The Cars
Greatest Hits

THE REVIEW

Direct and essential.

That's how I would define the music and this collection of hits by ''The Cars''. 13 tracks; perhaps not many for a compilation intended to summarize the career of a band, yet absolutely effective for understanding the milestones (and, in some ways, evolution) followed by Ric Ocasek and company.

Without definitively embodying either one or the other, The Cars represent the link between the so-called AOR of bands like REO Speedwagon, or the fellow Bostonians, and the synth pop of the '80s. Emblematic in this regard are ''Just What I Needed'' and ''Since You're Gone'', in which the keyboard parts complete and balance the solid, yet melodic rock foundations; and, if in ''Good Times Roll'' one feels like listening to an even softer version of the melodic hard rock from the early Toto days, with vocal harmonies at the end of the chorus that might vaguely recall even those of Queen from that period (we're in '78 here), in ''My Best Friend's Girl'' you can sense the first, faint 'disco' hints which become more evident in the paced ''Touch And Go'' (a 'disco' track as ''Psycho Killer'' by the Talking Heads could be, just to be clear) and emerge, with unusual poise, in the engaging, exceedingly catchy, ''You Might Think'' (whose keyboard intro seems borrowed from Ricchi E Poveri), and ''Tonight She Comes''. In the danceable ''Magic'', The Cars show that they've softened the rough edges of their sound, without sacrificing the vigor of an electric guitar, never out of place. Evocative and emotionally balanced, the ballad ''Drive'', a small classic from the '80s that never falls into the saccharine.

Also due to the average length of the tracks, between 3 and a half minutes to a little more, The Cars offer a tasteful pop-rock, without smears and without jolts (and without pretensions). No musician is a virtuoso, but each performs their parts with precision, blending with the other members rather than overshadowing them. The result isn't always inspired from beginning to end, but certainly pleasant.

Rating: 3.5