So the name
Off Broadway screams N.Y.C., but these are Illinois boys, and one of the myriad skinny-tie bands (actually only a couple dudes sport ties) that should've hit the big time. The mileage
Off Broadway gets from a cliché remains nothing less than extraordinary: "U.S. Girls" cops an age-old opening from
the Beatles; "Eddie's Pals" delivers a power pop missive almost in a league with
the Hollies' "Dear Eloise" (or maybe
Rundgren's "We Gotta Get You a Woman," but at least
REO's "In Your Letter"). "Boys Must Be Strong" pleads poignantly and painfully long before
the Cure's "Boys Don't Cry." Even without
Tom Werman on the boards (he guided
Off Broadway's inaugural
On, and also produced hometown heroes
Cheap Trick before he transmogrified into a pop-metal maven),
Quick Turns is a pleasing platter impossible to resist. [The 1980 album made a belated CD debut in 2002.] ~ Whitney Z. Gomes