J.J. Cale drifts toward a more pop approach on this album, starting with the lead-off track, "City Girls," which could almost but not quite be a hit single. The usual blues and country shuffle approach is in effect, but
Audie Ashworth's production is unusually sharp, the playing has more bite than usual, and
Cale, whose vocals are for the most part up in the mix, sounds more engaged. It's not clear, however, that this is an improvement over his usual laidback approach, and, in any case, it shouldn't be over-emphasized -- this is still a
J.J. Cale album, with its cantering tempos and single-note guitar runs. It's just that, when you have a style as defined as
Cale's, little movements in style loom larger. ~ William Ruhlmann