Customer Reviews

Hanna-Mceuen

5 star:		(40)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

It's nice to hear some retro-country again...music that wouldn't sound too out of place on the streets of Bakersfield. Yet don't let that isolate you--Hanna McEuen, a talented "new" duo to the country music scene, has such a broad range of musical tastes that just about everything comes together in this cohesive, entertaining debut. The operatic "Ocean" fits snuggly beside the honky-tonk "Rock and a Heartache." And "Something Like a Broken Heart" is so melancholy and inviting that you just can't help but sing along ("Just like an old sad song/It kills you but you sing along").

Seeing as how both guys are talented singer/songwriter/musicians, and sons of two founding members of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, AND have been playing together for years and years, it seems like only a matter of time before these two become stars. Number one hits? Maybe not. But their certainly destined to become alternative favorites, because they're just that talented and unique.

You know how sometimes you buy an album based on one song, and it's awful? Well, this is definitely NOT that album! I heard these guys on the Grand Ole Opry a few months back, and I have been addicted to "Something Like a Broken Heart" since then. I fell in love with "Ocean" when I heard it on the show and have been impatiently waiting to hear it again. I got my CD today and have been listening non-stop, and there is not a bad song to be found. I love the darker mood on "Blue Sunrise." And, there's an old country feel on "Is It Only Me" that brings to mind the days of Marty Robbins. I have to say I'm glad that Hanna-McEuen has stepped up to fill the void of artists with musical talent. So much of the stuff out there today is overrated, but these guys do not disappoint!

I was lucky enough to see these musicians when they warmed up the crowd for Dwight Yoakam at the Tabernacle in Atlanta. I had never heard of them and didn't expect much. They blew everyone away and humbly thanked Mr. Yoakam for allowing them to open for him. Dwight ended up looking and sounding very anemic after listening to Hanna McCuen. They are the real thing...consumate song writers and musicians. The CD we bought at the concert has been played straight through, over and over again. This is music with a big, beating heart.

Nitty Gritty Dirt Band fans already know that founding members Jeff Hanna and John McEuen married a pair of twin sisters and had sons at about the same time. Jaime Hanna and Jonathan McEuen are the sons in question -- and although they're first cousins, they're more like brothers both genetically and musically. (And by the way, in case you wonder which is which -- which you may, since the pictures don't identify them -- McEuen is the one with the glasses.)

Their music is not NGDB:TNG. This is their own stuff in their own style -- vaguely retro-sounding country-pop-rock, with infectious melodies, catchy lyrics, and, occasionally, soaring beauty. Hanna shares credit on the bulk of the songwriting, but McEuen holds up his end too; for some of that aforementioned soaring beauty, check out the closing track, "Ocean," which McEuen cowrote. Hanna also handles most of the lead vocals, but there's a lot of two-part harmony and these guys are tight.

Both of them are fine musicians as well, and they're surrounded by an excellent band (including the great Dan Dugmore on steel guitar).

The songwriting here is very strong. My personal favorites are "Fool Around," "Blue Sunrise," "Is It Only Me," "Someone Else," "Rock and a Heartache," and "Ocean," but you can (and I generally do) play the entire CD without skipping any tracks.

This is the duo's first CD together, and there are lots of us out here who hope it won't be their last.

I can't comment on the state of country radio in the rest the States but I can tell you here in Atlanta it SUX. We had alternative radio station that unfortunately went the way of standards like Sinatra.

I'll get to the point. Once again, I am amazed how country radio can ignore monster talent like these guys, Allison Moorer and Lyle Lovett, to name a few. These guys sound great. A lot like the Eagles and the Mavericks but more importantly, like Hanna-McEuen. My first exposure came while watching the Edge of Country on GAC and witnessing the video for "Something like a Broken Heart." Man if this is not a hook I don't know what is. What a great chorus. I wanted to sing along so bad I just mumbled the chorus until I learned the words so I could at least correctly butcher the voices, "it kills you but sing along."

Then I saw them on the Opry and just froze the channel when I heard McEuen performing "Ocean." Sorry I missed the Leno performance.

I would love to these guys get a lot more exposure. If "Something like a Broken Heart" or "Fool around" will not make the country playlist in Atlanta, nothing will. These guys can still make a nice living on their own without county radio just like Lyle, Julie Roberts and the new Dwight Yoakam CD. I hope it doesn't happen but it's nice to know there are scores of people out there who can find their own music
(with the help of country video) and support it while avoiding the pabulum pushers in Nashville who try to tell us what we should be listening to.

If you like quality music with integrity and talent, buy this CD.

From Billprevails - New Milford, NJ USA

I've been a NGDB fan since I first heard them on the radio and saw them in concert in (yikes!!) 1967 at Steel Pier in Atlantic City, NJ. Needless to say, the names Hanna and McEuen grabbed my attention right away.

There are those rare CD's that you listen to and love EVERY SONG IMMEDIATLY. This is one of them. The writing is excellent, the vocals are fantastic, and the guitar picking is awesome. Special kudos to the piano, organ and steel guitar work.

After a minute, you might think the sound is similar to what Foster and Lloyd were doing in the 90's, but after a few more minutes you realize that they've kicked it up several notches.

I first saw Jaime and Jonathan in Sisters, Oregon at a benefit concert they were doing for the Sister Stary Night Concert Series to benefit the Sisters school system. I grew up listening to the NGDB and after hearing Jaime and Jonathan preform, was totally blown away at the talent these two preformers have. There is only a few times every decade that we come across two preformers so gifted and talanted. The songs are the type that draw you to them over and over again. Although I am not the greatest musical type person, I found I just couldn't put this album down when I first heard it. No matter what level of musical knowledge you have, you will appreciate this album. One of my favorite albums!

I first heard this album while flying home from Austria when their twin-sister mothers were next to me on the plane. They lent me the album, and I listened for probably 4 hours and NEVER got tired of it. Every song is a good one. I am now online getting ready to buy it. These young men are amazing, and I am NOT a Country Music fan AT ALL, and I have never written a review for any album before.
Thanks to you, Jamie and Jonathan, you are amazing.

I'm in total agreement with the other reviews I read. These guys have an original and refreshing new sound. If "Something like a Broken Heart" doesn't get you singing along in your car, check with your doctor to see if your heart's still beating. I'm basically a classic rock fan who has drifted towards country since moving an hour from Nashville. These guys have given country music the transfusion its needed for a long time. Radio stations who don't play more of their stuff on the radio are doing their listeners a big disservice. Keep the CD's coming guys. Hope you schedule a concert in the Nashville area SOON !!!!!

First album for this new and rather high-class duet, Jaimie Hanna and Jonathan Mc Euen. Rings a bell? Fair enough, they are the sons of Jeff Hanna and John Mc Euen the members of the fabulous Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. In the tradition of their fathers, the two partners play several instruments : guitar, mandolin, harmonica, banjo...And they both have written the whole album. But you need talent to do it, and quite a few have failed before them.At first, their high-class look seems weird, but on hearing the first item, "Fool Around", we feel more at ease, it's worth listening to.The two of them work perfectly together, with original songs, sometimes very "country" (with a lot of baryton guitars, great!) sometimes more "seventies". The ballads, like the beautiful "Ocean", are gorgeous, "Blue Sunrise" or "Rock and a Heartache" are perfect. This is a gem of an album, you'll listen to it again and again, for hours, and tell your friends about it. This is the kind of music you will love, even if you're a newcomer or if you hate country music, we are talking good music here, true and honest. So I say "good job" : it's never easy to add a first name to a famous name, but, well, when you have talent...Their dads must be proud.
FACM ( French Association of Country Music - )