"You know how sometimes you buy an album based on one song, and it's awful? Well, this is definitely NOT that album! I heard these guys on the Grand Ole Opry a few months back, and I have been addicted to "Something Like a Broken Heart" since then. I fell in love with "Ocean" when I heard it on the show and have been impatiently waiting to hear it again. I got my CD today and have been listening non-stop, and there is not a bad song to be found. I love the darker mood on "Blue Sunrise." And, there's an old country feel on "Is It Only Me" that brings to mind the days of Marty Robbins. I have to say I'm glad that Hanna-McEuen has stepped up to fill the void of artists with musical talent. So much of the stuff out there today is overrated, but these guys do not disappoint!"
Retro-country gets up-graded!
DanD | 08/17/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"It's nice to hear some retro-country again...music that wouldn't sound too out of place on the streets of Bakersfield. Yet don't let that isolate you--Hanna McEuen, a talented "new" duo to the country music scene, has such a broad range of musical tastes that just about everything comes together in this cohesive, entertaining debut. The operatic "Ocean" fits snuggly beside the honky-tonk "Rock and a Heartache." And "Something Like a Broken Heart" is so melancholy and inviting that you just can't help but sing along ("Just like an old sad song/It kills you but you sing along").
Seeing as how both guys are talented singer/songwriter/musicians, and sons of two founding members of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, AND have been playing together for years and years, it seems like only a matter of time before these two become stars. Number one hits? Maybe not. But their certainly destined to become alternative favorites, because they're just that talented and unique."
Anytime you wanna fool around
John S. Ryan | Silver Lake, OH | 01/01/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Nitty Gritty Dirt Band fans already know that founding members Jeff Hanna and John McEuen married a pair of twin sisters and had sons at about the same time. Jaime Hanna and Jonathan McEuen are the sons in question -- and although they're first cousins, they're more like brothers both genetically and musically. (And by the way, in case you wonder which is which -- which you may, since the pictures don't identify them -- McEuen is the one with the glasses.)
Their music is not NGDB:TNG. This is their own stuff in their own style -- vaguely retro-sounding country-pop-rock, with infectious melodies, catchy lyrics, and, occasionally, soaring beauty. Hanna shares credit on the bulk of the songwriting, but McEuen holds up his end too; for some of that aforementioned soaring beauty, check out the closing track, "Ocean," which McEuen cowrote. Hanna also handles most of the lead vocals, but there's a lot of two-part harmony and these guys are tight.
Both of them are fine musicians as well, and they're surrounded by an excellent band (including the great Dan Dugmore on steel guitar).
The songwriting here is very strong. My personal favorites are "Fool Around," "Blue Sunrise," "Is It Only Me," "Someone Else," "Rock and a Heartache," and "Ocean," but you can (and I generally do) play the entire CD without skipping any tracks.
This is the duo's first CD together, and there are lots of us out here who hope it won't be their last."
Good stuff
Michael C. Merck | Suwanee, GA United States | 09/23/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I can't comment on the state of country radio in the rest the States but I can tell you here in Atlanta it SUX. We had alternative radio station that unfortunately went the way of standards like Sinatra.
I'll get to the point. Once again, I am amazed how country radio can ignore monster talent like these guys, Allison Moorer and Lyle Lovett, to name a few. These guys sound great. A lot like the Eagles and the Mavericks but more importantly, like Hanna-McEuen. My first exposure came while watching the Edge of Country on GAC and witnessing the video for "Something like a Broken Heart." Man if this is not a hook I don't know what is. What a great chorus. I wanted to sing along so bad I just mumbled the chorus until I learned the words so I could at least correctly butcher the voices, "it kills you but sing along."
Then I saw them on the Opry and just froze the channel when I heard McEuen performing "Ocean." Sorry I missed the Leno performance.
I would love to these guys get a lot more exposure. If "Something like a Broken Heart" or "Fool around" will not make the country playlist in Atlanta, nothing will. These guys can still make a nice living on their own without county radio just like Lyle, Julie Roberts and the new Dwight Yoakam CD. I hope it doesn't happen but it's nice to know there are scores of people out there who can find their own music
(with the help of country video) and support it while avoiding the pabulum pushers in Nashville who try to tell us what we should be listening to.
If you like quality music with integrity and talent, buy this CD.