From the opening chords, Cry Mercy leaves you in no doubt as to the genre involved. It is a tribute to the energy and enthusiasm of the performers and a true wake-up call for latent and outright rockers.

The band opens with the title track, "Cry Mercy," and if you have a musical bone in your body, you will feel the pulse race and the blood pound in rhythm to the music.

Linda Nunez is not only a great performer, but a glance at her credits reveals a writer of prolific output and enduring quality. Like all good songs, they come from the fount of experience, whether good or bad. The songs speak to the hearts of listeners because of their source in real life.

A favourite of mine is "That's Where I Went Wrong." "Red Headed Woman" follows closely.

A common trend in current recordings is the different versions of a song. On this album we hear two sides of Nunez with "Yea." Initially we get the full-rock version but later we hear it anew as an acoustic track. "Havana" also gets two outings on the album. In some ways this may seem like a bit of a shortchange by getting only eight actual songs, but the re-working of "Yea" in particular makes it a new song.

Much is made in publicity of the campaigning of Linda Nunez. Forget that as you listen to the album. It's the music, the lyrics and the performance that count when we buy a CD.