‘Crossroads’:Can It Pass ‘Fast Car’? : TRACY CHAPMAN “Crossroads.” Elektra *** 1/2: <i> Albums are rated on a scale of one (poor) to five (a classic) stars.</i>

A key question surrounding this follow-up to one of the most celebrated album debuts of the ‘80s is whether the folk-based, socially conscious singer-songwriter could come up with another “Fast Car,” the exquisitely designed tale of an inner city woman’s struggle for identity and hope.

The single was a surprise radio hit last year, helping draw enough attention to Chapman’s intimate, affecting portraits of society’s underclass for the album to sell a remarkable 3 million copies in the United States alone and to send a liberating message to the record executives and radio programmers that pop audiences are willing to deal with matters of substance.

Whether any “message” song can repeat that long-shot success at a time when radio is mostly devoted to skimpy dance music and lite rock is questionable, but--yes--there are two songs on “Crossroads” that stand comfortably alongside “Fast Car.”

There’s an angry immediacy to “Subcity” that makes the track seem like a documentary straight from the mean streets. But the real jewel is “All That You Have Is Your Soul,” a moving story of a woman’s repeated disillusionment that has led, not to defeat, but to a greater awareness of the importance of dignity and honor.

But what about the album itself? Does it live up to the promise of the debut, which was nominated for a Grammy? This answer is trickier.

While most of “Crossroads” matches the craft of the first album, several of the songs (despite sometimes brighter instrumental touches) seem like echoes, musically and thematically, of the expressions of social injustice and strained relationships that formed the foundation last time.

If, however, there is less artistic mobility than one would like in “Crossroads,” the best moments confirm that Chapman’s artistry is genuine.