Abandoning the Cowboy Outfit but not roots-rock, Nick Lowe followed the winning The Rose of England with the amiable but muddled Pinker and Prouder Than Previous. Working with the same blend of classic pop, rock & roll, and country-rock, Lowe gets things off to a roaring start with the driving "(You're My) Wildest Dream," but the record quickly bogs down in averagee material. Many of the songs are certainly not bad, yet they rarely distinguish themselves from each other -- only "Lover's Jamboree," John Hiatt's "Love Gets Strange" and Graham Parker's "Black Lincoln Continental" stand out. That doesn't necessarily make Pinker and Prouder Than Previous a bad record. Since Lowe is a gifted songwriter and talented bandleader; he can keep things engaging even when he's not at the top of his form, which is the case with Pinker and Prouder.