The latest from Little Feat combines the old with the new as the Feat continues to develop a sound sleeker than that of the Lowell George-led version. The new sound is not the low-down, laid-back funk groove of the old band, but a more slickly-produced, studio-sounding band. Of the new line-up’s albums, this one rocks with more guitar-dominated boogie grooves and the occasional slow, mature, “urban contemporary” number. Missing from this album are Billy Payne’s complex fusion-ish numbers; he seems to be gaining an edge in his old age.

“Clownin’” is a down and dirty funk tune with guitars weaving a groove nasty enough to make the Meters proud (Little Feat “borrowed” much of the Meters’ sound after they worked together in the early ‘70s). This piece and many others feature soulful, wailin’ female background vocals to accompany Paul Barrere’s manly country twang and Craig Fuller’s Lowell George sound-alike voice. The title song is an upbeat boogie rock tune in the style of “Let It Roll,” with busy honky-tonkin’ on the keys from Payne. “Fast and Furious” is a burnin’ .38 Special-style boogie with a pumped-up underlying bass groove in the chorus. The catchy “Things Happen” is punctuated by the Memphis Horns (watch for the video filmed here in New Orleans with local musicians appearing as the horn section and background vocalists). “Spider’s Blues” could be a rework of “Dixie Chicken,” with excellent slide guitar from Barrere and a trumpet solo from Fred Tackett, also an excellent guitar player. “Livin’ on Dreams” is one of the strongest cuts, with electric finger-pickin’ from Tackett and subtle drum rolls from Richie Hayward, the tightest funk drummer in the world.