]
Randy Newman once called "A Horse With No Name" "a song about this kid who thinks he's taken acid" and at least that was back when they were domesticating CSNY instead of CSN. If C, S, N, etc. are the Limelighters of rock, and they are, America are the '70s equivalent of the Grass Roots or the Association and if only they could come up with a song half as lively as "Let's Live For Tomorrow" or "Windy." C+