AP Album Review

Season seven 'Idol' finalist Phil Stacey releases his debut CD



"Phil Stacey"
Phil Stacey (Lyric Street)

As a season seven finalist on "American Idol," Phil Stacey stood out for his upbeat personality and openly religious style. His debut as a country music
singer follows suit. His songs are filled with breezy pop hooks and positive themes that sometimes cross into spiritual messages.

His faith come naturally. The Kentucky-born singer's father and both
grandfathers, preached in Christian churches. Married since 1998, the
sunny love songs from his self-titled debut seem similarly heartfelt.

Amid all the paeans to devotion - including the album's first hit, "If You
Didn't Love Me" - there are some surprises. The opening "It's Who You
Know," with its familiar religious message about how material success
can't buy eternal life, has a psychedelic edge that would fit on a
Cheap Trick album. Stacey also handles the funky "Find You" and the
dreamy "You Are Mine" with an easy, earthy touch.

The album does stumble a bit toward the end. Stacey sounds unconvincing on the lost-love moaner, "Still Going Through," and can't find the centre of
the clumsily written closing spiritual, "Identity." By time he gets to those, however, he's already proven that he's continuing to take advantage of every good break he gets.

Check out this track:

While most of the album thrives on energy, Stacey shows the breadth of
his potential by how persuasively he handles the stripped down "Be Good
to Each Other," a beautifully simple commentary written by the album's
producer, Wayne Kirkpatrick.

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