Squeeze’s first five albums represent some kind of zenith for smart, melodious new wave/pub rock. Dip anywhere into records such as Cool for Cats, Argybargy, and East Side Story, and you’ll go away with a headful of the catchiest tunes never written by Lennon-McCartney or McLennan-Forster. Yes, I’m tempted to say that at their best, Squeeze songwriters Glenn Tilbrook and Chris Difford equal the brilliance of the Beatles and Go-Betweens’ tunesmiths. X have been synthesizing punk and roots rock with exceptional nuance for more than four decades, with a grip of classics to show for it. Some of the city’s coolest forty- and fiftysomethings will be out in force for this nostalgia fest. by Dave Segal