Andy Grammer - The Good Parts (2017)

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Andy Grammer - The Good Parts (2017)

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Andy Grammer returns with a new CD that may be the most rewarding and introspective recording of his career. The disc features 13 stellar performances, all of which Grammer is credited with co-writing. Bookended with singles "Smoke Clears" and "Give Love", the album features stellar grooves and the positive vibes that Grammer is known for, but there are plenty of tunes which celebrate the complexity of being a human being. Life is messy seems to be the message of some of these selections. On the stellar "Workin' On It", Grammer opines "we all got monsters that don't see the daylight, skeletons you're hiding ain't going to leave overnight", concluding that the best we can do is to be "workin' on it". The title song "The Good Parts" actually refers to the failures and faults that we hide deep inside, insisting that we need to be vulnerable enough to not "leave the good parts out". "Freeze" celebrates the good times in a relationship that feel so special you don't want to slip away and would freeze in time if only you could.

"Fresh Eyes" is also featured, a song that celebrates long term relationships and learning to appreciate a partnership anew. It broke some Internet records as a single and is one of Grammer's chestnuts. "Spaceship" is a tender, touching love poem to Grammer's daughter when she was still in the womb, with whimsical lyrics such as "I'm staring at a screen of your beating heart, she been in the lab cooking you up, even if you don't know it yet, somebody loves you, we're making plans, waiting for your spaceship to land." The tune is funky and happy. The tender ballad "Always", is another father/daughter love song, with a beautiful soaring melody and heartfelt lyrics. "Your clothes, your shoes and your best friends, they ain't gonna stay the same. Your reckless years and your mistakes I promise you they fade away, you and me will be always."

"Grown Ass Man Child" celebrates the little boy that Grammer still can summon from within himself and is probably the album's funkiest track, as if Grammer let the Ohio Players or Kool and the Gang inhabit his body for a three minute or so romp. "85" channels Paul Simon's "You Can Call Me Al" with Simonesque vocals and the message of Billy Joel's "Anthony's Song" about not living to 85 and regretting spending your life chasing the almighty dollar. It is one of the strongest tracks and a standout. Also in Paul Simon territory are the vocals on what may be my favorite by a hair, the excellent "Civil War" in which Grammer questions God "why did you make me if you always knew I'd be a civil war", referring to the constant pull of good and bad and positive and negative influences that are the lot of human beings. It is an exceptional song, executed flawlessly. "Grow" exhorts the listener to "love yourself and be kind, water your soul, celebrate, find your light, it don't matter who you are, where you're going, young or old, we all know, we gotta grow."

"Smoke Clears" is another Grammer classic, the current single, celebrating the rewards of a long term relationship, while "This Ain't Love" is Grammer admitting he doesn't do casual dating or sex well but believes in holding out for the person who holds the promise of true love. One of my all time Grammer favorites with one of the best lines in a pop song ever is "Give Love" with the stellar line "my mother was a sunshine soldier, every day was a dream come true, she said that we were blessed by the breath deep inside us, she could make the colors in the sky turn blue." Featuring the rap of hip hop star Lunch Money Lewis, "Give Love" is the perfect upbeat ending to an album that celebrates both the positive and harsh aspects of existence. It is an album that deserves a thousand and more good listens!

~ Bruce A. Potts, Amazon

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Andy Grammer - The Good Parts (2017)

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Andy Grammer - The Good Parts (2017)

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