The Cars

Perfect pop/rock tunes topped off with a detached New Wave perspective make this a great debut in the same way that the first Boston and Ramones albums are (everything that came after refined the same formula). Not a big hit in 1978, The Cars continued selling throughout the '80s, bridging the gap between classic rockers, New Wavers, and the general public.

The first sound you hear on "Just What I Needed," the single from the Cars' debut album, is
the repeated thump of bass notes against the short, metallic slash of guitar. It's a
magnificent noise: loud, elemental and relentless. But the Cars–the best band to come out
of Boston since J. Geils–aren't interested in simply traveling the interstates of rock & roll.
They'll go there for the rush, but they prefer the stop-and-go quirks of two lane... More >

Ric Ocasek writes catchy, hardheaded-to-coldhearted songs eased by wryly rhapsodic touches, the playing is tight and tough, and it all sounds wonderful on the radio. But though on a cut-by-cut basis Roy Thomas Baker's production adds as much as it distracts, here's hoping the records get rawer. That accentuated detachment may feel like a Roxy Music move in the first flush of studio infatuation, but schlock it up a little and this band really could turn into an American Queen. (Grade - B+)