GARRIN BENFIELD
Living A Dream (Eighth Note)
Reviewed by Shaun Dale

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Garrin Benfield is a singer/songwriter who works in the genre broadly-labeled as Americana, which in his case is a pastiche of blues, bluegrass, folk and pop. Equally adept at hard rockers and soft ballads, he has an appealing voice, solid guitar skills, and a command of language that sets his songs apart from the pack with literate lyricism.

Openly gay, Benfield dedicates most of the material on the album to his partner of eight years. The songs that describe the joys and travails of their relationship show the universality of human emotion and human relationships. One exception is the excellent "What You're Hiding," a song about the murder of Matthew Shepherd, one of the most tragic cases of gay-bashing in recent years, though hardly the only one.

Garrin Benfield is a new voice with talent and courage. On the road with Boz Skaggs, his music is beginning to get the attention of the wider audience he well deserves.

Track List:

Living A Dream * Vacation * Too Much Information * What You're Hiding * Already Heard * Easy To Guess * We Don't Dance * Theme From Calaveras * If You Find * Leave Me Alone * The Only Friends We Need * Slave * Walking

© 2000 - Shaun Dale