Chicago Tribune, Friday, January 27, 1995

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PLAY ON, by Greg Kot

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Beginning this week, Rhino Records will release nine CDs documenting
the largely overlooked early to mid-'80s solo career of Robyn Hitchcock.

The first three, out now, were recorded after Hitchcock's first band,
the Soft Boys, broke up: ``Black Snake Diamond Role,'' ``Gravy Deco''
and ``I Often Dream of Trains.'' Outfitted with bonus tracks and liner
notes, the discs affirm the staying power of Hitchcock's subversive
popcraft.

``Black Snake Diamond Role'' (1981 ****) is among Hitchcock's finest
albums, a work of hilarity both satiric (``Do Policemen Sing?'') and
dark (``Brenda's Iron Sledge''), yet tinged with remarkable tenderness
(``Acid Bird'').

Melodic and intelligent, the work includes a bent bonus track, ``Happy
the Golden Prince,'' that touches on Hitchcock's fascination with the
unappetizing details of the insect (and reptile) world. This tendency
would come to intrude on some of his later work, but it's more like a
novelty here.

The patched together ``Gravy Deco'' (1982 **1/2) reflects Hitchcock's
unhappiness at the time. In contrast to the casual atmosphere of ``Black
Snake,'' he was paired with producer Steve Hillage in a big-budget session
for an album titled ``Groovy Decay.''

Disgusted with the results, Hitchcock later released the stripped-down
demo tapes as ``Groovy Decoy.'' Tracks from both comprise ``Gravy Deco,''
and it's a mess.

After taking two years off, Hitchcock recorded the spare ``I Often Dream
of Trains'' (1984 ****) largely by himself, but it lacks nothing---an
emotionally riveting, musically accomplished tour de force.

It includes some of Hitchcock's most enduring concert staples, including
the Pythonesque ``Uncorrected Personality Traits'' and the lovely
``Cathedral.''

Subsequent Rhino releases will include one of Hitchcock's most accomplished
pop albums, ``Fegmania,'' as well as the live ``Gotta Let This Hen Out!''
and the more oblique ``Element of Light'' in February.

These will be followed in March by reissued (``Invisible Hitchcock'')
and new (``You and Oblivion'') rarities collections, plus the solo ``Eye''
disc from 1990.

Subsequent to most of these albums, Hitchcock has achieved a new level
of commercial prominence, thanks to the name-dropping of friends like
R.E.M., but the Rhino reissues contain the core of his legacy.

With the exception of the Soft Boys' ``Underwater Moonlight,'' there is
no better Hitchcock anywhere than on ``Black Snake Diamond Role'' and
``I Often Dream of Trains.''

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For comparison, Greg Kot also reviews Van Halen's ``Balence'' in the
same column, giving it **1/2 stars (the same rating he gives ``Gravy Deco'').
Some quotes from the ``Balance'' review follow:

``Long gone are the cartoon days of David Lee Roth, when the band's heavy-
handed assault was tempered by humor.''

``Lying somewhere between Led Zeppelin and Bon Jovi on the hipness scale,
this is a band that would seem to be hopelessly out of touch with the new
breed of rockers selling records in Van Halen-like numbers, from Stone
Temple Pilots to Pearl Jam.''