On the Dial
Watts
CD Rel Date: 1981-04-05
794465918320
Boston Globe review of WATTS ON THE DIAL They may have nicked their moniker from the surname of reclusive Rolling Stones drummer Charlie Watts, but this Boston foursome is a lot less gentlemanly, and a lot more loud. The band members do have one thing in common with their namesake, though: They too play in a band built on a bedrock of riff-powered songs that have as much to do with swagger as they do melody. Watts also stoke the twin-engine guitar charge of Keith Richards and Ron Wood, although gruff-voiced singer/guitarist Dan Kopko sings better than both, and lead axe John Blout's tough, blistering solos are closer in spirit to the knotty workouts of AC/DC's Angus Young (songs like "Afterburn' are ripped right from the "Highway to Hell' playbook). Add to the stew a sweetening sprinkle of Cheap Trick's rock candy, a helping of KISS's cartoon glam, and a sturdy rhythm section to stir the pot (Neighborhoods/Dirty Truckers drummer Johnny Lynch and bassist Craig LaPointe), and you've got a failsafe recipe for an album that sounds like a night on the town. Sure, old-fashioned workouts like "Dancehall Days & Nights' tap an ancient vein that began with Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley and has mainlined through a billion garage-rock bands ever since; but that's the addictive, enduring genius of the stuff. Yes, we've heard it before. And yes, we want to hear it again. Just ask Charlie Watts. - Jonathan Perry.
Tracklist:
- On The Dial
- Chaperone
- Afterburn
- Time To Give The Devil His Due
- Girls On Holiday
- Dancehall Days & Nights
- She Wants To Rock
- No Secrets
- Don't Mind
- Fight Song
- The Times
- Sweethearts Of The Radio