Dinosaur Jr

After getting it together on three explosive but uneven indie records (Bug is the best) and five years of touring, Massachusetts' Dinosaur Jr released a bang-up masterpiece in 1991: Green Mind. For guitar maniacs only, this crunching, thunderous happy stuff recalls Neil Young at his Crazy Horse rawest; at other times, the ghost of Hendrix grins. Mainly, however, it's to the early Replacements that Dinosaur owes a heavy nod. Mastermind vocalist/axeman J Mascis writes raveups recalling the amphetamine melodies of the Mats; his voice doesn't sound dissimilar to Paul Westerberg's, and even the persona behind his songs is reminiscent of Westerberg, with its bad-boy-with-a-big-heart charm. Giddily entertaining, Dinosaur can even redeem a title like "Puke + Cry," and "How'd You Pin That One on Me" is the glorious noise every garage band dreams of making. Mascis gradually began to turn down the volume after Green Mind; his song-writing, however, remained powerful. The Rhino collection is comprehensive and makes a convincing argument for the band's significance. (PAUL EVANS)

From 2004's The New Rolling Stone Album Guide