Singer
Songwriter Showcase: Donavon Frankenreiter
By Gary Schwind
Donavon Frankenreiter’s self-titled debut
is a good summer CD. The songs are melodic, mellow and easygoing,
as they should be since they were sung by a southern Californian and recorded
in Hawaii. Frankenreiter shows real talent as a singer/songwriter
and displays some pretty good chops, particularly on the closing bluesy
song “Swing on Down.”
The most memorable part of this album for
me is in “Free,” featuring Jack Johnson (Brushfire Fairytales). The
beginning of this song reminds me of “Raindrops Keep Fallin on my Head.”
That’s not a bad thing. After all, who doesn’t want to sing along
whenever they hear that old BJ Thomas song?
However, there is one thing on this album
that I can’t quite get past. Donavon Frankenreiter sounds a lot like
Jack Johnson. My first thought was that having Jack Johnson sing
on this album was completely superfluous. After a little research,
I found that Jack Johnson produced the album and released it on his own
Brushfire Records. Still, perhaps it wasn’t the best idea to have
two singers that sound like Jack Johnson one the same album. Frankenreiter
also reminds me of Clarence Bucaro, particularly on the song “Call Me Papa.”
While all of the songs on this album are
decent enough, not one of them really stands out. That being said,
if you like Jack Johnson’s Brushfire Fairytales or Clarence Bucaro’s
Sweet Corn, you’ll probably really enjoy this too.
CD Info
Donavon
Frankenreiter
Label: Universal
Records
Rating: 
Tracks:
It Don't Matter
Free - (featuring Jack Johnson)
On My Mind
Our Love
What'cha Know About - (featuring G. Love)
Butterfly
Bend In The Road
Day Dreamer
Make You Mine
Call Me Papa
Heading Home
So Far Away
Swing On Down |
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