Album Review: Amos Lee – ‘Supply and Demand’

By Jeff Swindoll Oct 3, 2006, 17:24 GMT

Born to be mild? Amos Lee\'s sophomore effort for Blue Note follows firmly in the gentle guitar strums of his well received 2005 debut and opening slots for Norah Jones and Bob Dylan. Little has changed the second time around, which will come as a relief to those enthralled by his first release. He remains a sensitive sort, mixing his insightful, reflective lyrics with lovely, unforced melodies played by backing ...more

As a music reviewer, every once and awhile you run across a pearl.  My pearl has been Amos Lee and his new album ‘Supply and Demand.’  I’ve never heard of him and was expecting a quick listen and review, but I’ll have to admit to loving his sophomore album. 

His debut album being the 2005 self titled album.  He saw some success with the single “Colors” being featured in a DreamWorks movie, Just Like Heaven, and on the two-hour season finale of Grey’s Anatomy.  Another single “Keep it Loose, Keep it Tight” was used on the NBC show Conviction. 

Not that Amos Lee has been a slouch since his debut.  He’s been touring for 3 years with the likes of Bob Dylan, Paul Simon, Merle Haggard, and John Prine.  Not a bad lot those and obvious some of the benefit of rubbing shoulders with such legends has been the influence and inspiration that produced ‘Supply and Demand.’  It was a tour date with Norah Jones, who had heard his self produced EP and booked him as her opening act, that brought the New Jersey native to make his first album.  Lee re-teams with producer Barrie Maguire, who he worked with on his earliest recordings in 2002, for this second album and the results are magical. 

Lee runs to the gamut of emotions – from somewhat humorous to haunting.  He also runs another gamut of styles – from bluesy folk to the breezy, fun “Sweet Pea” (my personal favorite, reminding me of something Leon Redbone might sing).  He also provides some interesting lyrics to go along with his wonderful performances.  For example, take the first track “Shout Out Loud.’  It starts off speaking of loneliness and is punctuated by the upbeat chorus - which makes the upbeat nature of the song have an underlying meaning.

There’s also the chorus of “Freedom,” where Lee sings “Freedom is seldom found by beating someone to the ground.”  Very good stuff in there, but you’ll need to listen carefully – which seems to be Lee’s trademark. He is a musician that you need to listen to carefully to hear all of the carefully chosen lyrics that you might not catch on the first listen through - myself included. 

It would also appear that those touring sessions with the likes of Dylan apparently offered inspiration that was well used in crafting such lyrics - at least my untrained ear seemingly heard a trace of Dylan. 

I know that I’ll be returning to the album many times for a listen and will have to seek out both is past and future albums. ‘Supply and Demand’ is quite an impressive sophomore effort from a very talented musician and well worth your time and money. 

‘Supply and Demand’ is now available at Amazon. Visit the music database for more information and a complete track listing.