WISPY TO WAILING

“MARILYN MARTIN.” Marilyn Martin. Atlantic. What gut-wrenching rock! What ravaged vocals! Who is this? Pat Benatar? No, it really is the same Martin who sings the soft and wispy duet with Phil Collins on “Separate Lives.” A lot of her songs sound like the B-side of a Benatar 45, but Martin wrings them out for all they’re worth. Sometimes her earnestness pays off, as on the rugged country-rock of “One Step Closer” and on the lusty wail of “Here Is the News.” Martin seems to really believe in everything she sings: Her vocals are passionate even when her tunes are only passable.