KENNY WHITE
Uninvited Guest (self-released)
Reviewed by Shaun Dale

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During a quarter of a century or so in the music business, Kenny White has racked up an impressive array of credentials and awards while managing to avoid almost any personal notice. Whether it's been spotlighting products as one of New York's top jingle writers for over a decade or spotlighting other artists as a producer, composer and sideman, he's developed a great industry reputation, and reaped Clio and Grammy awards along the way. Now he's taken a step toward the spotlight with the release of the first album under his own name, Uninvited Guest.

Of course, in the process of making other people sound so good, he's made good friends out of many of them, some of whom are along to help out with his solo project. In addition to a who's who of NYC A-list studio players, he's joined by some of the artists he's produced for, including Peter Wolf, Marc Cohn and Shaun Colvin.

The spotlight's on White, though. His voice, piano, organ and guitar are all put in service to his songs, and he's a terrific songwriter who can move smoothly between styles while putting a personal stamp on each track. Of course, someone who's built a career around composing memorable music in 30 second slices is bound to be a master when it comes to crafting hooks, and there's something to catch your ear on every cut. Just as notable, though, is his skill as a lyricist. He has a keen ear for language and uses his words to tell original stories about recognizable characters and situations.

This is solid pop music for the adult contemporary audience. Kenny White's about to get noticed.

Track List:

Uninvited Guest * Cold Winter Wind * The Beautiful Changes * Every Time You Walk Away * In My Recurring Dream * Johnny's Got A Crush On Marilyn * Don't Go Out Tonight * One Step Up * In Our Hands * Last Stop * Ready To Leave All This Behind

[Pick this up at amazon.com.]

© 2002 - Shaun Dale