Boz Scaggs: Dig : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone

Album Reviews

Boz Scaggs' name went up in lights permanently in 1976, when his Silk Degrees calmed Seventies pop-soul's flightier nerves and gave the genre the stylistic effortlessness of the blues. Sporting brass-flecked struts like the funky "Payday," plus gracious and penetrating R&B ballads such as "Sarah" and "Desire," this collection (Scaggs' first in seven years) testifies well for his brand of smooth passion. The high-water mark is "Vanishing Point," about two drifters "going to Vegas, man, where else?" as Scaggs and co-producer Danny Kortchmar unwind their guitars against Martin Tillman's cello and co-producer David Paich's casino-size synths. No groove this year will be more meticulous - or cooler.