Jon Peter Lewis Album Review

Any album that can make you think of The Cars, Billy Joel, The B52s, and Marvin Gaye is alright in my book. JPL does just this, while maintaining a distinct style that made him a favorite in A.I.'s third season. Overall I think he sounds a lot like John Mayer, which is a good thing, and his voice sounds just like it did on the competition with a little more "polishing." Here is a list of the songs on the album, along with my first impressions.

1. Boy Next Door: great track with some definite alternative undertone. The opening sounds a bit like U2, in my opinion.

2. Gypsy Queen: starts out riding "like Kerouac" and ends up serving lattes on Sunset to the "mentally challenged." Great lyrics.

3. What's Wrong: the opening drum riffs definitely remind me of bands like The Cars, and the rest of the song does not disappoint.

4. Man from Amsterdam: you can see some of his feelings about A.I. and Hollywood sneak through here. I love the guitar work reminiscent of the Red Hot Chili Peppers on "Under the Bridge."

5. If I Go Away: his vocals have a John Mayer feel here and reminds me of why he did so well on A.I.

6. Man Like Me: another great slow one from JPL, probably my favorite on the album.

7. Stories from Hollywood: the chorus on this one reminds me of mid-80s Billy Joel, and that's a good thing.

8. Rodeo: this one sounds like they recorded it live in JPL's garage, but it still has a professional sound to it (reminds me a bit of They Might Be Giants). The lyrics mention Laverne and Shirley, the Three Stooges (before Shemp), and the Lone Ranger. What else could you want?

9. Burning in Hello: it starts with some ZZ Top-ish guitar work and vocals, and keeps on driving ahead. Not one of my favorites on the album, but still very good.

10. Turn to Grey: this one has a great R&B feel (hence the Marvin Gaye reference earlier) and still maintains the style for which JPL is known.

11. Amanda Grace: Very folksy sounding and very good.

My personal favorites are "Boy Next Door," "Man Like Me," and "Amanda Grace." You can hear clips of some of his songs on his My Space page. And Amazon has clips of all the songs on the album. I listened before buying the CD and I knew we'd love it.

On his website JPL mentions how he wanted to distance himself from the heavily pop-influenced albums that A.I. contestants usually end up putting out, and stay closer to music with a rock and roll edge. He's done that and created a great album at the same time. The two years away from A.I. have been good for him, but he'll never erase the memories of those Ford commercials!