Groucutt and Haynes: ...another good reason

[John (Biscuits and Gravy) Davy]

http://www.groucuttandhaynes.com 

Rob Groucutt and Dan Haynes are two young singer-songwriters from the West Midlands who discovered that they had enough in common that it might be worth taking the plunge as a duo. This initial album, from 2009, suggests that it was a sound decision because this is really bright, sunny music, with the two guys' voices fitting together so nicely that the comparisons that have been made with Simon and Garfunkel are by no means ridiculous.  Those comparisons are probably made partly on the basis of the acoustic guitar style, which is indeed very reminiscent of Paul Simon, but the other name frequently mentioned is Jack Johnson and, overall, that might be a more valid comparison. It's remarkable that two young fellows from the West Midlands could sing and play as if they had as much sunshine in their bones as the Hawaiian, but they certainly do. Perhaps its testament to sunny dispositions and a generous dose of youthful optimism; whatever it springs from, it's really refreshing to hear.

          This album is an early merging of their songwriting; there are a few co-writes but most of the songs seem to date from before they came together. The work that's gone into making this album seems to have erased any sharp edge of difference there may have been in their styles and pretty much every song comes over as fitting perfectly into the sound they've conceived for the partnership.  It's actually quite hard to pin down the heart of their sound, though. The delicacy of  the vocals and the sweetness of their harmonies is probably the biggest peg to latch onto, but there's so much more going on. They definitely have an ear for a decent pop treatment. There's echoes of all sorts of 70s music throughout this album and at times they sound like a less brashly produced Jamiroquai - who after all had a strong 70s basis to their string of hits -  whilst the song High On The Time has a chirpy bounce to it that could sound Beatles-ish, if it wasn't for the Madness style saxophone hooting away cheerfully.

          So, having referenced more comparisons than is reasonable, I guess I have to give up and say that whilst these guys may remind you of a host of old favourites, they are carving their own distinct niche, a happy amalgam  of sunny songwriting, beautiful singing, excellent guitar picking and sensitive production. Rob and Dan's eloquent guitar playing feature strongly but all the rest of the playing around them is excellent, with the drumming/percussion being particularly good. The drumming provides a punchy, firm rhythm that beefs the sound up without ever seeming oppressive or inappropriate; I think it's Rob's brother who plays with them on stage  but it looks like it must have been Rob or Dan, or both of them, in the studio. Good work, whoever it was. There's a new album in the process of being recorded but whilst we're waiting for that I'd recommend checking out ...another good reason.

 

John Davy

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