Freeze-Frame

With the '80s just underway, the J. Geils Band decided to retool their sound for the new decade. While there were elements of their rocking party-hearty direction left over from the previous decade, the group focused on more succinct and pop-based songwriting on 1980's LOVE STINKS. And while the album was a big hit for the band, the new approach was perfected even further with the massive hit follow-up FREEZE FRAME one year later. J. Geils stormed the charts in '82 when their infectious pop ditty "Centerfold" was issued as a single (it seemed to be blaring out of every radio and its video constantly appeared on MTV that summer).
Other highlights include the new wave dance sounds of the title track, as well as the pretty ballad "Angel in Blue", such harder rockers as "Rage in the Cage" and "Insane, Insane Again", plus the R&B sounds of "Flamethrower". Runaway commercial success had finally come knocking on the door of the J. Geils Band, and though it wouldn't last long--singer Peter Wolf would soon split from the band, and they would be defunct within a few years--FREEZE FRAME remains one of the early-'80s most celebrated rock releases.|

Tempering their bar band R&B with a touch of new wave pop production, the J. Geils Band finally broke through into the big leagues with Freeze Frame. Fans of the hard-driving rock of the group's '70s albums will find the sleek sound of Freeze Frame slightly disorienting, but the production gives the album cohesion. Good-time rock & roll remains at the core of the group's music, but the sound of the record is glossier, shining with synthesizers and big pop hooks. With its singalong chorus, "Centerfold" exemplifies this trend, but it's merely the tip of the iceberg. "Freeze Frame" has a great stop-start chorus, "Flamethrower" and "Piss on the Wall" rush along on hard-boogie riffs, and "Angel in Blue" is terrific neo-doo wop. There are still a handful of throwaways, but even the filler has a stylized, synthesized flair that makes it enjoyable, and the keepers are among the band's best. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine