Finely Tuned: The Guitar Album

Remember how, back in the early '80s, Chuck Berry's Great Twenty-Eight was the record that every teenage would-be rock & roll guitarist had to own (and play till its grooves were worn out)? Well, Dr. Feelgood's Finely Tuned might not wear out, but it just could be the successor to that Berry collection. Actually, a compilation of guitar-oriented tracks by Dr. Feelgood seems like a no-brainer as well as a bit redundant -- really, their guitar-dominated sides, as opposed to those songs they did featuring the oboe or the violin? (They didn't even get a keyboard player until their fourth album.) But it wasn't until 2002 that Finely Tuned, compiled and produced by Stephen Foster, graced record-store shelves. The sleeve notes give a history and justification for each of the 27 songs on this 80-minute collection. That said, the occasional choice, such as "The More I Give," would seem a little shaky as a selection if not for those explanations -- actually, that track is there to showcase Wilko Johnson's choppy, soul-influenced playing, which was something new and different for him at the time. More self-evident selections include "You Shouldn't Call the Doctor (If You Can't Afford the Bills)," from Malpractice, and "Roxette" off Stupidity, and by the time listeners get to the live version of the Mick Green homage "Going Back Home," the case is very much made. The sound quality is excellent to a fault -- loud, close, and personal, and showcasing every intended crunching riff and slashing lick -- and everything else also fares well in this state-of-the-art release, which might be the best way (short of working up album by album) into the band for the neophyte listener. ~ Bruce Eder