Saturday, September 22, 2007

Review: REO Speedwagon "Find Your Own Way Home"

I was really excited to listen to this CD, despite that fact that REO Speedwagon has done little for me since their mid- to late 80s hey day. "Find Your Own Way Home" (2007) has been hailed as a fine return to form, a terrific comeback for a band that has sold an astonishing 40 million records since their formation in the early 70s. They even scored their first chart "hit" since 1990 with the single and third track on this release, "I Needed To Fall" (it got to 25 on the BillBoard Adult Contempory chart). It was very nice to see a seasoned band score like that in today's sorry music climate.

That said, despite my best effort, I just can't click with most of the rest of the tunes on this release. The first 3 tracks are awesome and ooze with all the things one would expect from REO. But then comes track 4, "Dangerous Combination," which will make you scratch your head and wonder if a Keith Urban track did not get put on this CD by mistake. Surprisingly, it was co-written by the AOR mastermind Jim Peterik (Survivor, Pride of Lions), but clearly is half-assed, bottom-of-his-pile fluff with generic riffs and silly lyrics. Other tracks try to recapture the "old" REO, with some fine solo guitar work in a bluesy bar vibe, but those songs just lack the flair of the analogous tunes from very early REO. They stick out in a bad way from the more melodic tunes comprising the bulk of the CD, disrupting the flow and making the band sound like they are in the midst of an identity crisis.

Another strange thing - Kevin Cronin just doesn't sound like Kevin Cronin on many of these songs (ballads excluded). I'm not saying that is a bad thing...actually, there is more of an edge and urgency in the vocals that I find very appealing. I hope they try again, staying focused on generating more like the tracks I deemed iPOD-worthy.

REO Speedwagon's official site and MySpace page.

iPOD-worthy: 1, 2, 3, 6, 8

Check out a performance of "I Needed To Fall" from XM Radio (via YouTube):


4 comments:

Rhodeislandrock said...

I bought the 3 CD limited edition from Wal-Mart back in April when it was released. There were times that it sounded like classic REO and other times where it sounded like a different band.

I haven't given this proper time because other releases have taken priority, I should go back and take a fresh listen.

Steve
Heavy Metal Addiction

Now this ROCKS! said...

Hi Steve - I should probably pick that limited edition version up; could be valuable one day. I'd be curious to hear your thoughts on the release after you get time to give it a fresh listen...B

Anonymous said...

Bill - highly recommend that 3 CD version, for sure.

I like this album a lot, although I definitely agree with you that the lyrics veer into the cheese at times with Dangerous Combination being a great example.

Can't wait to hear Jimi Jamison's new album (all songs written by Peterik) in November!

Now this ROCKS! said...

Hi Matt - thanks for the comments. Survivor (Jamo version) was my first concert ever...I eagerly await wait he has done with Peterik. His reuinion CD with Frankie was a bit of a disappointment. I fear that only the trio could recapture the magic that once was Survivor. I remain hopeful for the Jamo-Peterik collaboration. Samples are available at melodicrock.com if you were not aware.