"Hi Infidelity" is the quintessential album from REO Speedwagon. This marked the zenith for the band, topping the charts for 15 weeks in 1981 and containing four top 40 singles.

"Keep On Loving You" was the consummate radio friendly power ballad (it was their first #1 song on the charts). It served as a precursor for their mainstream sound that was to follow them into the early half of the decade (They would top the charts one more time in 1984 with "Can't Fight This Feeling" from "Wheels Are Turning" album). In 2000, they assembled a collection of their greatest ballads.

The band had been recording for about a decade when they reached the masses with this album. This album has it share of upbeat rockers. The album opens with the hard driving, "Don't Let Him Go" (#36) as well as the top five "Take It On The Run.(#5)" The track, "In Your Letter" has a retro 1950's feel to it. It also made the pop charts at the time (#14).

"Tough Guys" is one of the most relentless tracks on the album. It rocks from start to finish and interestingly enough, begins with a vocal segment from the television program, "The Little Rascals." (Madonna would employ this technique in her song "White Heat," which included a spoken prologue from James Cagney in her tribute to him on her 1986 album "True Blue.")

"Follow My Heart," "Out Of Season," and "Someone Tonight" also serve as competent, well-crafted tunes. The one track I tend to not enjoy as much is "Shakin' It Loose."(Don't get me wrong-it is not a bad track; it just sounds too generic. It could have been recorded by Styx or Journey or 38 Special!). Nevertheless, there is a continuity to the album and it is absolutely clear why this album graced the charts for well over one year.

The album closes with the highly sentimental "I Wish You Were There," one of my favorite ballads on the collection. (This would be an excellent tune that could wind up on a soundtrack to a love story with a "coming of age" theme to it.)

Digitally remastered, this 20th anniversary collection contains the original artwork (including the classic album cover), and the complete lyrics to all ten songs. "Hi Infidelity" includes a well-balanced mix of hard rocking and mid-tempto ballads. It is an absolute must in any music library whether one is a fan of classic rock or infectious, coherent, pop music.

LOVED this album for 30 years now, and the remastering is done as well as any that I have heard. The reason to buy this set (assuming that you already have a copy of Hi Infidelity) is for the second disc. It's not often that you get to hear how an album gets it start. The Crystal demos show it all off. While the sound level doesn't seem to be as high as the regular album, it is really cool to hear the songs as they were being worked out by the band. To all you budding lead guitarists, put the instrumental version of "Shakin' it Loose" on, grab your Les Paul and play your own licks along with the boys!

There are some new comments about the album by Kevin Cronin and Gary Richrath - I wish Gary could have or would have written more, but it is nice to see that he was invited to have a little input on this product!

I first heard REO Speedwagon's Hi Infidelity back at university and hadn't thought much about it since, consigning it to those growing up years. Big Mistake! getting Hi Infidelity back this summer was a breath of fresh air into my pop album. The next time you have to face those grownup tasks like tidying the house or ironing a shirt. Stop! Peel off the years and put on Hi-infedility - one great track follows another. I think my neighbours are getting fed up of it but I know my friends will love it. SO I'm buying these very reasonably priced CDs from Amazon for everyone of you. Happy Christmas Guys. Andy.

This was the album that crossed REO Speedwagon's earlier rock leanings with their later pop-based sound. For sure, it is a classic to this day that sounds as fresh as ever on the remastered CD.

With four top 40 hits ranging from rockers like "Don't Let Him Go" to the well-known #1 hit power ballad "Keep On Loving You", this album is diverse, melodic, and interesting. "Take It On The Run" is a favorite of mine to this day with its classic AOR melodies and chorus. "Tough Guys" and "Shakin' It Loose" are REO rock standards, while the closer "I Wish You Were There" is a fantastic, wistful power ballad.

In summary, there is not a dud on this album. If you like the classic melodic rock of the late '70s and early '80s, this one is a winner for you. To this day, this album lives up to its legendary status. Strongly recommended for classic and melodic rock fans.

This is the third time "High Infidelity" has been remastered. The new 30th Anniversary remaster is cleaner, brighter with even more detail than the second "Essential Rock Classics" version that was released about 10 years ago and a huge improvement over the original "Now Made In the USA" CD from the mid 80's which sounded flat and thin. That CD was probably mastered from a second or third generation copy instead of the original studio tape.

I hate to use a cliche, but even if you've heard this album a zillion times, you'll be noticing little details in the mix that you've never heard before with this new edition. Gary Richrath's melodic guitar work really shines in this remaster.

And its great to finally hear the "lost" Crystal Demos after all these years of Kevin talking about them. It was REO's good luck and fortune that they had written a great batch of songs for this album. It's fascinating hearing the early versions. Neil's keyboards are missing and Gary's still trying to figure out his solos, but I agree with Kevin they pretty much had the album "in the can" before they later tried to re-record it in a better studio. I really like the "dry" and basic production of the Crystal Demos. The demos sound closer to the classic REO albums of the 70's instead of the "big 80's" production and cavernous arena reverb of the finished album. The sound quality of these demos is very good, but there are some slight channel dropouts here and there.

I do wish the compilers would have put the demos in the running order of the original LP and added live versions (King Biscuit) or radio interviews from the same era if they still exist in the vaults. It just seems too stretched out for two discs.

Despite that, if you love this album and want to discover how it was made, go get it. And I agree with another reviewer that it would be awesome if this great album was released on record again. It might even make REO cool with young hipsters who collect those "vinyls" lol.

UPDATE: I found out that Friday Music is reissuing Hi Infidelty on 180 gram vinyl in 2012. It should sound great, but the demos on this CD won't be included in that reissue.