The profound and different Rob Thomas

There is something uniquely appealing about Rob Thomas. He is not tabloid fodder like most music stars. There is also nothing flamboyant about his music. Thomas just makes songs we enjoy listening to. Easy on the ears but never without the rock edge, his music encourages head-nodding, toe-tapping and brings out the longing to get up and dance or at the very least, sway to the beat.

That is true during his outings with his group matchbox 20. Bent, Push, Unwell, 3:A.M., If You’re Gone, Real World. It is the same with his solo efforts. Lonely No More, Ever The Same. That is also true during his occasional collaborations with other artists, as with the phenomenally successful and Grammy winning Smooth with the legendary Santana. 

Come to think of it, even more remarkable is the fact that Thomas has lately been shuttling successfully between two acts. One is the solo artist, Rob Thomas and the other is as the soloist of matchbox 20. He went solo in the multi-platinum selling Something To Be four years ago and produced hits. 

He returned to matchbox 20 two years later with Exile On Mainstream. That was a two CD release made up of the band’s greatest hits in one disc and new recordings in the other. Of course, they also made hits. He is now back on his own with the recently released Cradlesong and it looks like he has another batch of hit songs to count.

This is Thomas’ second solo CD and just like most of his works, it is fresh, catchy, energetic and thoroughly enjoyable. His focus here is on percussion instruments and you will find these dominating most of the songs. Whether real or synthesized, these give the album a joyous, infectious lilt.

Someday and Natural are the stand-out, emo ballads that should go big with local fans. For those who want an uptempo tune, Mockingbird will be a great choice. Fire On The Mountain is the big arena rock entry. There are also the first single Her Diamonds, plus Gasoline, Give Me The Meltdown, Real World ’09, Hard On You and Still Ain’t Over You.

I do not know if he really likes it this way or if he is just catering to what the buyers want. But I can say with lots of emphasis that Thomas clearly knows the sort of pop-rock music that sells. So that is what he makes. He does not attempt to seem profound or to be different. As a result, he turns out to be just that, profound and different, but with no effort showing.

Thomas writes songs with pronounced, well-structured melodies. His topics are timely and easy to relate to, mostly love songs that sound quite sexy. He never meanders and his huge choruses usually build up to a satisfying end. This guy is a music producer’s dream come true. Listening to Cradlesong, I cannot help but wish, there were more of him around.

If you want easy proof of all these, then listen to Cradlesong and take note of how well is put together. You will feel the songs going into high gear, hear how it reaches a climax with the album’s best cuts and surely my top favorites, the beautiful Snowbird and the producer’s masterpiece Wonderful. Then it proceeds to taper off with, Cradlesong, which is so full of feeling and accompanied only by an acoustic guitar. And then, it quietly ends with Getting Late.  

You might not say it aloud. But I am sure you will also think, wow!

Billboard’s top selling CDs

The 10 Top selling CDs of the week as per Billboard Magazines Top 200 Albums list are: Now 31 by Various Artists; American Saturday Night by Brad Paisley; Cradlesong by Rob Thomas; Wilco (The Album) by Wilco; The E.N.D. by The Black Eyed Peas; Jeremih by Jeremih; Killswitch Engage by Killswitch Engage; Lines, Vines And Trying Times by Jonas Brothers; Relapse by Eminem; and The Fame by Lady Gaga.

And here now are the top 10 singles in the Hot 100 Chart: I Gotta Feeling by The Black Eyed Peas; Boom Boom Pow also by The Black Eyed Peas; Best I Ever Had by Drake; Knock You Down by Keri Hilson featuring Kanye West & Ne-Yo; LoveGame by Lady Gaga; Fire Burning by Sean Kingston; Birthday Sex by Jeremih; I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho) by Pitbull; You Belong To Me by Taylor Swift; and New Divide by Linkin Park.