The Band essentially went back to being the Hawks of the late '50s and early '60s on this album of cover tunes. They demonstrated considerable expertise on their versions of rock & roll and R&B standards like
Clarence "Frogman" Henry's "Ain't Got No Home,"
Chuck Berry's "The Promised Land," and
Fats Domino's "I'm Ready," but of course that didn't do much to satisfy the audience they had established with their original material and that, two years after the disappointing
Cahoots, was waiting for something in the same league with their first three albums. [Moondog Matinee was re-released on LP in 2015.] ~ William Ruhlmann