You Love Me, Love Me Not - Hal Ketchum, Koller, Fred
Too Many Memories - Hal Ketchum, Bruton, Stephen
Awaiting Redemption
Slow Down Sunset
Tell Me - Hal Ketchum, Bruton, Stephen
The Unforgiven
When Blue Was Just a Color - Hal Ketchum, Funderburgh
Turn of the Wheel
Dear Anna Lee
Lonely Old Me - Hal Ketchum, Hummon, Marcus
Throughout his career, Hal Ketchum has pitted his pushing, gritty roots rock against his pushing, wimpy singer-songwriter muse; his Lyle Lovett smarts against his Michael McDonald sensibility. On Awaiting Redemption the gr... more »it and the smarts win out most, thanks to soulful, skittering grooves (the title track), distressed blues licks ("When Blue Was Just a Color"), and a sense of spirituality that comes across more wise than preachy (a fine version of producer Stephen Bruton's great "Too Many Memories"). And while lines like "You let down your golden hair and I climbed into your garden" don't sing any better than they read, Ketchum usually pulls them off through a sheer commitment to their worth. One more argument for the importance of being earnest. --David Cantwell« less
Throughout his career, Hal Ketchum has pitted his pushing, gritty roots rock against his pushing, wimpy singer-songwriter muse; his Lyle Lovett smarts against his Michael McDonald sensibility. On Awaiting Redemption the grit and the smarts win out most, thanks to soulful, skittering grooves (the title track), distressed blues licks ("When Blue Was Just a Color"), and a sense of spirituality that comes across more wise than preachy (a fine version of producer Stephen Bruton's great "Too Many Memories"). And while lines like "You let down your golden hair and I climbed into your garden" don't sing any better than they read, Ketchum usually pulls them off through a sheer commitment to their worth. One more argument for the importance of being earnest. --David Cantwell
A Breakthrough CD from a Brilliant Singer/Songwriter
S. Scribner | St. Louis, MO USA | 01/05/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I've always loved Hal Ketchum, but this album is a quantum leap beyond anything he's released before. It's intimate, heartbreaking, beautiful and raw. Not at all typical country, it incorporates blues and rock in a way that even my husband, who hates country music, pricked up his ears and remarked, "Who is this? This is really interesting!" I'm sorry Hal had to go through the hell he apparently endured in the past few years, but this is an honest breakthrough album similar in feeling (if not in sound) to Bonnie Raitt's "Nick of Time" and John Hiatt's "Bring the Family." I hope the Powers That Be in Nashville allow Hal to continue releasing great albums like this that push the boundaries of the genre."
What Garth could not do
ScrewtapeJ@aol.com | Boston, MA | 12/01/1999
(5 out of 5 stars)
"With this album, Hal has accomplished what Garth Brooks tried to do by creating his alter-ego Chris Gaines. He has shown us the variety and depth of his musical talent, without betraying his country roots, nor trying to hide behind a false persona. Hal plays some rock, some blues, some country, and its all music form the heart. I can't get over what an incredible album this is. Anyone with a desire for passionate music should pick this one up. You'll never put it down."
Redemption at last!
Robert Vallecillo | Metairie, LA United States | 10/18/2001
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This CD is awesome from beginning to end. It has to be Hal's best CD release to date, partially due to the fact that the songs were recorded live in the studio. The songwriting is superb; listen to the tenderness of the opening song "Days of Wonder." There are five songs previously recorded on the I SAW THE LIGHT CD that are given a new treatment here. The live recordings give the songs a new life, removing the polished studio sound that was evident in prior releases. "Dear Anna Lee" was written in the hull of a ferryboat in which Ketchum stowed away. It is delivered as a letter from a man who is lost at sea in a storm to his girl back home and describes the feelings of hopelessness and despair experienced. "When Blue Was Just A Color" is a great song about sadness. My favorite song on this CD is the bluesy title cut, "Awaiting Redemption," which features a hot electric guitar solo by producer Stephen Bruton. I can't say anything negative about any of the cuts on this CD, and that's a rare thing for me to say."
Ripping the gloss off
11/22/1999
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Ketchum's last cd exemplified some of the worst traits of contemporary Nashville: pandering to radio trends of the week, glossy overproduction, a reluctance to take chances that borders on obsession...Ketchum himself admitted that his heart was just not in the last cd. I first listened to "Past the Point of Rescue" (originally sung by Mary Black--check it out; it's gorgeous) because Ketchum brought something new to the country formula: radio-ready yes, but folky and interesting songs beautifully sung. "I Saw the Light" seemed like pandering to radio. "Awaiting Redemption" has soul, grit and heart. If Ketchum continues in this vein, he won't have to wait for redemption. He has already redeemed himself."