I've been betting on the Flamin' Groovies a long time. When they used to come on stage at Golden Gate Park love-ins and all the psychedummies held their noses. I would move up close to watch. knowing this group had something going for them beneath all that ineptitude. I was one of the few who bought their first wretched record (Sneakers, an EP on the Snazz label). And as their albums came out I bought them all, disappointing as they were.

But finally I've been rewarded with the great album I always knew the Flamin' Groovies had in them. The credit must go in large part to Richard Robinson, their new producer. The big problem up to now has been the Groovies' tendency to turn every occasion, recording sessions included, into a party, resulting in a great dissipation of energy. Robinson hit on the idea of setting the sessions up as a party, a chancy proposition that, luckily, worked just fine. He also had the perspicacity to disguise the group's vocal limitations with exaggeration, echo. and nearly every other means of distortion at his command.

The basis for this album's success is the instrumental work, which has always before been inadequate. The drumming is still a bit weak, but Cyril Jordan outdoes himself on guitar and bottleneck. The ensemble effect is often strikingly similar to the Rolling Stones of a couple years ago. From the next room "Yesterday's Numbers" sounds like a combination of "Stray Cat Blues" and "Street Fighting Man." But imitation, though it crops up again in Roy Loney's voice as he tries to sound like Randy Newman on "Have You Seen My Baby," is not really what this album is about, though it does serve to indicate a level of proficiency.

The album opens forcefully with "High Flyin' Baby," a well-built song laced with strong slide guitar and vocal choruses. Roy's weakness as a lead singer is noticeable, but doesn't affect the song's impact. "City Lights" is a slowrolling, reflective sort of song, based remotely on "No Expectations." Their performance of "Have You Seen My Baby" is truly superb; it just rocks along in a joyful way, determined to get you off your ass and into a dancing mood. "Yesterday's Numbers," like I said, is Let It Bleed revisited, but it's fun just the same.

Side two comes on hard and raunchy, Tim Lynch grunting out the menacing lyrics of "Teenage Head": "I'm a monster; got a revved up teenage head." Great stuff. And even the Charlatans live on in this record, as we move into Mike Wilhelm's arrangement of "32-20." My favorite song on this side, though, is "Evil Hearted Ada," where the echo is turned all the way up and Roy does his best Elvis imitation as the rest of the band copies the sparse guitar and string bass sound of early Sun. There's nothing at all serious about it, so it succeeds completely. "Doctor Boogie" is just another goof on Fifties rock you know, "you gotta mow the lawn if you wanta get along with me." Then on to a smashing close with "Whiskey Woman," and so what if it sounds a bit like John Lennon; John should be so lucky to do a song that sounds as good as this.

I tell ya, fun's a-poppin' all over this album. It has the power to pull you into the never-ending party that follows the Flamin' Groovies around. It's good-time music for sure, and good rock & roll besides, full of the kind of songs you find yourself trucking to as you walk down the street. Teenage Head is bound to sell at least 50 copies; that's how many musicians and rock critics are mentioned on the back for having been at the party. If you missed it, don't despair; it's as near as your favorite record store. (RS 83)

GREG SHAW