Keeping it personal

It’s not often that we have artists being given a free hand in choosing the material for their CDs. Too often, the recording company’s quest for commerciability and that hit single preys on the artistic vision of these recording stars. The two CDs today share a unique dimension of having the artists seeming to eschew those considerations, and coming up with very personal statements of what their music is really all about. Sit back and enjoy.

Love & War — Daniel Merriweather (RCA/Jive — Sony BMG). Best known for his work on Stop Me on Mark Ronson’s CD Version, this debut album of Aussie Daniel Merriweather sees him once again collaborating with über producer Ronson and stamping his claim on plying that genre of neo-Motown, ’70s Soul type music updated for the 21st century. The single Change has a little bit of The Script written on it. But beyond this carrier single, it’s a unique vision that drives the music. Think Mick Hucknall of Simply Red, think James Morrison and Paolo Nutini, and you’ll have some idea of what Merriweather’s music is all about. It’s all LoFi and my strong favorites are Not Giving Up, Red and the duet with Adele, Water and a Flame. The country-influenced Cigarettes is a “miss” for me, but other than that track and the opener, the CD is consistently strong and augurs well for Merriweather’s career — move over, Amy Winehouse.

Free — Gavin DeGraw (Sony BMG). This is his third studio album, and while we may remember him best for the rocking In Love With A Girl (with the video of being trapped after hours in a department store), Free showcases a more soulful and bluesy Gavin. With nary a fast-tempo rocker on the horizon, this is more like a CD of material Gavin recorded in his living room and wants to share with us — it’s that intimate and personal. The CD starts off with Indian Summer, a composition of the late blues singer-songwriter Chris Whitley, and it sets the mood for this introspective side of Gavin. I especially liked the ballads Mountains To Move and Dancing Shoes. Lover Be Strong is a piano driven song that reminded me of Marc Cohn and/or Bruce Hornsby. This is one of those CDs perfect for a rainy afternoon, or the early evening, and it shows a side of Gavin I really wasn’t aware of — nice surprise.