CHRISTGAU CONSUMER GUIDE
AEROSMITH: 'Rocks' (Columbia) ::This is the teen crossover of the year, but it ain't the Stones—the resemblance is strictly facial. You should have known. The great motherlode of hard rock in this world is Led Zeppelin, and this is the most convincing American version to date—more fluid and less melodramatic, limited but powerful.
CHRISTGAU CONSUMER GUIDE
AEROSMITH: 'Rocks' (Columbia) ::This is the teen crossover of the year, but it ain't the Stones—the resemblance is strictly facial. You should have known. The great motherlode of hard rock in this world is Led Zeppelin, and this is the most convincing American version to date—more fluid and less melodramatic, limited but powerful. Zep's fourth represented a songmaking peak, before the band simply outgrew itself, and the same may prove true here, too, so get it while you can.
B+
'JOAN ARMATRADING' (A&M):: There are lots of reasons to like this forthright black Englishwoman, but interesting music isn't one of them. The world does not need a post-feminist Odetta.
C+
ARTFUL DODGER: 'Honor Among Thieves' (Columbia)::Conceivably, these kids could turn into teen heroes everybody can be proud of. They respect the rock 'n' roll verities, but in a dynamic rather than an arty or nostalgic way; their instrumental wallop is powerful enough to keep them in there with the heavies, but so deft that the lyricism of their songs is left untouched. A lot of bands around CBGB's will spend their lives wishing they could have gotten it together like this.
B+