There are few things in pop more sure-fire than extolling the virtues of the dead, and it would be foolish to deny the extent to which that helps "Nightshift," this album's standout cut. But there's more to it than mere necrophilia, for as much as the song plays on the references to Marvin Gaye and Jackie Wilson, it's the easy confidence of the near-ethereal groove that ultimately sells it. If ever there was an accurate aural depiction of eternal rest, this is it.

That the remainder of the album fails to measure up to this standard comes as no surprise. Because the Commodores have been unable either to resurrect the hard funk sound of their earliest hits or the sort of MOR ballads Lionel Richie once provided, the band continues to sound unsure of its musical direction and ends up wallowing in mediocrity. Most of Nightshift consists of midtempo numbers that unsuccessfully apply the same basic approach as the title track. The band plays around with dance rhythms – the quasicalypso "Lightin' Up the Night" and the Sly Stone-styled "Play This Record Twice" – but their efforts are perfunctory at best. (RS 450)

J.D. CONSIDINE