Back Talk

The hard-rocking Rockets from Detroit almost hit the big time with their 1979 record Rockets (Turn Up the Radio). They had two pretty solid AOR staples (in the Detroit area anyway) with their blistering cover of Fleetwood Mac's "Oh Well" and the rollicking "Turn Up the Radio." However, by the time of 1981's Back Talk, the band was still trapped in the netherworld of being a perennial opening act and really struggling to survive. It shows in the music, as almost every song seems to be aping another act or trying a different sound. Mostly though they sound like a good bar band of the early '80s able to crank out good-time summer rock & roll ("Back Talk"), moody ballads ("Jealous"), blue-eyed soul ("Lift You Up," "Lie to Me"), lighter-waving ballads ("Tired of Wearing Black") and tunes to get the girls out on the dance floor ("I Can't Get Satisfied," "I'll Be Your Lover"). At times (especially when Johnny Badanjek takes over the vocals from somewhat shrill David Gilbert) they sound a lot like Huey Lewis & the News, a good-natured bunch of lifers with loads of talent and spunk. They just don't have the songs or the personality that Lewis had. What they came up with is a decent rock record but nothing really worth re-discovering.