Greg Greenway

January 4 - 11, 1 9 9 6

*** Greg Greenway

SINGING FOR THE LANDLORD

(Eastern Front)

Greenway invests these 12 original folk-pop compositions with a gospel-like fervor well-suited to their lyrical and emotional intensity. Alternately personal and political, the Boston-based singer-songwriter is fond of the big statement, and on numbers like "Lay Down This Weight" and "One Man, One Woman, One Vote," about the first free elections in South Africa, he sings with a passion to match the message. He occasionally straddles the border of over-earnestness, but his attention to detail ("Boys from the city don't leave their backs exposed/The lesson comes early, you keep only what you can hold") and self-awareness ("This lifelong role of a problem man with an angry soul") keep him from coming across as self-righteous. His tunes boast a strong, rhythmic pulse, occasionally hinting at world-beat textures à la Paul Simon, and his vocals have a smooth, yearning quality that recalls James Taylor. He is ably assisted on this locally recorded effort by a cast that includes Jonatha Brooke of the Story. Call him a more listener-friendly version of Bruce Cockburn in a musical landscape patented by Shawn Colvin.

-- Seth Rogovoy

(Greg Greenway performs at Club Passim in Harvard Square tonight, January 4.)