LIFE BEYOND L.A.

Completing the trilogy of worthwhile albums from Ambrosia is this. It also represents the beginning of the band's decline, although how low they would go is only slightly hinted at here. The album starts out strong with the title track (straight-ahead rock with synthesizers) and the subtle "Art Beware" and "Apothecary". "If Heaven Could Find Me" is less memorable, but it is the fifth track ("How Much I Feel") that probably did the most damage to the band's prog credentials. The second half of the album is also not particularly memorable except for "Angola", a tongue-in-cheek look at the gap between rich and poor "Dancng by Myself" and "Not as You Were" are mediocre, but "Heart to Heart" is a nice little ballad. The closing tune, "Ready for Camarillo", is probably not a meaningful lyric unless the listener knows that there was a state mental hospital in Camarillo, California at one time.

After this album, the band would deteriorate into the pure pop of "180" (the title refers to a 180 degree change of direction), followed by the weird "Road Island", so this was to be the band's last decent (but unfortunately flawed) effort.