Manfred Mann: Next Steps

There's a restless musical exploration in Manfred Mann's album tracks, a need to update the sound of their effervescent ‘60s pop hits. The clanking spanners of “Machines” and waspish guitars of satirical rave-up “Tired of Trying, Bored with Lying, Scared of Dying” sit spikily alongside the soul perfection of “She Needs Company”, the Beach Boys-esque melancholy of “Up the Junction” and Paul Jones' grandiose orchestral pop (“Free Me”).