My Secret Life

On their third album, the group starts digging deeper into their grooves, merging various strains of rock, soul, reggae with gospel and R&B for a heady blend. Produced by Muscle Shoal's mainstay Barry Beckett with guitarist/founding member Dan Pritzker, this introduced Shawn Christopher as a regular member of the band, replacing Sam Hogan's gruff vocals with a new, sweeter sound. Christopher, who sang backup on the group's first two releases, is spotlighted nicely on "Don't Go (Giving Your Love Away)" and the closing track, "Paradise." Other highlights include the bounce of the opener "Zachary," "Things Change," "Phases Of The Moon" and "Green-Eyed Esther." While their music has always been delightfully eclectic, this is the album where they finally pull all their disparate sounds and styles together and make something entirely their own out of their mutual sources. Seldom do albums sound as celebratory as this.