Review: Badfinger's Joey Molland Reclaims His Power Pop Crown on 'Be True To Yourself'

Sadly, the name Joey Molland isn't a household one. Even more sadly, neither is the band that made Molland famous, Badfinger. While certainly known by plenty of classic rock aficionados, the band never completely got its due for being trailblazers in the evolution of power pop (flirted with by The Beatles, The Beach Boys, and The Who) into a legitimate genre of its own. Without Badfinger, there would be no Cheap Trick, no The Knack, no Posies. But now Joey Molland, the last surviving member of Badfinger, is back to reclaim not only his place in history, but his relevance in the modern music scene with Be True to Yourself.

If there was any doubt just how much influence The Beatles had on Molland (and Badfinger who were, after all, the first band The Beatles signed to Apple Records), Be True to Yourself will put that to bed. While much of the album is very much in the vein of Badfinger's output, there are songs that are so Beatlesesque in their arrangement, harmonies, and strings that you could mistake them for an outtake. It doesn't hurt that Molland does a pretty spot-on Paul McCartney vocal tone on songs like album opener “This Time” and the closing title track, both highlights.

The Beatles connections aren't just in some of the songs, though. Backing Molland up on Be True to Yourself are some musicians with their own close connections to the Fab Four. Producer Mark Hudson is best known for his extensive work on the latter solo career of Ringo Starr. He's also worked extensively with Ozzy Osbourne, Alice Cooper, Scorpions, and Aerosmith, skills that were a bit less on display here, though there's a scorching guitar solo on single “Rainy Day Man” that could have come from one of those sessions. Molland's band for the sessions consisted of Julian Lennon (John's son, who also took the photo for the album's cover), Monkees vocalist and drummer Micky Dolenz, former Chicago vocalist Jason Scheff, and former Wings drummer Steve Holley.

But don't think of this as a Beatles (or even Badfinger) rehash. Molland shows off the expanded repertoire that has led him to work with everyone from Lillian Axe to Todd Rundgren. But below it all is the power pop core that not only made Badfinger stand out from the glut of post-Beatles British Invaders initially, but also kept the various Molland-led incarnations of the band popular among fans of the genre over the decades.

Whatever your power pop pleasures, from the jangly guitars to the tight harmonies to the never-too-serious lyrics, Be True to Yourself has it. In this release, Molland has followed his own advice, releasing one of the year's best sing-along confections for classic rock fogies like me. Be True to Yourself is out now via Omnivore Recordings.