The subtitle of this album reads "The Difficult Third Album," and in fact 27 years passed between 's second and third releases. Their first album, , was a singsong record while their second, , employed more and free-form ideas. This album incorporates music, , and acoustic , thus separating itself significantly from the two earlier releases and perhaps even paving the way for 's , which was released in 1998 by Irish guitarist . He also combined the with Irish music. So while this band expanded its musical focus some in the interim, its vocalists also benefited from the years; the three founding members, , , and , all share in the lead vocals and their collective voices have matured noticeably. At times they recall and -era . Fiddler adds a new element to the music, and is especially effective on the acoustic numbers. Former associate and electric guitarist rejoins his old friends on three selections, adding the bluesy sound to those songs. ~ Dave Sleger