When he first broke onto the national scene in 1998, the Detroit native sold 12 million records with his album Devil Without a Cause. With the success came fame and fortune and more hit records. But these days, Rock is known more for his made-for-tabloids antics than for his music.
As anyone who keeps up with pop culture knows, he married Pamela Anderson last year, a union that ended quickly and disastrously. He recently accused her of being a manipulator, and Anderson has already remarried. Rock N Roll Jesus carries on in the beer-drinkin', hell-raisin' white-trash redneck tradition of his last few outings.
It's mostly southern-fried classic rock, spiked with a few country-style acoustic ballads and a dash of rap-metal for the folks who still remember when Rock, real name Robert Ritchie, wanted to be the next Eminem. What would Rock N Roll Jesus do? Well, apparently he would get hisself a fur- collared pimp suit, hire a killer backing band and blast out this funky little number laced with punchy horns, burbling Hammond organ, wah-wah guitar licks, popping conga drums and Afrolicious soul-mama backing vocals.
And it is good. Download this bad boy. There's more to the Kid than sex, drugs and rock.
On this soulful hick-hop outing, Rock shows his serious side, railing against neglected children, natural disasters and abusive clergy. Again, the Kid follows up a party-hearty rocker with a sensitive cut -- this time a southern-soul ballad about living on borrowed time. We're beginning to sense a pattern.
Right on cue, Rock raises the temperature again with this whomping piece of Kiss-style '80s sleaze-rock. Somewhere, Gene Simmons is asking how the heck he didn't write this. Kid returns to his Detroit rap-metal roots with this fist-pumping bump 'n' grind nookie anthem.
But lines such as "I roll like Yahtzee" make it clear he might be just a little rusty. "Can you forgive someone or will you hold a grudge?" asks Rock on another earnest cut that intertwines southern rock, gospel and Memphis soul.
See the song Half Your Age for the answer. This weird hybrid starts off as a bouncy folk-hop country-blues, then gradually morphs into an old-time rock 'n' roll salute to the Crescent City. The jazzy trumpet is a nice touch.
"I found someone new who treats me better . . .
She's half your age and twice as hot," brags a bitter Kid on this outlaw-country kiss-off to Pammie.
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