Addison Road

Craig Cardiff - “Goodnight (Go Home)”

Sara and I are engaged, and busy planning our wedding. This effectively means two things: I have done absolutely nothing to prepare and/or plan for the event, and Sara has started watching wedding-themed reality programming on such acclaimed networks as Lifetime, and WE. (When they’re not showing the latest “My-Uncle-Touched-Me-Inappropriately” programming, starring Meredith Baxter-Birney) On a recent episode of “Rich Bride, Poor Bride”, the happy couple hired one of their favorite singer-songwriters to perform at their wedding. Sara called me in from the office, to witness the carnage. Typically, this show features the tackiest, most un-cool weddings in the history of love itself. I was expecting the worst. I was hoping for the worst, actually. (Thanks, American Idol!) Their favorite singer-songwriter?  Craig Cardiff.

I couldn’t have been more impressed.  Craig Cardiff is so damn good.  Simple, brilliant song-writing, and an elegant, yet gritty delivery, reminiscent of Damien Rice. If you like Joe Purdy, you’ll definitely dig on this.  I emailed Craig to tell him about how I “discovered” him, and we started a great dialogue about promoting shows, TV ideas, and the meaning of some of his lyrics. As a huge Ben Folds fan, I was very moved to hear him reference him in the song, “Revival Day”, about his mother’s battle with cancer. I emailed him to clarify that it was, in fact, a Ben Folds reference, and he told me all about the moment this happened in his life - he was driving his mother to a faith healer, as a last-ditch effort to fight off her cancer, and “Whatever and Ever, Amen” had just been released:

In a borrowed car, we sang “Evaporated”
It’s beautiful when you go low, and I go high
I watch you dear, and oh, we’ll beat this
If I believe enough, the Lord will provide

Craig Cardiff has released a bunch of records. I’ve only listened to “Goodnight (Go Home)”, but the rest of his catalog is on my to-do list.  Listen to: “Revival Day”, “Dig In”, and “Maybe You Should Drive”

Craig Cardiff is my new favorite singer-songwriter.  End of story…

Counting Crows - “Saturday Nights and Sunday Mornings”

Those who know anything about me, know that I’m a huge Counting Crows fan.  However, in my opinion, they’ve been getting progressively less interesting. The past 2 records sound like they were phoned-in. Except for a few key tracks off “Hard Candy” and “This Desert Life”, most of the last two records have been full of unrelenting and unfounded whining by Mr. Adam Duritz.  I was ready to call them quits.  I heard some advance releases off of “Saturday Nights and Sunday Mornings”, and I was less than impressed.  But when I finally got a chance to listen to the whole record, I was thrilled.  Finally, they’re back to the quality of song-writing debuted with “August and Everything After”.  The record is essentially divided into two parts - the former being a little more rock and roll than the latter.  Listen to: “Hanging Tree”, “Los Angeles”, and “Cowboys”.

Peter Bradley Adams - “Gather Up”

As one-half of “Eastmountainsouth”, Peter Bradley Adams first caught your attention with “Hard Times”, from the Elizabethtown soundtrack. (Good god, what a horrible film that was.)  I’m not 100% convinced of his recent solo release, entitled, “Gather Up”.  Honestly, I’ve gone back and forth on it.  Some days, it’s brilliantly recorded, and filled with subtlety that you have to really look for.  Other days, I say, “That’s uninspired crap, turn it off.”  Sometimes I’m not the most consistent judge of quality music. Anyway….just about every track on this record is listed as a duet, with performances shared by Sara Bareilles and Alexi Murdoch, among others.  (I’m sure the Sara Bareilles reference just sold some of you on the record, and that’s OK with me.  She’s really good.  “Little Voice” in one of my standout album picks from last year)  So go listen to this record, and tell me what you think.  Convince me that it’s good, or bad, or somewhere in between.  Because I’m sort of stuck on the middle.