Jonas Brothers

Among the High School Musicians to storm the charts in the mid-'00s, the Jonas Brothers may yet prove themselves to be the most enduring, as evidenced by their third full-length. With subtle sophistication, the guitar raves here bear the instincts (if not always the influence) of dad's Cheap Trick LPs, and the best of these tracks, "One Man Show" and "Burnin' Up," boast a caffeinated catchiness that trumps the tween-targeted records of their past. And when they throw curves (the breezy ballad "Lovebug," the snarky "Video Girl"), it's a glimpse of the promise of future records.

History teaches us not to dismiss kiddie pop. Stevie Wonder was once Little Stevie Wonder,
just as Lil Wayne was once little Lil Wayne, child gangsta rapper. And let's not forget
ex-Mouseketeers Britney and Justin. Purists disdain teenybopper music as cynical pap,
foisted on the young by Svengalis who lurk in the shadows, counting money. But
bubblegum can be a great farm system, honing skills that pay dividends in later lif... More >