Joey Molland's group Badfinger was one of the great power pop bands of all time. Before the Raspberries, the Dwight Twilley Band, and other tunesmiths found the magic of energetic car radio melodies, Molland and crew led the way. This Way Up continues that work and is one of the best solo discs that ex-members of the Beatles never made. It bears repeating -- This Way Up contains the essence of what was great about those early solo Beatles albums, not surprising because Molland played on some of them. The surprise is that a sideman from those sessions has created a mini-masterpiece rivaling, and on some songs equaling, those classic and important recordings. As good as Molland's power trio is live, why it doesn't perform originals onstage the way they are presented on this disc is a mystery. Molland is an excellent guitarist, and in concert he can veer off from the hit material and rival Pat Travers. That isn't always what his audience wants -- what his audience wants are the pretty guitar lines and vocals in a song like "The Bust," a slice of the stuff that made everyone into Badfinger fans, still alive and well and current. This is a very, very excellent recording, make no mistake about that. From the opening track, "Mirrors," to the bounce of "Happy," and from the cool John Lennon-ish "This Must Be Love" to the final production, a moody and melancholy "Isn't That a Dream," 13 perfectly constructed songs by Molland do more than just carry on a tradition -- they combine to give proof that this style of music is still so very vital.
This CD can satisfy the fans of discs like Plastic Ono Band, Mind Games, Ram, and All Things Must Pass. It has flavors of the song "Free As a Bird" and it has Molland presenting tremendous pop; just listen to the exquisite "Moonlight" to get that thrill the first McCartney solo project gave you. This album is everything a fan of those wonderful early solo Beatles albums is looking for -- great lyrics, pretty melodies, and elegant sounds. If you want to know where Tom Petty could go with his music, listen to "A Way to Be." Molland should've been in the Traveling Wilburys, and if that venerable "supergroup" did this album with the Badfinger guitarist, this amazing stuff would have had a fighting chance. In a perfect world, music directors would seek out superior sounds no matter if released on an independent, a major label, or the Internet. This entertaining record deserves airplay wherever people like and want to hear the music of the Beatles. "What Else/Nothing" is just an incredible Beatles-style track from the man who played on the Imagine album, on All Things Must Pass, and on Concert for Bangladesh, a musician who the Beatles themselves signed and brought to the attention of the world. "Tell Me" could be the Traveling Wilburys, while "Three Minute Warning" is reinvented Chuck Berry by way of Marc Bolan before T. Rex. The final track is majestic, with a vocal like Ian Hunter and suspending guitar lines that chug along slowly. This Way Up is an incredible work of art that deserves worldwide exposure.
© Joe Viglione /TiVo