Consumer Guide Album

The Yankees: High 'n' Inside [Big Sound, 1978]
These New Yorkers play it fast and loose enough to dismay pop technicians and even offend people a little. Indeed, I was already hooked on their boisterous Strangeloves/Standells tribute when it struck me that maybe Jon Tiven's wandering pitch, which I find cute, meant the record was warped. It's more likely, though, that his voice has begun to change in his mid-twenties, inspiring him to cover "Bad Boy" (well) and write (a good) one called "Take It Like a Man." A hit that proves once again that rock and roll is about having the spirit, knowing the tricks, and taking the risks. Ivan Julian is DH. A-