Candy-O

I knew when I listened to The Cars's Complete Greatest Hits, that I was getting into trouble. Fun trouble that is. I couldn't stop there. I needed to hear more Cars and not less. I wanted to hear more of Ric Ocasek's writing, Ocasek and Benjamin Orr's vocals. So I got the albums Candy-O and Shake It Up (which I will write about later). Without further ado, here is my thoughts on Candy-O.

We get to start the album on one of my favorite songs by the group "Let's Go". Again a great tune with Benjamin crooning "I like the night life baby!" Simple, straight forward radio friendly song. I could go on and on about this song but let's leave it as is. Now after a great song like "Let's Go" we get to jump into a rockabilly sounding song with "Since I Held You" which features both Ric and Benjamin on lead vocals. We hear some awesome playing from Elliot Easton, which he never let's us down. I am going to mention the next song only cause it's hard not to mention it. "It's All I Can Do" goes hand in hand with the previous song. Mr. Orr graces the flowing lines on this number and I think it's one of his best. More awesome guitar playing from Easton and the layered synths from Greg Hawkes is not overpowering like some future songs from the band.

Now I am trying not to be too critical of both vocalists, I prefer Benjamin Orr's voice over Ric's, but I have to say that I think this album showcases Ocasek at his best. The standout tracks for Ric in my honest opinion are "Since I Held You", "Got A Lot On My Head" and "Dangerous Type". I don't care too much for the tune "Candy-O" sung by Orr, which seems to be a fan favorite (Shoo Be Doo is not a favorite of mine either) and I don't think the tracks that Benjamin sings in this album are as strong as they could have been, which I think you get to see that on later albums. But since we are talking about this album I think Benjamin's strong songs are "Let's Go" and "You Can't Hold On Too Long"

In the middle of the album we get 2 quirky tunes from Ric and they are great. I love how simple "Double Life" is with a very sparse arrangement which slowly picks up the further you get into the song. Then jumping into "Night Spots" which sounds choppy and a bit chaotic with the bass line jumping in between the drumming.

Finishing up the album is my favorite song from the album; which to my surprise is sung by Ric. "Dangerous Type" is a 'in your face' attitude song. One of the best in The Cars's catalog of songs in my humble opinion. It is one you don't forget and make this album very memorable and a great closing track.

Yes after this album and finally listening to Door to Door, I can say out of all the Cars albums: this one is number 1 with me, even with my not so favorite songs. A must for music aficionados.