Sweet - Off the Record

As a kid "Ballroom Blitz" was one of the coolest songs I'd ever heard, followed closely by "Fox on the Run." Those two songs more or less cemented Sweet's reputation for me. In the '80s I finally bought Desolation Boulevard and that more or less scratched that itch. Then in the early '90s I picked up their best of CD and got "Action" and the radio edit of "Love is Like Oxygen" and as a bonus "Little Willy" a song I knew but honestly never associated with The Sweet, or simply Sweet.

During my formative years though it was the 45 of  "Action" that rocked my world. I was never a big fan of 45s and only had a few as I hated having to change the record after one song. However, as mix tape fodder they were awesome, except I didn't have the ability to make mix tapes until I was in my late teens. What does all this meanderambling have to do with anything? Not much, it's just me sitting here while listening to Off the Record and thinking about my relationship (one sided, but it counts) with the band.

Sweet were one of the bands I liked as a kid, but as I got older they didn't grow with me. They were relegated to a particular point in time and while I liked those early songs the band wasn't relevant to me. I distinctly remember hearing a copy of Level Headed being played in a record store and it just so happened that "Love is Like Oxygen" came on while I was standing there. I don't know why this is still so vivid, but all I could think was, "This is Sweet? This sucks."

Just like that I had passed judgment and it was immutable. Aside from the couple of cool songs, Sweet sucked. Even after getting Desolation Boulevard I don't recall anything other that the two cool songs. I probably listened to it once and put it away. Verdict? Sweet still sucked.

Over the last couple of years I've picked up a couple of Sweet's albums. The first one I found was 1978's Level Headed and then Give Us a Wink from '76. I was actually pretty impressed with Level Headed and to a lesser degree Give Us a Wink, but it was still a pretty decent record.

I was out the other day, and there in the new arrivals section was Off the Record and it came home with me. I gave it a good clean and after the first pass it was just meh. Nothing really jumped out but there was something going on and it warranted at least another spin ... and then another, and another after that. 

True, the album doesn't have a holy shit moment, there aren't any real clunkers either. It is a decent listen and the band was throwing it all against the wall. The band even manages to unleash a riff heavy aural assault that stretches over seven minutes on "Windy City" that goes by pretty fast. Heck, even what could have been a musical shit sandwich "Funk It Up (David's Song)" was more fun than I expected it to be. It almost reminded me a bit of David Bowie. I doubt it was his song though.

I honestly think this album is better with the passage of time. Back in '77 with what was coming down the pipe Sweet were already out of step with their brand of glam compared to what their rock contemporaries were putting out. Whereas today I'm listening to it at face value without caring about where it needs to be fitted with what was going on at the time. It would either be good, or it would suck.

Oh, I'm not going out on a limb and calling this a classic, but it is certainly a durable collection of rock songs that were pretty enjoyable. The band employed all their tropes from the impossibly high harmony notes that were layered on top of most of the songs to the big double tracked guitars and synthesizers. It worked more than it didn't and it felt like the band was still railing against the perceived confines they endured under the direction of Nicky Chinn and Mike Chapman the songwriting and production team that helped them attain their biggest success.

All in all this was pretty enjoyable and sadly equally forgettable ... but, it didn't suck.