Bread's reunion album is stronger in every way than the solo albums by individual members David Gates and James Griffin, because it blends the former's sweetness with the latter's rougher-edged approach into an easy-listening sound varied enough to carry a whole album. Though its vocal overdubs and keyboard coloration provide more textural richness than any previous Bread-associated music, the style remains the frankly formulaic teen pop it always was, with the emphasis still on tunes and the mood dreamily romantic. Though Gates' title cut is the most immediately striking song, most of the other material is well crafted and catchy. The aural prototype of reformed Bread is America, whose melodic, seamlessly produced albums of highway wistfulness also suggest a West Coast response to the Brill Building pop tradition. (RS 237)

STEPHEN HOLDEN