Customer Reviews

Nine Years Alone

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I don't come prepared with any comparisons to other established musicians. The reason being, Dave Hardin is Dave Hardin. His music is original and his voice unique, which make him stand out on stage and on the recordings as well. Short Answer: I recommend the CD.

We're newcomers to Tarpon Springs, Florida. It's Thursday night and our friends from across the street invite us to share coffees and some special music at The Purple Moon, a quaint outdoor cafe in Dunedin. Dave Hardin is playing. Alone. We pick up a table, get some coffee, smell the ocean breeze. A guitar rests on a stand. The other cradled in his arms. He says a few words to the microphone in a deep raspy voice, and then the music starts. His fingers don't seem to move as much as the music would require, and his voice doesn't seem to match the figure in the cowboy boots, the old jeans, and the faded T-shirt. I pay attention to the lyrics. They are whimsical, soft-edged memories strung among the odd chords like flowers through a tangle of vines. Alternative tunings, rich bass and a soft drumming as his fingers pick the strings. I start remembering things from my own childhood, unrelated to the lyrics but weaved out of the same material. For three hours Dave took me back to remote times and places, when things were not so hectic, when we were full-time romantics, where a tree was a best friend. I've had this one song dancing inside my head since last Thursday. I bought the CD. Got the lyrics out of his web site. I can't wait for his next CD.

Here in Pinellas we feel luck to have someone like Dave Hardin in our midst. Since seeing Dave at the Iron Horse in Tarpon Springs, Florida I have been awaiting this CD - that was 6 years ago. Dave still has that enigmatic message in his music (like The Tree). Who couldn't relate! Buy this CD - you won't regret it. And after adding Dave's CD to your collection catch one of his shows...Thursday nights at The Purple Moon brings out a great crowd who love to share Dave's music. Where will we all be when he no longer plays at outdoor cafes?

I hadn't heard of Dave Hardin until last August, when we ran into this friendly guy at a rest stop one night in West Virginia. He was wearing cowboy boots and driving a pick-up and joined my older son and me for a quick chat while stretching our legs after driving halfway across country. He was heading north for a gig in upstate NY, we were heading East. We talked a bit about music and then he laid a copy of "Nine Years Alone" on us and we went on our separate ways. We'd been growing tired of the CD's we had in the car so we put it on. Wow! What a breath of fresh air! Superb musicianship...original, raspy voice...vignettes of his own life, really personal but understandable instantly through our common experiences. This is a well crafted and very personal disk and a real gem. I've been listening every since and hope Dave makes another so more people can get to enjoy a truly original American folk-rock artist. And he even looks a bit like distant cousin Tim....If you read this Dave: thanks.

Dave's ability as a wordsmith is matched by his profound guitar stylings. His use of unusal open guitar tunings embraces the fluid visual imagery he creates with his lyrics.I have never, never been moved as deeply by any other artist. Dave spoke to my heart. Dave took me on a journey back to my chilhood. He brought me, a sizable man to tears with his tapestry of hard earned life lessons. Dave hammered me continously with songs that reached deep into areas that are seldom touched by song. As someone above said...Dave is the REAL deal. Believe it.

I've been a fan of my brother Dave's music since the late 70's, when he used to peck at the keys of the old piano out in our garage. The first time I heard him play a song he wrote (fresh off the USS Eisenhower, on leave Christmas 1980) I knew he had a talent and a gift that's rare, and I've spent many years since listening in awe to literally hundreds of such songs he has since written, a few of which make up his Nine Years Alone CD.
What makes his music different from many songwriters' is that his lyrics aren't pretty rhymes with a catchy tune, set up in a 3 minute format, perfect for airplay. They're little pieces of his life just laid out there to the thumping beat of his fingers on his acoustic guitar, and half of them take eight minutes to run their course. His songs come from the heart, people, and you'd better listen hard, because songwriters are few and far between that can grab your soul with a song, and not let it go until the CD ejects. I've also heard the pre-release of his next CD (yet to be titled), and I've just about worn out my copy. He's....that....good! P.S....if you can somehow get your hands on his old "American" CD that he did with Rick Lee, it's well worth whatever it takes to get it into your stereo.

This cd is a mix of brilliant songwriting with a beautiful painstaking delivery. Dave Hardin is the real deal and deserves to be heard. This cd absolutely blows me away. It's better than anything out there right now. "The Tree" will bring you to tears as will "Nine Years Alone". The album is filled with instant classics and there's not one throwaway song on the disc. With his tales of travel and lost love, Dave Hardin hits you right where you live. He's like an old friend writing songs just for you. I just can't think of enough superlatives to describe this cd...buy it now!

Dave Hardin is a relatively unknown talent whose time has come. Too long a well kept secret in the Tampa Bay area, Hardin is the total package. From his poignant lyrics to his beautiful guitar work, his unpretentious presentation has the ability to suck the listener into his world and evoke the emotions of this simple man living in a complex world. As someone who has seen the man perform live, I can attest to the fact that this disc is the next best thing to being there.
Hardin takes the best qualities of James Taylor, John Prine, Neil Young and John Mellencamp and weaves them into a complex tapestry that is uniquely his own. The music is honest and unpretentious, and hits you in the gut. You feel it as much as listen to it. Order two copies, because you are sure to wear the first one out!

Listened to this on the advice of a friend. That was 2 months ago. It's never left my car CD changer--sittin' there right along side of Van Morrison, Delbert McClinton and Etta James. Dave's an all around music man with a voice, lyrics, guitar touch, and song style that blends together into something very unique. It makes you wonder where this guy's been hiding all this time. Looking forward to hearing more from Dave Hardin.

Dave Hardin is one of the greatest new songwriting voices to emerge in years. His songs are deceptively simple, yet carefully crafted and poignant. His songs remincd me of those penned by other great "everyman" songwriters like John Prine, Randy Newman and John Hiatt. The performances are haunting in their straightforwardness. This is a GREAT record.