Not a bad cut in the bunch
Review Score: 








(10/10)
I absolutely love this CD. I brought it on the recommendation of some friends who told me that if I was a Stevie Wonder fan, then I would really enjoy it. At the time I had only heard "This Love", which to me seemed a cross between old Motown and rock and roll, and I liked it immediately. But I hadn't gotten the CD. Finally, I decided to buy it, just to take a chance on it. Turns out that once I put it in my CD player, it has become a permanent fixture! This is a so-called rock/pop CD but then again it branches off into R&B, funk and even a little contemporary jazz, so it really has no genre. And that may be the best thing about it because it's just GOOD MUSIC, period! It may have a bit of a "boy band" feel to it, due to the harmonies of these guys and the catchy hooks in their lyrics, but they are NOT a boy band...to dismiss them as such would be a mistake. They have substance to their lyrics and don't sing about only the surface emotions of love and romance. They dare to get deep on you. And they actually ARE a band!
Adam Levine, Maroon 5's lead singer, has captured Stevie's essence and phrasing so well, that on several cuts, you'd think that Stevie was the one doing the singing, especially on "Sunday Morning"...WOW! He is really a magnificent vocalist. Maybe it's just me, but not only do I hear Stevie's influence, but I'm also picking up Sting ("She Will Be Loved", "Must Get Out"), Steve Miller ("The Sun"), a little Michael Jackson ("Not Coming Home"), even a little Lauryn Hill ("The Sweetest Goodbye"), if you can believe that...I guess we all hear something different. But for the most part, it is the Wonder Man who seems to be the one who these guys idolize the most. Songs about love, contempt, obsession, passion, separation...it pretty much runs the gamut here on SONGS ABOUT JANE and my only complaint is that some of the songs are not long enough!
This entire CD is like a breath of fresh air to me. I can't even say which song I liked the most, because I enjoyed every single cut on it and that's rare for me! I have come to dislike most pop and R&B that's out today but Maroon 5 shows us that there is still hope and creativity left in the industry. Excellent, all around.
More Reviews: