(the alter ego of producer and songwriter ) recorded 1977's with a band he called "the Riders of the New Funk," but the results are a good bit less down and dirty than one would expect given 's body of work. The album's production and arrangements are polished and polite, especially by ' standards, and while these are a few decent grooves here, much of suggests the influence of at its blandest, though manages to summon up a decent groove and struggles to capture the down-home Southern feel the lyrics all but demand of it. This isn't one of 's more inspired moments as a singer or lyricist, either; while is a prime cheating song, is a funny meditation on El Lay weirdness, and is an oddball bit of social commentary. Most of the other tunes range from OK to forgettable, while the vocals are generally no more exciting than the music. boasts more personality than most straight-ahead albums of the late '70s, but anyone expecting a work of bent genius like is going to be seriously disappointed. ~ Mark Deming