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Starting Over by ReleasedSeptember 16, 1974Recorded, Length40:00

Starting Over is the fourth and final studio album by the 1970s band . It peaked at #143 on the Billboard pop album chart in 1974. The LP generated the #18 Billboard pop single "," while a second single, "Cruisin' Music", did not chart. This was the first album by the to feature songs with profanity. Those songs were “Starting Over”, which featured the word "fucking" once, and the song “Party’s Over”, which featured the word "shit" twice.

Background

Stylistically, Starting Over represented a more aggressive / sound than previous albums in a way reminiscent of , which was one of the groups' biggest influences. The album also included softer ballads such as "Rose Coloured Glasses" and "Cry".

Starting Over featured a new line-up with Michael McBride (drums), who had drummed with Carmen and Bryson in their previous band in the late '60s, Cyrus Erie, and Scott McCarl (bass, vocals). Drummer Jim Bonfanti and bassist Dave Smalley had left the band the previous year.

's drummer has said that he based his early drum style (particularly on the Springsteen album ) on Raspberries drummer Michael McBride's work in this album, while Springsteen himself has also mentioned several times in live performances that the title track is one of the greatest pop songs ever written.

, a Raspberries fan, particularly liked the song "Overnight Sensation." He was present for part of the recording of the Starting Over LP and, although not credited on the LP, is rumored to have assisted with the mix, including "Overnight Sensation."

Critic Mark Deming of praised the album as "a fine farewell from one of the best American pop bands of their era, though they didn't know it would be their last album when they were making it."

Music journalist Ken Sharp rated the title track as the Raspberries' 9th best song, describing it as "Raspberries do , with sublime vocals." Classic Rock History critic Brian Kachejian rated it as the band's 4th best song, noting that the piano riff has some similarities to 's "". This was also 's favorite Raspberries song. Carmen said that he wrote it as a song about a relationship but it could be taken as a reference to the revised band and a new beginning for it. Carmen also said that it had the best ending of any song he had written.

Both Ultimate Classic Rock critic Dave Swanson and Kachejian rated "I Don't Know What I Want" as being among the Raspberries' Top 10 songs. Swanson said it was "probably the band's heaviest moment" with lyrics that "perfectly capture youthful frustration." Kachejian noted some similarity to the Who's "", especially in the intro. Old Time Music critic Joseph L. Hollen also rated it among the Raspberries' top 10 songs but said it "is a decent enough song but has far too much pretense about it."

Guitarist wrote the song "Party's Over" and said that he included a veiled reference to Smalley and Bonfanti leaving. He said that "I had to. I didn't want to. It really broke my heart." Carmen called "Party's Over" "Wally's autobiographical ."

McCarl rated "Play On", which he co-wrote with , as the 5th greatest power pop song. He said that "Eric and I wrote this one nose to nose. All I had was the title, the opening and a couple of lines to kick it off, and look at it now! It's everything I'd hoped to bring to the new band. I give it the goose-bump test from time to time, and it still passes!" Sharp rated it as the Raspberries' 8th best song, calling it "the perfect caustic marriage of Scott McCarl's caustic to Eric's sugar-sweet , and what a bridge!"

Track listing "" (Carmen) – 5:34 / Lead vocal: Carmen "Play On" (Carmen, McCarl) – 3:01 / Lead vocal: McCarl "Party's Over" (Bryson) – 3:14 / Lead vocal: Bryson "I Don't Know What I Want" (Carmen) – 4:13 / Lead vocal: Carmen "Rose Coloured Glasses" (McCarl) – 3:38 / Lead vocal: McCarl "All Through the Night" (Carmen, McBride) – 4:30 / Lead vocal: Carmen "Cruisin Music" (Carmen) – 3:09 / Lead vocal: Carmen "I Can Hardly Believe You're Mine" (Carmen, McCarl) – 3:34 / Lead vocal: Carmen "Cry" (Carmen, McCarl) – 2:41 / Lead vocal: McCarl "Hands on You" (Bryson, McCarl) – 2:22 / Lead vocal: Bryson and McCarl "Starting Over" (Carmen) – 4:10 / Lead vocal: Carmen