The Cars
The Elektra Years 1978-1987
(Rhino)

They surrounded themselves with beauties on their album sleeves and music videos, but behind The Cars’ savvy imagery stood five Boston musos who never quite broke free of their geek status. It’s one of the reasons their back catalogue remains so endearing; the romantically-bereft protagonist at the heart of the lyrics to Touch And Go, Why Can’t I Have You, My Best Friend’s Girl and many of The Cars’ greatest tunes appealed to rejected synth dweebs everywhere.

While they never managed a US, UK or Australian number one single, The Cars’ six Elektra albums between 1978 and 1987 set a blueprint for a multitude of indie synth acts that emerged in the 2000s. Shake It Up, Just What I Needed and Let’s Go remain familiar and upbeat radio favourites, but lesser known songs offer further proof of the band’s dexterity. By 1984’s Heartbeat City they’d perfected their rock and synth formula, with producer Mutt Lange (Def Leppard, AC/DC, Bryan Adams) overseeing this masterpiece.  Magic is a perfect pop tune, Drive offers an exquisite taste of ‘80s emotion and the urgent Stranger Eyes bristles with desire. Matching cunning hooks with Ric Ocasek’s oft detached vocal delivery, Marty McFly would have hit another level of cool if he’d been listening to these tunes in his DeLorean rather than crusty old Huey Lewis.

Online chatter has noted this box set sticks to the original album formats rather than offering B-sides and rarities, yet this format maintains The Cars’ aura as an immaculate, fully-formed creation. Wouldn’t hearing demos of these perfectly-crafted LPs be akin to copping an eyeful of Karl Lagerfeld stepping out in saggy pyjamas instead of a crisply tailored suit? 

Average joes by day, synth heroes by night, The Cars’ canon will continue to influence music for generations to come.