* * * * <i> Great Balls of Fire</i> , * * * <i> Good Vibrations</i> , * * <i> Maybe Baby</i> , * <i> Running on Empty</i> : REV. AL COASTS

* * “SOUL SURVIVOR.” Al Green. A&M.; It says a lot about Al Green’s remarkable vocal gifts that this album offers several winning moments even though the man is clearly coasting. Fleshing out his own thin compositions with dusty outside material like “You’ve Got a Friend” and “He Ain’t Heavy” doesn’t exactly peg Green as an overachiever. Nor do the two cuts that clock in at less than a minute, including the intro to the title track--which resumes on the record’s flip side. Weird! But Green, a recent Grammy winner, transcends some of these limitations with smooth, eminently soulful crooning. With his velvety pipes, Reverend Al could probably give a poignant reading of the new Tax Reform Act.