Any album that shares a title with one of Jethro Tull's is already off to a bad start, but Stand Up compounds the problem. The third album by rock's self-proclaimed "ugliest band" is adorned with sleek touches – funky organs, a horn section, a backup choir that includes old-timer Merry Clayton (the woman who almost stole the spotlight from Mick Jagger in "Gimmie Shelter") and stylized Dobro and wah-wah guitar from veteran Elvis sideman James Burton. None of these extraneous effects are contributed by members of the Del Fuegos. Hence the contradiction: though the band presented itself on its first two albums and on its Miller High Life commercials as average good-time lunkheads, Stand Up is an ornate mess.

The Del Fuegos' first and best LP, 1984's The Longest Day, was charming grunge rock, but its follow-up, Boston, Mass., came off flat. This time around, Mitchell Froom, who's produced all three records, wisely decided to vary the pace. But from the obnoxious Heart Attack Horns to the over-the-top backup singers, much of Stand Up amounts to a grotesque parody of American rock & roll.

Adhering to Froom's hackneyed R&B touches, singer, guitarist and chief songwriter Dan Zanes has tried writing grittier songs, which occasionally score. "A Town Called Love" is unexpectedly bluesy, and "Long Slide (for an Out)" sounds like Dire Straits gone gospel. Unfortunately, Zanes sings these songs in an unconvincing, world-weary tone; his James Brown-style shrieks in "Wear It Like a Cape" sound particularly silly. Zanes's attempt at a saloon song is equally overwrought: "He Had a Lot to Drink Today" comes complete with woozy piano, clarinet and cello.

The most memorable moment on Stand Up is its simplest. "Name Names," a no-frills lost-love rocker, uses cranky guitars, a gruff chorus and just a few keyboard flourishes to get its point across; it also sounds like one of the only songs from this record that the band will be able to pull off onstage. Someone should remember what it was that attracted us to the Del Fuegos in the first place. (RS 504-505)

DAVID BROWNE