Published on Jul 10, 1999
By the time 1981 rolled around, Doug Fieger and The Knack were
about as fresh to music lovers as month-old bread. They had
outlived the pop smuttiness of songs like “My Sharona” and “Good
Girls Don’t,” going from The Wonders-with-a-hard-on to dirty old
men.
Too bad that the musical attitude shifted against The Knack;
their third album,
Round Trip, was a major improvement over the embarrassment
of
…But The Little Girls Understand, and should have marked a
new beginning for the group. Instead, it only served as their first
swansong.
The album starts out a little slow, but not poorly, with
“Radiating Love,” a song that has more Cheap Trick influences in it
than The Beatles. “Soul Kissin'” could be called a remake of “My
Sharona,” but Fieger is able to keep things unique with this track
without making it a blatant copy.
Where
Round Trip really catches fire is in the
funk/jazz-influenced “Africa,” which allows the whole band the
chance to cut loose and display their talents without hiding behind
the cock-rock wall. Tracks like these really make me wish that more
people had given The Knack a chance in the early ’80s; I honestly
think that songs like “Africa” would have kickstarted things for
the band had it been given the proper attention.
Much of the remainder of
Round Trip continues in the surprisingly pleasing pattern,
though the world of funk/jazz is sadly left behind. “Just Wait And
See” is another track that sounds like the fictional band The
Wonders, and is incredibly enjoyable. “We Are Waiting” again gives
the band a chance to experiment without falling into the patterns
of old; this track does take a little time to get used to, but is
well worth the effort.
The second half of
Round Trip contains still more surprises (“Another Lousy Day
In Paradise,” “Boys Go Crazy”), but I will admit that by the time
“Art War” finishes off the album, you’re ready for a break. At
least Fieger and crew knew when to call it an album.
So why didn’t
Round Trip do better in 1981? First, the band still had to
defeat a large wave of fan backlash; remember that people used to
wear “Knuke The Knack” shirts. Second, the musical tide was
beginning to turn in a big way, and the only thing the music
industry seemed to know at this time was upheaval. It would be some
time before one particular genre caught fire, and The Knack – like
many bands – got caught in the undertow.
Round Trip isn’t the easiest album to find (though I believe
you can buy it at the
official Knack homepage), but if
you were able to cut through the leering that made up
Get The Knack in 1979, then
Round Trip should be a nice trip down memory lane.