For their second long-player,
the Astronauts got distinctly more ambitious, and with good results. The harmony singing, while no match for
the Beach Boys or
Jan & Dean, is a lot better this time out, especially on the title track and "Our Car Club" (which are a lot of fun to begin with). And their playing is bolder as well, with the result being that the group's second album still makes good listening five decades later. As with its predecessor, this record is never boring, and it never settles down. For this album, they rely on
Duane Eddy alumnus
Steve Douglas for a lot of the material, and it mostly all works, with only a few moments that are less than bracing -- and one
Roger Christian/
Steve Douglas composition, "Chevy Scarfer," was already a lovingly nostalgic doo wop homage in 1964 that holds up even better in that vein in the 21st century. The playing is still better than the singing, but it's all amazingly worthwhile, and deeply evocative of its era.