In Brief

* 1/2 Mike + the Mechanics, “Word of Mouth,” Atlantic. “The Living Years,” the 1988 hit from Genesis member Mike Rutherford’s side project, is among the most played singles of the last few years. To say that there’s nothing on the group’s third album to attract such attention is like saying Kathy Bates is not as sexy as Madonna; only “Get Up” and “Everybody Gets a Second Chance” rise above the bland.

Albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor) to five (a classic).