Sort of a slightly watered-down version of Curtis Mayfield and the Impressions,
Ronnie and the Pomona Casuals were still an excellent band, creating some fine L.A. soul-pop. Although the group appears to be somewhat faceless from the outside, future
Love architect
Arthur Lee played a big part on this record. You can actually hear him singing harmony on a few tracks, notably "Everybody Jerk," and this clearly illustrates what an awesome talent he was, even at a young age. The songwriting is somewhat a paint-by-numbers
Curtis Mayfield affair, but in the end, the vocal and instrumental performances easily make this comparable to such Mayfield imitators as
Major Lance. ~ Matthew Greenwald