Trouble :: Education by Design Store

Editorial Review
Some singer/songwriters (think Paul Westerberg and Elliott Smith) develop their world-weariness through the unforgiving trials of passing years and the heart-breaking grind of the music business. Others (Van Morrison, Neil Young) seem to have sprung from out of nowhere with the fully formed soul of a life well-lived. Ray LaMontagne belongs with the latter. On this, his debut, LaMontagne has crafted a handful of quietly devastating meditations on life and love--and delivered them with a raspy vocal all his own. The simple, mournful lyrics of "Burn," "Shelter" and the title track recall a Hank Williams ballad, and the reserved production by alt-country/americana genius Ethan Johns (the Jayhawks, Ryan Adams, Kings of Leon) make this a great disc for smoky Saturday nights, and rainy Sunday mornings. --Ben Heege
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Customer Reviews

Great CD

2008-09-18
Ray has a very interesting quality in his voice which ads a dimenmsion to almost any lyric. The Lyrics are very thought provoking making this a good purchase.

Moving Music By A New Master

2008-09-15
Ray LaMontagne is one of the great new artist to come onto the music scene in recent years - and one that will be recognized as a great musician, vocalist and songwriter years to come.

Ray Lamontagne, Renaissance Man

2008-09-04
That voice! It makes me think of some of the best, most soulful singers ever. Otis redding. Bobby Womack. Van Morrison. Stephen Stills. Not because Ray sounds like any of them, but because his voice just has that very special, warm sound that touches your soul. And he's a damn fine songwriter, too. Trouble, Shelter, All The Wild Horses, and Jolene (my favorite) are wonderful. This wasn't just a promising debut album, when it was released, it was a very convincing one. Ray got it right the first time around.

get into "Trouble" its the good kind ..

2008-08-12
Really good start for a "New" artist. Wild Horses is my favorite. Thats about what it took to drag me away from the stereo the first couple days of having this. Once it started getting a little too "heavy" I shuffled it inwith some "Norah Jones" {another favorite} they may both have that nostalgic "sound" but the "voice" sets them apart. Ray Lamontagne "Trouble" is worth the "effort". Snap it up while you can. The originality is "priceless".

Fantastic

2008-07-04
I bought this album based on the strength of just one song...I was so happily suprised to find the entire album was great. There are not a lot of albums I enjoy listening to start to finish; When I find one I put it on my "desert island" short list--this album made it there right away. The songs are simple, well crafted and beautiful. LaMontagne's voice is gorgeous and can run from mournful to joyful in three songs. He cites both Otis Redding and CSNY as influences and both are apparent on different tracks without the artist ever once sounding unoriginal. Loved it. I took away one star for one reason only, and maybe its an unfair one--the album is extremely mellow almost entirely, which means there may be certain times and or places that its just not the one you reach for.

Trouble

2008-06-04
Some singer/songwriters (think Paul Westerberg and Elliott Smith) develop their world-weariness through the unforgiving trials of passing years and the heart-breaking grind of the music business. Others (Van Morrison, Neil Young) seem to have sprung from out of nowhere with the fully formed soul of a life well-lived. Ray LaMontagne belongs with the latter. On this, his debut, LaMontagne has crafted a handful of quietly devastating meditations on life and love--and delivered them with a raspy vocal all his own. The simple, mournful lyrics of "Burn," "Shelter" and the title track recall a Hank Williams ballad, and the reserved production by alt-country/americana genius Ethan Johns (the Jayhawks, Ryan Adams, Kings of Leon) make this a great disc for smoky Saturday nights, and rainy Sunday mornings. --Ben Heege

beautiful voice

2008-06-02
What a gorgeous voice this man has. I love this album - it's soulful and great to relax to. My favorite tracks are Trouble and Hannah.

Trouble

2008-04-30
This is a great album. From 'Trouble' to 'Shelter' to 'How Come,' I am just blown away by all the tracks.

A Ted Hawkins rip-off

2008-04-13
Just got the CD today in the mail. Rushed to work and popped it in the office player. Within minutes all the laughing people were depressed and the sun just wasn't shining as brightly as before. A true downer.

Would not purchase from this seller again

2008-04-04
I did not end up receiving my order although I did receive a refund. I would not order from this seller again.