Ronnie Spector – Siren

★★★★☆☆ It's very difficult not to be touched by anything sung by Ronnie Spector, even if found on an uneven album like this. Always in great voice, her vocals are just as iconic rock and roll as Clapton's guitar or Jerry Lee Lewis's piano. Spector's singing is the perfect destillation of 60's female and pop rock'n'roll and have affected numerous followers resulting in a discography including several homages and sorta so. Bruce Springsteen & The E-Street Band were among the first to pay back, backing her on her 1977 cover of Billy Joel's "Say Goodbye To Hollywood". On this 1980 album, the next generation rockers pay their tribute and backing Spector here are members of such bands as Mink DeVille, The Heartbreakers and Cherry Vanilla Band. Covering songs from The Ramones's "Here Today, Gone Tomorrow", Frankie Miller's european hit "Darlin" and The Pirates's "Happy Birthday, Rock'n'roll (That ends the record incorporating The Ronettes classics "Be My Baby", Baby, I Love You" "You Baby"), Spector once more demonstrates the timelessness of her voice and delivery. The ten songs are well-played, well-chosen and even well-written. The original titelsong is a fiery rocker just as good as any Little Richard hit. What drags the album down is that it somehow get's left behind in the early 80's. Released in the time of Jim Steinman's peak, the rock cliche's are just so perfect it's get a little too designed - and too little a love affair with rock. In that sense the album is not as good as Meat Loaf's "Bat Out Of Hell" but up to par with Ellen Foley's "Nightout".