by Isaiah Smith Entertainment editor
British newcomer James Morrison hops the pond with his debut album Undiscovered.
The rough, raw quality to Morrison’s tone makes this album worthy of note.
“ I don’t want to be misunderstood. I’ve got to take this chance and make it into something good,” he said in a press release.
Undiscovered has been discovered in the United Kingdom where “You Give Me Something” and “Wonderful World” have already reached the Top 5.
“ You Give Me Something” has a soulful, bluesy vibe. Morrison sings it well, but it seems too slow for American radio.
Morrison’s “Wonderful World” is a poetic look at his world’s darker side being illuminated by love. Vocally, this track comes straight from the heart; this guy has such an old soul.
“ Everybody has it hard growing up. I’m not saying I had it any worse than anybody else, but most of the emotion in my singing comes from my upbringing,” he said in the release.
“This Boy,” a down-tempo track about letting his childhood go is very honest; he is being transparent with his fans here.
“ Better Man,” about being a better man than he was before, is my favorite track.
“ The Pieces Don’t Fit Anymore” is the best choice for a single here in the states. Morrison was asked to include the song for a major motion picture titled August Rush.
He had better release “that track as a single because it is a great song.
I get where he is coming from on the musical, moral high-ground.
However, movie deals are worth a lot of cash, so he needs to make that up.
“ One Last Chance” is another good single for here in America. Listeners will respond to the hook, so it is great for radio.
He keeps the Johnny Lang vibe on “The Letter,” a blues track about a jilted love affair. In it, Morrison laments the relationship.
“ The Last Goodbye” caps off the CD, and Morrison plays vocal acrobatics in the chorus saying goodbye to a lover.
Perhaps this is somehow related to that letter he cannot bring himself to open.
I definitely hope this is not truly his last goodbye because this is his first album, and I do not want him to be a one-hit-wonder.
Undiscovered is worth discovering. I give it five stars.
Morrison has enough emotion that he can pull off his bluesy soul vibe without coming across as whiny.
