Jesse: Punchy Grooves

** JESSE JOHNSON. “Every Shade of Love.” A&M.; While this third solo album from the former Time guitarist sports a harder edge than his previous LP, it’s still no more memorable than his first long-playing effort. Of course, that first LP spun three largely unmemorable hits, and you can’t argue with that kind of sue$$.

What we have here is a solid set of punchy dance grooves, distinguished by Johnson’s castles-made-of-sand, Hendrix-derived fretwork. “Love Struck,” the album’s first single, is the most frenetic example. “I’m Just Wanting You” is the most fluid.

As for the rest, “So Misunderstood” is the most obviously indebted to James Brown, “Color Shock” and the title track are the most obviously intended to raise eyebrows, and the poppish “Stop-Look-Listen” is the most obviously derivative of this guitarist-vocalist-songwriter-producer’s purple-minded former producer. All of which only reinforces the suspicion that anything Prince can do, everyone else will do a year later.

CHECK LIST

**** Great Balls of Fire

*** Good Vibrations

** Maybe Baby

* Running on Empty