All Four One (Remastered 1999)

by Stephen Thomas ErlewineThe Motels' third album All 4 One finds the group working the fine line between mainstream arena-rock and quirky new wave pop. Their roots lie in the sleek, polished Californian hard rock that dominated late-'70s and early-'80s album-oriented radio, but All 4 One has a shiny new wave production, complete with keyboards and processed guitars. Still, it plays like arena rock, especially since Martha Davis oversings each track, but its best moments -- "Take the L" (out of lover and it's over) and the single "Only the Lonely" -- are embarrassingly catchy guilty pleasures that make the album an entertaining nostalgia piece. One Way's CD reissue is even more attractive, since it adds the group's two other big singles, "Suddenly Last Summer" and "Shame," as bonus tracks.