CHRISTGAU CONSUMER GUIDE
ARTFUL DODGER: "Babes On Broadway" (Columbia):: Okay, two nice albums of power pop go virtually unnoticed, so you up the power, especially since you're running out of the cute tunes 'n' tricks that provide the pop. But then it isn't power pop any more—sounds almost like Angel, or Queen.
CHRISTGAU CONSUMER GUIDE
by
Robert Christgau
ARTFUL DODGER: "Babes On Broadway" (Columbia):: Okay, two nice albums of power pop go virtually unnoticed, so you up the power, especially since you're running out of the cute tunes 'n' tricks that provide the pop. But then it isn't power pop any more—sounds almost like Angel, or Queen. Sounds pretty desperate, too. C +
STEPHEN BISHOP: "Careless" (ABC):: Bishop ain't bad for a pop singer-songwriter—his voice is threequarters Simon and one-quarter Garfunkel and he's got as many brains and few6r pretensions than either. He commits no sins. Omits quite a few, though—even boasts that he's outgrown material like "I Feel So Miserable Without You, It's Almost Like Having You Here." Gee, remember pretensions? C +
DR. BUZZARD'S ORIGINAL SAVANNAH BAND: "Dr. Buzzard's Original Savannah Band Meets King Penett" (RCA):: A brilliant dud. Some of the lyrics read like Ishmael Reed—soft Ishmael Reed— but for all its skillful synthesis, the music just doesn't kick in. Of course, that's kind of what I said about their debut, which I now love. People danced to that one, though. B