Andrew Gold: What's Wrong With This Picture Asylum.

I chose this album to review because I feel that Andrew Gold is a guy who deserves some kind of media exposure, however humble.

If you want to know why without buying this record, then listen to anything done by Linda Ronstadt over the last couple of years. He plays guitar, piano and mandolin, and also arranges her material. I was first attracted to him by his solo on "That'll be the Day" Ms Ronstadt's last single. It's a beautiful melodic break that saves the song from being just another rock 'n' roll revival, and turns it into a pretty good showpiece for Gold.

Thus inspired, I quickly got hold of his first album, and found out just as quickly why he plays behind Linda Ronstadt and not in front of his own band. His voice just doesn't cut it. But the album, simply called Andrew Gold" does show him off as a guitarist and songwriter in a way that I hoped "What's Wrong With this Picture" would do better.

As it turned out, I was neither disappointed nor satisfied. There is nothing really horrendous about this album, neither is there the maturity or novelty I was expecting. The songs vary from Bay City Rollers sound-alikes (e.g. "Hope You Feel Good") to oldies ("Do Wah Diddy") to Jackson Brownish ballads. The only distinctively Andrew Gold material anywhere is the guitar work, which as usual is precise, clean and as original as is possible with, what on the whole are fairly middle of the road tunes.

Most of the really syrupy stuff is on Side One with Side Two saving the album from being completely mundane. "Go Back Home Again" especially—this track would make a great single and is the highpoint "Firefly" don't inspire love or hate they're well-performed, and quite list-enable.

So if you're after good quality American pop, remember the name Andrew Gold.