With Dream, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band has managed to convey on record the shallowness they present onstage. It is a mélange of sound effects, in-studio giggling and the tinkling of the Symphonion, a turn-of-the-century mechanical musical device that played discs like the one on the cover of the album. There is a mangled Hank Williams song ("Hey Good Lookin'," with Linda Ronstadt as lead vocalist), a mangled oldie (the overproduced "All I Have to Do Is Dream") and a lame attempt at reggae ("Joshua Come Home"), the latter done with Leon Russell, who should know better.

Dream suffers from a lack of direction, but that isn't its worst problem. The NGDB seems to assume that they have, as the headline on the inner-sleeve concert review trumpets, mastered "all the musical styles" and that, having done so, they can expect their fans to gobble up anything they serve. But the songwriting is sloppy and their instrumental work soulless. The superficiality with which they deliver this music reminds me of the cliché, "Jack of all trades, master of none." It fits perfectly. (RS 199)

ED WARD