Aaron Spiro

Item: Sing
Author: Bert Gangl

Sing

(2002)

Reviewed by Bert Gangl

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Label Sparrow RecordsThe Phantom Tollbooth2002

ccm pop rock worship

It's been argued that just about any producer, to one degree or another, places something of a characteristic stamp upon any project that they oversee. Given that all eleven tracks on Seattle native Aaron Spiro's debut outing, Sing, feature some combination of production, songwriting or instrumental input from veteran artist and producer Charlie Peacock, it comes as perhaps no surprise that Peacock's influence figures prominently in the final product. Numbers like "I Surrender" and "The Weight Is Gone" feature plenty of the shimmering, blue-eyed soul and impeccably polished production that Peacock has become famous for. Likewise, "Begins and Ends in You" and "We Will Be There" could pass for lost tracks from Peacock's Coram Deo worship projects, perhaps owing to Spiro's collaborating with Doug McKelvey - who co-wrote five of the ten tracks on the Coram Deo II release - on the songs.

Despite its endearingly familiar texture, though, the greater portion of the album fails to generate much steam in the wake of its largely enervated and undistinguished musical section and oftentimes unimaginative lyrics. In fairness, a few of the more austere, stripped-down compositions, such as the acoustic-based worship odes "Beautiful" and "Forever and Ever," form a fairly engaging foil for Spiro's strong and soulful voice. But, while the bulk of the record undoubtedly makes for relatively pleasant listening, its material, nearly to a song, never truly reaches the point of igniting and taking off. One can't help but wonder what Spiro might have done, given a swaggering set of no-holds-barred rave-ups or intimate collection of languishing, blues-tinged Gospel standards. To be sure, it seems almost a given that a more literate and distinctive assortment of songs would afford the singer a near-ideal opportunity to send the proverbial ball out of the park. This time out, though, he comes up just short.

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