Wanted Man

Although he's never dented the American marketplace, Paul Kelly is one of Australia's most important talents--sort of the down-under equivalent of Neil Young, Joe Ely, and Elvis Costello. Wanted Man, Kelly's 10th album, features a shift in his sound from folk-rock to folk-soul. The album begins with a lovely, understated ballad which compares a lover to the "Summer Rain," as refreshing as it is unpredictable. The more carnal aspects of love are detailed in the infectious and funky "Just Like Animals." "Song from the Sixteenth Floor" employs a Smokey Robinson-like chain of metaphors to describe how he would jump off a tall building, wrestle a lion, crawl over broken glass to get to his beloved. Other numbers were cowritten with fellow Australians Nick Cave and Renee Geyer. Best of all, though, is "Maybe This Time for Sure," an irresistibly bouncy pop tune full of less-than-convincing promises to stop lying and "walk the straight and narrow." --Geoffrey Himes