CD of the Week: Emerson Hart

EMERSON HART
"CIGARETTES & GASOLINE"
(Manhattan, 2007)

You might not recognize the name, but you'll recognize the voice. As the frontman for the rock band Tonic, Emerson Hart helped grace radio, as well as a good few movie soundtracks, with hits like "If You Could Only See" and "You Wanted More". Now, he strikes out on his own with his solo debut, "Cigarettes & Gasoline", bringing with him much of the formula that made Tonic the great but underrated band it was.

That's not to say, though, that this is "the lost Tonic album". While some of the songs clearly show that he was the primary creative force behind that band, Hart has gladly added a few atypical touches to some of these tracks, in the form of unique percussion and light dashes of folk and jazz. The stop-and-start drum beat at the beginning of the opening track, "Run To", is almost like a fish hook snagged on the listener's shirt, tugging them into giving the album their undivided attention (it works, at least in my case). The first single, "If You're Gonna Leave", sounds much like a song Tonic would have released (no doubt the reason it was chosen as the lead-off single), but is enjoyable despite its been-there-done-that feel. "When She Loves You" runs the risk of being just another trite love song, but there's an intangible something that makes it engaging -- probably the heartfelt delivery in Hart's vocals. Then there's the exquisitely beautiful ballad, "Flyin'", probably the best track on the disc ... although the deliciously immersive instrumentals in "Friend To a Stranger" gives it major competition. The swaggering, bluesy, soul-searching "Ordinary" is another standout track.

I have a dreadful fear that this album will slip unnoticed into obscurity, as has happened with so many excellent albums lately. I just hope that enough people who really enjoyed Tonic, but are open to something a bit more singer-songwritery, will be aware of Emerson Hart's connection to the band and give it a try. This is an album that, in a perfect and just world, will make Emerson Hart a star.