Runnin' With the Devil

While he doesn't issue albums comprised of original music on a regular basis anymore, you can always count on former Ozzy Osbourne/Badlands guitarist Jake E. Lee to pop up on tribute albums. And on 2008's Runnin' with the Devil, you get an album's worth of reworkings of songs that other rockers made famous, with Lee's six-string doing battle with a variety of singers (many of the hair metal variety). As with most tribute albums, some of the songs work well (Ted Nugent & the Amboy Dukes' "Journey to the Center of the Mind," which features some tasty licks), while others...not so much (Metallica's "Seek and Destroy," on which it sounds like Lee is trying to cram in as many guitar fills as possible). Other highlights include a pair of tracks where it's the singer (rather than Lee) who makes the music memorable, including Lemmy on AC/DC's "It's a Long Way to the Top" and Glenn Hughes on Queen's "Get Down, Make Love." It's always a treat to spot some new or largely unheard Lee guitar work -- however, Runnin' with the Devil sounds mostly like an excuse to jam the night away. Picture Jake E. Lee playing a house party in high school, and you're not far off from what Runnin' with the Devil has to offer. ~ Greg Prato