John Hiatt
Same Old Man
(new west)
Same Old Man sounds like the work of a middle-aged man who’s content with his life. The songs on it aren’t covering yesterday, but providing a closer look at where the man is today (along the lines of Neil Young’s Silver & Gold). Old tried-and-true topics (love, relationships) are covered throughout. There are no toe-tappers on Same Old Man, and at this point Hiatt doesn\’t sound like he’s concerned. This sounds like a CD he made for himself, whatever the public/industry opinion. The self-produced disc breaks no new ground and it’s not in the ballpark of Bring The Family or Stolen Moments, but you can’t hit a homerun every time.
—Aaron Hartling
This article appears in Aug 21-27, 2008.