We derive a new parton-like formula, which establishes a simple connection
between the electroweak decay rate Γ(Bˉ→Xsγ) and the rate
of a free b-quark decay. The main features of our approach are the treatment of
the b-quark as an on-mass-shell particle and the inclusion of the effects
arising from the b-quark transverse motion in the Bˉ-meson. Using various
b-quark light-front (LF) distribution functions, both phenomenological one and
the ones derived from current constituent quark models, and neglecting
perturbative corrections we compute the photon energy spectra and the moments
of the shape function. It is shown that the parton-like approach is fully
consistent with the Heavy Quark Effective Theory (HQET) provided the b-quark
constituent mass is redefined in the way similar to that used in HQET to define
the pole mass of the b quark. In this way the correction to first order in
1/mb can be eliminated from the total width in agreement with the general
statement of HQET. We have also found that the photon energy spectra calculated
in the LF approach agree well with the ones obtained in the ACM model, provided
the same distribution function is used as input in both cases. In spite of the
simplicity of the model our results show a fair good agreement both with the
HQET predictions and available experimental data.Comment: 14 pages, LaTeX, 3 ps figure