TOM HEINL
With Or Without Me (Leisure King)
Reviewed by DJ Johnson

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This is one of the most surprising and interesting CDs to show up around here in a long time. Tom Heinl is a eclectic artist with an authentic country heart. That means when the song is country, it's the real deal, and when it's something else, like the quirky, carnivalesque "IHOP" or the cool, rhythmically rocking "Pinto Squire," there's still plenty of country spirit mixed in. Heinl sings with a baritone that sits somewhere between Johnny Cash and Junior Brown and his delivery is dead on target every time. His songs deserve that treatment, too. He's got humor and irony all figured out, but right when you're waiting for a funny punch line he's just apt to knock you over with something very real and profound. Why isn't this Tom Heinl a household name? Maybe middle country America isn't ready for songs about 3-way sex - at least ones where the hero doesn't end up getting lucky after all. If you still need a reason to buy this CD, try this: the entire track list, all eleven songs, repeat without Heinl for your karaoke enjoyment. That might sound kind of weird, until you get hear the album a few times and realize that you're going to fall in love with, and easily memorize, Tom Heinl's clever tunes. Cute feature.

[To order this CD, visit www.tomheinl.com.]

© 2004 - DJ Johnson