Artist: Gavin DeGraw

Title: Gavin DeGraw

Label: RCA

Rating: 5/10

The hits:
“In Love With a Girl” - Not the greatest hit you’ll hear–but its not hard to listen and know that this could be in the Top-40. DeGraw’s voice is silky and potent.
“Young Love” - A beautiful love song that is easy to overlook.
“She Holds a Key” - This reminds me of John Mellencamp. Why–who knows. It’s a heartland style song, but with the big voice of DeGraw.

The rest:
“Next To Me” - Beautiful vocals can’t make up for a flat love song.
“Cop Stop” - This doesn’t work at all. Mostly because the lyrics are terrible: “I’m a cop/ stop/ put up your hands and surrender to me.”

Finally:
Gavin DeGraw has a fantastic voice. Perhaps DeGraw should get with some great songwriters to take advantage of his amazing voice. He’s far better with the love songs than the uptempo tracks. It’s a shame to hear such a great voice without great songs.