by David ClearyWith this release, Tom Verlaine comes full circle to the style of his initial solo album. This great platter has an energized, mostly no-nonsense feel to it that is extremely appealing. Production is meticulous, if not normally showy as on his previous album, Cover. Flash Light is chock-full of rocking numbers of all kinds, ranging from straight-ahead, meat-and-potatoes types (Cry Mercy, Judge and Say a Prayer), to the quirkier Bomb and Annie's Tellin' Me, to the walloping big beat of A Town Called Walker, The Funniest Thing and One Time at Sundown are earnest mid-tempo selections that in places suggest Dire Straits. The good old days of Television and that group's lengthy guitar break sections are strongly evoked in the slow, grand number At 4 A.M. The most unusual and striking song here is The Scientist Writes a Letter, where the text is actually in the format of a letter, set to synthesizer-oriented music that is both intricate and changeable (suggesting the more involved arrangements from Cover). This song is touching and true, the confessions of a man who must be himself at the cost of losing contact with a loved one. Released after a three-year silence, Flash Light was well worth waiting for; this splendid album makes an excellent purchase.