Ambrosia - Road Island (1982)

On their final album, Ambrosia forsakes the airbrushed AOR sounds that defined Life Beyond L.A. and One Eighty in favor of a strong, rock-oriented sound. They are aided in this aim by a gutsy production from James Guthrie (a producer better known for his work with groups like Judas Priest and Pink Floyd) that takes the group to a new level of sonic firepower. Songs like "For Openers" and "Still Not Satisfied" reverberate with a newfound sense of rock & roll muscle: The drums kick, the basslines throb, and the guitars and Hammond organ wail with abandon. Even Ambrosia's trademark ballads benefit from their newly beefed-up sound: "Feelin' Alive Again" features the airy harmonies and delicate keyboard shadings expected from this style of song, but it also gains an added sense of dramatic weight from Burleigh Drummond's thick drumming and piercing, emotional guitar solos from David Pack.