Dwight Twilley band - Sincerely

 

For a time in the 70's I was quite enthralled with the current crop of power pop that was appearing (along with quite a variety of other musical styles, of course) although I would never have been able to play or sing this style. But the great 70's releases still resonate with me.

I pulled this vinyl album out the other day while I was trolling through the "T's" in our collection (and yes, I know that technically this should be filed under "D" but I'm a rebel) and it still sounds terrific to me! Hooks galore and ringing guitars shine through on this pop classic.

I first discovered the opening "I'm On Fire" from some comp and immediately had to look for more! Mid-tempo but plenty of energy with hip guitar licks throughout and abundant melodies and a singalong chorus - how did this not become a hit?! "Could Be Love" is a bit slower but still groovin', in a 70's pop kinda way, the catchiness continues in "Feeling in the Dark" which reminds me a bit of Badfinger in its harmonies - always a good thing! - although with a touch of 50's influence, I'd say. "You Were So Warm" continues with the Beatles/Byrds-ian ringing guitars and layers of harmonies in this romantic semi-ballad, there's definitely an updated 50's doo-wop influence in the slightly orchestrated ballad "I'm Losing You", they get a bit moodier and somewhat psychedelic (with backwards guitars) in the title cut with a hip, loud lead guitar break, then definitely show off their rockabilly influences in the simply titled "TV", before returning to doo-wop for "Release Me", another mid-tempo popper in "Three Persons", then a bit of a girl-group steal for "Baby Let's Cruise", some more sharp guitar licks in the more rockin' "England" before ending up with the Byrds-meets-the-Beach Boys-ish "Just Like the Sun".

Listening once again I realize that there are a lot of slow-to-mid-tempo numbers here and some of the mixes are sometimes muddy (the record came from three separate sessions) but the strength of the melodies always come through and there are some stellar performances here. Fans of power-pop should definitely check this out if you don't already have it!