Stone Gossard
BAYLEAF
(COLUMBIA)

The first real offering from Pearl Jam guitarist Stone Gossard (who also does part-time duty in the Shawn Smith vehicle Brad) feels less like a declaration of independence and more like a way to kill the increasingly lengthy wait between Pearl Jam records. Gossard, it turns out, is a decent singer and an adept and clever songwriter, even if he doesn’t seem to have anything revolutionary to say. Bayleaf is an old-fashioned rock album that brings to mind any number of classic, testosterone-charged, early-’70s rockers; it’s tempered by the sort of shambling, semi-stoner sensibility that has become the purview of grunge sidemen from Seattle (see Wellwater Conspiracy).

" Anchors " is a pleasantly languid psychedelic number; the cheerfully lame " Cadillac " compares women to cars, a cliché so old it almost seems new again; and the chugging " Pigeon, " with its " I’m not through sleeping around " tag line, is lugheaded and anachronistic. Despite his singing ability, Gossard surrenders a good portion of Bayleaf’s vocals, including the catchy and slick first single, " Unhand Me, " to guest vocalist Ty Wilman — a move that can give the curious impression he’s merely visiting his own solo debut. Still, much of Bayleaf is unpracticed and fun — the sort of album people used to make merely because they wanted to.

Issue Date: September 27 - October 4, 2001