Lee Rocker
Racin' the Devil
(Alligator, ***)

To hear Lee Rocker tell it on "Rockin' Harder," "There ain't nothing better than a rockabilly song." And so the former Stray Cats bassist continues to carry the rockabilly torch, long after the trio made the '50s ! style a retro fad in the '80s.

With Racin' the Devil, however, Rocker continues to put a more satisfying spin on this twang-fueled rock than the Cats ever did in their studio work. (For one thing, he's a better singer than Brian Setzer.)

On a reworked version of the Cats' "Rock This Town" and a mess of originals, Rocker and his band steer clear of his former group's self-conscious revivalism and occasional cartoonishness, giving the music a tougher edge without losing any of the suppleness of the rhythms.

And when he ventures outside rockabilly, especially with the countryish ruminations "The River Runs" and "Lost on the Highway," he strikes an emotional chord that's deeper than the Cats ever reached.

- N.C.