Grin - 1+1 (1972)

Kicked off by the delicious pop confection "White Lies," 1+1 is the best of Nils Lofgren's work with his trio Grin. That single never got higher than number 75, though, and the album sold very little outside of Lofgren's home base in the northern Virginia and Maryland suburbs of Washington, D.C. Nonetheless, this is an enjoyable recording produced by Neil Young associate David Briggs. Lofgren's guitar playing is strong throughout, and the songs are often cleverly constructed and quite catchy if lightweight. His high-pitched singing voice sounds better when he's not trying to be gravelly and works fairly well in the power pop settings that inform most of this disc. AMG.

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Grin - Gone Crazy 1973

Before he was under the wing of Neil Young and before he made a series of underappreciated solo albums, guitarist Nils Lofgren formed Grin, a trio that was devoted to simple, basic rock & roll, in 1969. None of Grin's albums were commercially successful -- they only received good reviews, not sales -- but each showed a promising, dynamic group. Unfortunately, the group never fulfilled its potential, but the finest of its albums featured some terse, brilliant guitar from Lofgren that ranks with the best of his later work, highlights later collected on the 1999 retrospective The Very Best of Grin Featuring Nils Lofgren. AMG.

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