Of all the studio albums that
the Runaways
recorded in the late 1970s,
And Now... The Runaways
is the least essential. This isn't to say that
And Now
is a bad album; it's generally decent, if uneven, but it certainly isn't in a class with such gems as
The Runaways
,
Queens of Noise
and
Waitin' for the Night
. Recorded in 1978, it offers the same lineup heard on 1977's
: Original members
Joan Jett
Lita Ford
, and
Sandy West
were still on board, but singer
Cherie Currie
was gone and
Vicki Blue
had replaced original bassist
Jackie Fox
. This recording marked the first time that a
Runaways
album wasn't produced or co-produced by
Kim Fowley
;
John Alcock
is the producer, and
Fowley
's input is definitely missed. That said, hardcore
fans will find that this album has some enjoyable moments.
Jett
gives a surprisingly lackluster performance on
the Beatles
' "Eight Days a Week," but she is in good form on "My Buddy and Me" and a fun cover of
Slade
's "Mama Weer All Crazee Now." Meanwhile,
Ford
provides a memorable vocal on the eerie ballad "I'm a Million." A killer guitarist,
didn't do a lot of lead singing when she was with
, but she made singing a very high priority when she went solo a few years later. A solo career was also inevitable for
-- as inevitable as the band's breakup. Though it has its moments,
is clearly the work of a group who were past their prime, and an album that is strictly for diehard fans. ~ Alex Henderson