If you like a bit of Free, Bad Company, early Whitesnake or the music of Winter, then you really need to check this out.

A while back, I reviewed the very nice re-issues of Target's only two (or so I thought) albums from the seventies and was pleasantly surprised to hear Jimi Jamison not only singing the Blues, but singing them very well indeed. It's now come to light that Target recorded a third album in 1979 that was never released due to the fact the band broke up. Thanks to our friends at Escape, it's been dusted off and comes complete with extensive notes by Dave Reynolds.

Much like the first two albums, 'In Range' is a bluesy affair that draws on the likes of Free and Edgar Winter to produce the sort of Blues that everyone can enjoy with plenty of melody, cool guitar and soulful vocals. It's interesting to listen to Jamison almost channelling Paul Rodgers at times, whilst at others, you can hear the succulent AOR vocalist he was to become. It's refreshing to know he can handle this type of music as well as he could Melodic Rock and we can all be glad he carried on in the business as he was obviously a real find for Target.

There's only nine tracks here and the run time barely scratches half an hour, but to be honest, that never stopped Van Halen's '1984' being a classic and it won't stop people falling in love with this album. The music ranges from upbeat, galloping Blues-based rockers like opener 'High Wire' and album standout 'Taxman', through to slower, more soulful stuff and even some dirty Blues in between. The musicianship is exemplary and the production is spot on; it's a crying shame that this was hidden away for so long.

Fans of quality Blues Rock will go mental over this and Jamison fans will find that the contents easily overcome any curiosity; although it clearly isn't AOR, it's exceptionally cool Rock music all the way through. Whilst I enjoyed the other two albums, I have to say that had Target stayed together 'In Range' may well have made them a household name which could have changed the future of Melodic Rock music quite a bit. If you like a bit of Free, Bad Company, early Whitesnake or the music of Winter, then you really need to check this out.

Alan Holloway