that High Time is a perfect album, by any means. Most of side two, with the exception of a lovely little chorus run in Fred Smith's "Over and Over," doesn't hang together exceptionally well. A large part of the songs seem incomplete, written around chord progressions that quickly wear thin and words that display the lower edge of the school of right-on lyrics. Rob Tyner's "Future Now" (despite a knockout bass line) is the greatest offender in this case, and though there are some nice moves toward free-form sound on sound toward the end, nothing ultimately is developed or carried through. Wayne Kramer's "Poison" is a little better, opening with a lightning-like series of guitar exchanges, but when Rob comes in spitting words like "Nature, and Peace," one is reminded of nothing so much as the Chambers Brothers on a particularly V-signed night. Things come to a crashing finale with "Skunk (Somely Speaking)," which moves well for its first half of good ol' kick-em-out rock, and then dies a tragicomic death with the addition of some out-of-place horns.

But if the second side leaves much to be desired, side one is a no-bones classic. "Sister Anne," about a nun who "don't give a damn about re-vo-lu-tion/She's a liberated woman, she got her solution," is a top-flight piece of work in the old tradition. The MC5, whatever you might have felt were their other (sometimes glaring) faults, always knew how to play those I-IV-V progressions like nobody's business, and they're at their finest here. The song is put together like a charm, with a great kicking piano and a long soaring coda that carries you without a hitch into a bizarre Salvation Army instrumental at the end. Good shit, any way you look at it, and if there was ever a suspicion that the MC5 would never learn their way around the recording studio, let it be quietly put to rest now.

"Sister Anne" is only the beginning. "Baby Won't Ya" takes on where the Salvation Army leaves off, all rollicking choruses and guitar breaks. Rob's voice sounds strong and sure throughout, and when he hits the line about how "A lovely senorita took me by the hand. She said 'whoo baby, won't ya be my man'," it's easily worth another notch on the volume dial. From there, it's tossed to Wayne and "Miss X," a ragingly beautiful cut, helped along by a massive organ, incredible vocals, and a superb arrangement.

The capper, though, is saved f