Jeff Eaton
Wish You Were Here
With a keen ear for twang and an even sharper sense of melody, Jeff Eaton resurrects the stagnant singer/songwriter genre with actually memorable and catchy songs. Eaton’s voice doesn’t have the polished prettiness of John Mayer and his imitators, which will probably limit his fanbase to an older demographic. Triple A radio has been lacking artists with distinct vocal styles lately, and Eaton certainly fills that void.
The opening cut, “Take Your Breath Away,” is a little bit country and a little bit rock & roll, but the soulfulness of Eaton’s voice bridges together both genres. Even better is “Flood,” with its wall of chiming guitars. Reminiscent of the widescreen sweep of U2, “Flood” fills the speakers with transcendent riffs and warm-honey harmonies.
The country seasonings are just that; there’s not a single tune here that can be classified as purely country. This is an album that would appeal to fans of the Wallflowers and Counting Crows; in other words, it is lyric-driven roots rock with FM pop hooks.
Given the references to God on certain tracks, such as on “Your Love,” “Calling On Angels” and “Outside Your Door,” it would be tempting to classify Eaton as a Christian artist; however, that wouldn’t be totally accurate. Eaton is a Christian who is an artist but not really a Christian artist, as he really doesn’t deliver any divine messages. Instead, he sings about himself and his life experiences, making the spiritual leaning of his words accessible to non-believers.
Jeff Eaton: http://www.jeffeaton-music.com
