Manorisms/Which One's Willie?

Liner Note Author: Neil Daniels.
Recording information: Chipping Norton Studios, Oxfordshire, England (01/1979-02/1979); The Manor, Oxfordshire, England (01/1979-02/1979); The Record Plant, L.A. (01/1979-02/1979); The Record Plant, N.Y. (01/1979-02/1979).
This 2013 BGO two-fer combines 1977's Manorisms and the following year's Which One's Willie?, the two records Wet Willie released on Epic after a prolonged stint at Capricorn. The shift in labels was accompanied by a shift in sound, with the group largely abandoning its signature Southern rock in favor of a super-slick mainstream pop/rock sound, one that found space for arena-rock workouts, power ballads, funky vamps, and a fair share of yacht rock, where soft sounds took precedence over full-tilt boogie. Whether or not this is a good thing depends entirely on taste: longtime Willie fans will certainly miss the rock but those who never cared for the band -- or never bothered to investigate them due to their name -- will be surprised at just how enjoyably slick and thoroughly dated this AOR rock and pop is. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine