''Zoom'' is the fifth studio album released by

the Knack The Knack was an American rock band based in Los Angeles that rose to fame with its first single, "My Sharona", an international number-one hit in 1979. History Founding (1977–1978) Singer Doug Fieger was a native of Oak Park, Michigan, a no ...

in 1998. It marked a second attempted comeback by the Knack, after their first attempt in 1991 with '' Serious Fun'' fizzled.

Terry Bozzio Terry John Bozzio (born December 27, 1950) is an American drummer best known for his work with Missing Persons and Frank Zappa. He has been featured on nine solo or collaborative albums, 26 albums with Zappa and seven albums with Missing Person ...

served as the drummer on the album in place of

Bruce Gary Bruce Gary (April 7, 1951 – August 22, 2006) was an American musician who was best known as the drummer for the music group the Knack. He was nominated for two Grammy Awards as a stage performer, producer, and recording artist. Born in Bu ...

. The album received positive reviews, including one that described it as the Knack's best effort since their debut album. The album was re-released several years later as ''Re-Zoom'' with three bonus tracks.

Critical reception

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

critic Steve Erlewine praised the album as the "best album the maligned power-pop band has recorded since their debut," '' Get The Knack''. Writing in the ''

Hartford Courant The ''Hartford Courant'' is the largest daily newspaper in the U.S. state of Connecticut, and is considered to be the oldest continuously published newspaper in the United States. A morning newspaper serving most of the state north of New Haven ...

'', Roger Catlin noted similarities between the opening song "Pop Is Dead",

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

' "

And Your Bird Can Sing "And Your Bird Can Sing" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles. It was released on their 1966 album '' Revolver'', apart from in the United States and Canada, where it instead appeared on '' Yesterday and Today''. The song was written ...

", and

the Who The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered ...

's ''

Tommy Tommy may refer to: People * Tommy (given name) * Tommy Atkins, or just Tommy, a slang term for a common soldier in the British Army Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Tommy'' (1931 film), a Soviet drama film * ''Tommy'' (1975 fil ...

''; he also noted similarities between the album's second song "Can I Borrow a Kiss" and the classic song " Needles and Pins." He commented that while the album initially seems "to be on a track to produce a classic in '60s rock emulation along the lines of

Flamin' Groovies Flamin' Groovies is an American rock band that formed in San Francisco in 1965, originally co-led by Roy Loney and Cyril Jordan. After the Groovies released three albums, on Epic ('' Supersnazz'') and Kama Sutra (''Flamingo'' and '' Teenage Head' ...

' ''

Shake Some Action ''Shake Some Action'' is the fourth studio album by American rock band the Flamin' Groovies. The album was released in June 1976 by Sire Records. The title ''Shake Some Action'' originates from a line in the 1965 film ''None but the Brave''. Backg ...

'', some of the later tracks "disappoint." Author John Borack called the album "a stunning effort" and called it his favorite album of the year. ''

Trouser Press ''Trouser Press'' was a rock and roll magazine started in New York in 1974 as a mimeographed fanzine by editor/publisher Ira Robbins, fellow fan of the Who Dave Schulps and Karen Rose under the name "Trans-Oceanic Trouser Press" (a reference to ...

'' referred to the album as "a good, solid effort" that "isn't at all bad as slick, commercial Beatlesque power pop goes" but also noted that "the Knack is firmly caught in a dead zone between nostalgia, irrelevance and scorn." The lyrics to the song "Can I Borrow a Kiss" were based on an incident from when songwriter

Doug Fieger Douglas Lars Fieger (August 20, 1952 – February 14, 2010) was an American musician, singer and songwriter. He was the rhythm guitarist and lead vocalist of the rock band The Knack. He co-wrote "My Sharona," the biggest hit song of 1979 in the ...

visited

Haight-Ashbury Haight-Ashbury () is a district of San Francisco, California, named for the intersection of Haight and Ashbury streets. It is also called The Haight and The Upper Haight. The neighborhood is known as one of the main centers of the counterculture ...

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

as a teenager, and a girl asked if she could borrow a kiss. Fieger noted that that kind of thing did not happen in his hometown of

Oak Park, Michigan Oak Park is a city in Oakland County, Michigan, Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population of Oak Park was 29,560. As a northern suburb of Metro Detroit, Oak Park shares its sout ...

. The song "Terry & Julie Step Out" is based on

the Kinks The Kinks were an English rock band formed in Muswell Hill, north London, in 1963 by brothers Ray and Dave Davies. They are regarded as one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s. The band emerged during the height of British rhythm ...

' song "

Waterloo Sunset "Waterloo Sunset" is a song by British rock band the Kinks. It was released as a single in 1967, and featured on their album '' Something Else by the Kinks''. Composed and produced by Kinks frontman Ray Davies, "Waterloo Sunset" is one of the ...

''Re-Zoom''

After the rights reverted to the band from its original label, the Knack re-released the album with additional tracks in 2003 under the title ''Re-Zoom''. This release followed the band's next unsuccessful comeback with the album ''

Normal as the Next Guy ''Normal as the Next Guy'' is the sixth and final studio album by the Knack, released in 2001. It marks the fourth comeback attempt by the band after its second album, ''...But the Little Girls Understand'', failed to achieve the success of Get ...

''. Allmusic critic Steve Mason called Re-Zoom "probably the best Knack album since 1979's ''Get the Knack'', with at least a few fine examples of pure L.A.–style power pop and a psychedelic closing ballad." Mason also noted that although the songs on the album did not have

misogynist Misogyny () is hatred of, contempt for, or prejudice against women. It is a form of sexism that is used to keep women at a lower social status than men, thus maintaining the societal roles of patriarchy. Misogyny has been widely practiced f ...

lyrics like earlier Knack songs, the lyrics are "still rather smug," and that lead singer

sings "with a self-satisfaction unwarranted by his flagrantly derivative musical sense." The additional tracks included covers of

Badfinger Badfinger were a Welsh rock band formed in Swansea, who were active from the 1960s to the 1980s. Their best-known lineup consisted of Pete Ham (vocals, guitar), Mike Gibbins (drums), Tom Evans (bass), and Joey Molland (guitar). They are recog ...

's " No Matter What" and

Elvis Costello Declan Patrick MacManus Order of the British Empire, OBE (born 25 August 1954), known professionally as Elvis Costello, is an English singer-songwriter and record producer. He has won multiple awards in his career, including a Grammy Award in ...

's " Girls Talk."

Track listing

# "Pop Is Dead" (

Berton Averre Berton Leslie Averre (born December 13, 1953) is an American guitarist. He was the lead guitarist and one of the founders of the band The Knack. That group had a No. 6 UK / No. 1 US hit with "My Sharona", which sold 10 million copies in ...

) - 3:47 # "Can I Borrow a Kiss" (Berton Averre, Doug Fieger) - 4:03 # "Smilin'" (Berton Averre, Doug Fieger) - 4:03 # "Ambition" (Doug Fieger, Stan Lynch) - 4:28 # "Mister Magazine" (Doug Fieger) - 4:02 # "Everything I Do" (Melissa Connell, Doug Fieger) - 3:50 # "Love Is All There Is" (Doug Fieger) - 4:13 # "Terry & Julie Step Out" (Berton Averre, Doug Fieger) - 3:33 # "Harder on You" (Prescott Niles, Berton Averre, Kim Amadril)- 3:05 # "You Gotta Be There" (Doug Fieger) - 3:22 # "Good Enough" (Berton Averre, Doug Fieger) - 4:49 # "In Blue Tonight" (Doug Fieger) - 3:48 # "Tomorrow" (Berton Averre, Doug Fieger, Prescott Niles, Kim Amadril )- 4:27 # "(All in The) All in All" (Doug Fieger, Oliver Leiber) - 5:13

Personnel

lead vocals The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of t ...

rhythm guitar In music performances, rhythm guitar is a technique and role that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with other instruments from the rhythm section (e.g., drum kit, bass guitar ...

lead guitar Lead guitar (also known as solo guitar) is a musical part for a guitar in which the guitarist plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs and chords within a song structure. The lead is the featur ...

backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are use ...

keyboards Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

Prescott Niles Prescott Niles (born May 2, 1954) is an American rock bassist. He is best known as bassist with the Knack, who had a No. 1 US / No. 6 UK hit with "My Sharona". Since 2013 he has played bass with Mike Pinera's Classic Rock All-Stars and ...

- bass *

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

Re-Zoom track listing

As for the original album, with three additional tracks: 15. " No Matter What" (

Pete Ham Peter William Ham (27 April 1947 – 24 April 1975) was a Welsh singer, songwriter and guitarist best known as a lead vocalist of and composer for the 1970s rock band Badfinger, whose hit songs include " No Matter What", " Day After Day" and " ...

) - 2:54
16. " Girls Talk" (

) - 3:26
17. "Mister Magazine" (Instrumental) - 4:01
18. " Harder on You" Prescott Niles, Berton Averre, Kim Amadril, Doug Fieger
19. " Tomorrow" Prescott Niles, Berton Averre, Doug Fieger, Kim Amadril

References

{{Authority control The Knack albums 1998 albums 2003 albums Rhino Records albums