Lead singer/songwriter Ralph Covert is probably - scratch that - he is one the most talented songwriters I've had the pleasure of listening to, and the further pleasure of spending time with, learning a little about his craft and the band's experiences in the industry.
The tricks and theories of songwriting are pretty simple when you come down to it - an alternate tuning here, a capo there, an unexpected chord change or two, some accessible lyrics and you have a song.
But in Covert's hands the elements of songwriting become somehow elevated - or turned on their side, or upside down. "Adam McCarthy", probably his most emotionally effective song, is included here, and "Feeling Your Head Against the Wall" and... well, there are 18 songs on this disc and I can't find one that shouldn't make the list.
Sure, there are some throwbacks to Beatle-esque rock and you'll hear an occasional echo of power-pop, and true, a handful of the songs here aren't likely to stick in your mind forever, but it doesn't make them any less pleasant to listen to. And there are quite a few more that will linger.
Two new tracks - "Let Her Go" and "The Reunion" (the last from a movie soundtrack of the same name) - are also enclosed, making it worth owning even if you already have all of the others. In the words of Rob Gillis, of Chicago-based Waterdog Records, "It's like getting a single with 17 bonus tracks."
The real purpose of this album, in addition to bringing out some songs that may have been lost on the CD shelf, is to package Covert and company in a format to which major labels will pay attention, and they should. Waterdog Records makes no pretensions of the fact that they want to be the launching pad for the many bands on their label, and in at least one case (Jason & Alison, whom you've read about here before), it's working.
This is probably one of the only "best of" albums you'll ever see me give four stars to. I hope it takes Covert and friends a long, long way.