Good＜Olive Green Vinyl＞

While it may not be as stellar as their future releases would be, Morphine's debut album, 1992's Good, did a splendid job of introducing the Boston trio's highly original sound. While it was the alternative crowd who immediately latched onto Morphine, their music was geared more toward the jazz scene -- a wailing saxophone, lead bass (played with a slide), and lyrics influenced by '50s beat poetry were all-important ingredients. The opening title track remains one of the band's darkest, while other selections are a bit more upbeat -- "Have a Lucky Day" and the inappropriately titled "The Saddest Song"; all the while, the band excels at creating different moods with each successive track. Other highlights include the mid-paced "Claire" and "The Only One," the slight salsa feel of "You Speak My Language," the frantic "Test-Tube Baby/Shoot'm Down," and the more calm and sultry "You Look Like Rain." On their next release, Cure for Pain, Morphine would improve further on the strength of their songwriting and cutting-edge sound, but Good still contains more than a few standouts. ~ Greg Prato