Search - Hal Ketchum :: Awaiting Redemption

A Breakthrough CD from a Brilliant Singer/Songwriter

S. Scribner | St. Louis, MO USA | 01/05/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I've always loved Hal Ketchum, but this album is a quantum leap beyond anything he's released before. It's intimate, heartbreaking, beautiful and raw. Not at all typical country, it incorporates blues and rock in a way that even my husband, who hates country music, pricked up his ears and remarked, "Who is this? This is really interesting!" I'm sorry Hal had to go through the hell he apparently endured in the past few years, but this is an honest breakthrough album similar in feeling (if not in sound) to Bonnie Raitt's "Nick of Time" and John Hiatt's "Bring the Family." I hope the Powers That Be in Nashville allow Hal to continue releasing great albums like this that push the boundaries of the genre."

What Garth could not do

ScrewtapeJ@aol.com | Boston, MA | 12/01/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"With this album, Hal has accomplished what Garth Brooks tried to do by creating his alter-ego Chris Gaines. He has shown us the variety and depth of his musical talent, without betraying his country roots, nor trying to hide behind a false persona. Hal plays some rock, some blues, some country, and its all music form the heart. I can't get over what an incredible album this is. Anyone with a desire for passionate music should pick this one up. You'll never put it down."

Redemption at last!

Robert Vallecillo | Metairie, LA United States | 10/18/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This CD is awesome from beginning to end. It has to be Hal's best CD release to date, partially due to the fact that the songs were recorded live in the studio. The songwriting is superb; listen to the tenderness of the opening song "Days of Wonder." There are five songs previously recorded on the I SAW THE LIGHT CD that are given a new treatment here. The live recordings give the songs a new life, removing the polished studio sound that was evident in prior releases. "Dear Anna Lee" was written in the hull of a ferryboat in which Ketchum stowed away. It is delivered as a letter from a man who is lost at sea in a storm to his girl back home and describes the feelings of hopelessness and despair experienced. "When Blue Was Just A Color" is a great song about sadness. My favorite song on this CD is the bluesy title cut, "Awaiting Redemption," which features a hot electric guitar solo by producer Stephen Bruton. I can't say anything negative about any of the cuts on this CD, and that's a rare thing for me to say."