In a recent All-Star Jam, I submitted the idea that, in the pantheon of horrible follow up albums, Gary Wright‘s The Light of Smiles may be the winner.

Of course, Peter Frampton‘s I’m In You was immediately mentioned and Cheap Trick‘s Dream Police also got a nod.

However, those albums at least had hits — and songs you’ve heard. Following The Dreamweaver — which like it or not — was kind of a big deal, The Light of Smiles is a true stinker. If you ever had a copy (probably from the cut-outs), you couldn’t help notice the lavish cover art and glossy packaging. Unfortunately for Warner Bros., and Gary Wright fans, the songs inside were pretty bad.

Gary made three albums from 1974 through 1977 — one was with a reformed Spooky Tooth (featuring Foreigner’s Mick Jones) that had a bad song on it called “Fantasy Satisfier” . . . then his solo hit “Dreamweaver”  . . . then on The Light of Smiles, another crappy song called “Phantom Writer.”  On The Light of Smiles — he finally went overboard with the other-worldly deity stuff — and the album killed any career momentum from The Dreamweaver.

So, what’s your nominee for worst follow-up album ever?