What made Molly Hatcher the top post-Lynyrd Skynyrd Southern boogie band wasn't their Gainesville roots or their message (assuming they had one). It was the group's ability to kick ass. A strong beat and a trio of swinging lead guitars were Hatchet's main assets, and that suited most folks just fine. Fortunately or unfortunately, success struck, and the more records Molly Hatchet sold, the more these guys inflated their already bombastic image. Consequently, Take No Prisoners boasts horns, backup singers and a Boris Vallejo portrait of the band on the cover. (Frank Frazetta must have been busy that week.)

Too bad the music doesn't live up to the packaging. There's hard rock here, but it isn't played that way. Most of the impact is the result of amplifier overdrive, not musical intensity. The boogie riffs are cranked out, the conviction lags, and the overall effect is noisy, clichéd blah. Particularly loathsome lyrically is "Respect Me in the Morning," a duet with Baby Jean from Mother's Finest in which Jimmy Farrar threatens: "And if you don't straighten up your act/I think I'm gonna blacken your eyes." Surely, there's a better rhyme for "You're telling me lies." (RS 365)

J.D. CONSIDINE