Nitty Gritty Dirt Band - Let's Go (Reissue) (1982/2013)

Let's Go is a punchy, polished pop crossover affair, an album that contains covers of Andrew Gold and Marshall Crenshaw in between interpretations of Bob McDill and Rodney Crowell, whereas Acoustic makes its roots aspirations plain in its title. Let's Go did mark the return of "Nitty Gritty" to the group's name -- they spent a few years as just the Dirt Band -- and with the longer name came vocalist Jim Ibbotson but the album's heart still lies in the softer adult contemporary sounds of the early '80s, not the favorite of many Dirt Band fans but it's a strong soft rock record, balancing frivolous island nonsense like "Never Together (But Close Sometimes)" and "Don't Get Sand in It" with yacht rock ballads, neo-rock & roll ("Let's Go"), and, with that version of Crenshaw's "Maryann," even power pop.