Music: Pick of the Pops

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Neil Sedaka: Sedaka's Back (Rocket). As an early '60s teen-age idol of prom crowds in strapless formals and ducktail haircuts, Sedaka wrote more than 75 top ten hits. Then the Beatles squeezed out shooby-dooby, and Sedaka slipped into obscurity. In his first U.S. album in twelve years, he retains his cozy, cheerful style; yet his songs dig deeper. Laughter in the Rain is already a hit, and Solitaire and Standing on the Inside have high musical polish.

Arthur, Hurley & Gottlieb: Sun light Shinin' (A&M). This is the second album of a trio whose voices ring strong and bright against vivid instrumentation. Lead Vocalist Jeff Arthur, a Florida orange-juice tenor, wrote all or part of six cuts, including the ten der ballad That's the Time I Miss You Most of All. A blowsy sweet country rocker, Tubin', shows skillful commercial production.

Linda Ronstadt: Heart Like a Wheel (Capitol). Ron stadt sheds her foxy Barbie doll image for an assertive straight forward approach that displays her vocal diversity. Besides Ronstadt's supersmash single You 're No Good, cuts include the title song by the talented Anna McGarrigle, and Paul Anka's It Doesn 't Matter Anymore.

Bob Dylan: Blood on the Tracks (Columbia). Inconsistency remains the chief characteristic of recent Dylan albums.

After a while prolific artists cannibalize their own work: You 're a Big Girl Now is a lesser Just Like a Woman. From a working poet, a line like "They say the darkest hour is right before the dawn" is a dismal cliche.

There are irresistible moments, however, like Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts — a narrative gem about girls, guys, gambling and jealous love. Over all, longtime fans will approve of Dylan's return to an older, sparser folk style.

Phoebe Snow (Shelter). "Sometimes these hands get so clumsy that I drop things and people laugh. Sometimes these hands seem so graceful I can see them signin' autographs." Reality and fantasy blend nicely in this graceful, never clumsy debut album. Phoebe's original lyrics are as plain as morning bread, but her alto voice is jazzy. Jazz Notables Teddy Wil son (piano) and Zoot Sims (saxophone) join the diversified goings on.

Henry Gross: Plug Me Into Some thing (A &M). An alumnus of the Sha Na Nas, Gross gathers a few of his friends including Terry Cashman, Tom my West and even his pet Irish setter for a high-voltage round of rural rock.

Never mind the occasional barks. The infectious beat of Dixie Spider Man and some fancy guitar acrobatics on The Driver's Engine — an electrified country breakdown — are well worth plugging into.

J.D.