Fastway

As many personnel changes as Fastway went through in the '80s and early '90s, it's no wonder that the band's work was as erratic and inconsistent as it was. When Fastway recorded 1990s Bad Bad Girls for Enigma, the lineup included lead guitarist Fast Eddie Clarke, lead singer Lea Hart and -- it was alleged -- two ex-members of Girlschool: Kim McAuliffe and Chris Bonacci. The credits list ten "very special guests," including "Kim & Chris (of) Girlschool." McAuliffe and Bonacci are not listed as actual Fastway members, but, allegedly, they play more than a minor role on this CD -- rumor has it that they play a prominent role but had to keep that a secret for contractual reasons. And if that story is true -- if Clarke, Hart, McAuliffe, and Bonacci really are the album's core lineup -- Bad Bad Girls should have been a great album. Girlschool, which arguably picked up where the Runaways left off, was among the finest British metal bands of the '80s -- and Clarke, being an ex-member of Motörhead, certainly had a track record. But Bad Bad Girls is disappointing. The problem isn't the musicianship; Clarke definitely has chops, as do alleged participants McAuliffe and Bonacci. The problem is the material. On slick, glossy pop-metal items like "She Won't Rock" and "Big Beat No Heart," Fastway sounds like a poor man's Bon Jovi -- or perhaps a low-rent version of Quiet Riot. Bad Bad Girls isn't terrible, but it is mediocre and pedestrian. In the early '80s, Fastway showed some promise; on this 1990 release, it sounds like a band that has run out of gas. Bad Bad Girls is only recommended to completists. ~ Alex Henderson, All Music Guide