Brooke White's 'High Hopes' Makes '70s Sound Fresh

Douglas Boultinghouse
Arts & Entertainment Editor

Courtesy of Amazon

High Hopes and Heartbreak - Brooke White released her album July 21, 2009 on June Baby Records. White finished in fifth place on the seventh season of "American Idol" in 2008.

   Brooke White charmed America when she competed on the seventh season of "American Idol," finishing in fifth place. Her bubbly personality and long blonde locks - combined with her sweet vocals and guitar and piano skills - set her apart as the breath of fresh air as she made classic sounds seem current.

   White often received comparisons to '70s icons Carole King and Carly Simon. With her release of the album "High Hopes and Heartbreak," she proves she could be this generations King or Simon. She masters Folk/Pop so well, years from now, when the infomercials air on television advertising musical standards, you will likely hear the name Brooke White.

   White co-wrote 11 of the 12 songs on the album, released on the independent June Baby Records July 21, 2009, including the singles "Hold Up My Heart" and "Radio Radio."

   On "Radio Radio," she crafted a bubbly track summing up her personality with an infectious melody and chorus you will be humming and whistling for days.

   "So, Radio, Radio / You can play it fast, you can play it slow / You're the only one who can understand / Come on, make me feel like dancing," she sings.

   The same form appears on "Hold Up My Heart," as White plays the piano effortlessly singing, "So please, hold up my heart / Give me a reason for this empty silence / Please, hold up my heart / Darlin', I am changing, but everybody's changing too."

   All of the songs on the album blend together to create a solid album, but within that album hide a few gems.

   For example, "Smile" possesses a rare ability to be both sad and beautiful.

   The haunting ballad, played solely on the piano, features the lyrics, "It was / It was good while it lasted / I know that I'll get past it / It's just going to take some time / So hold me /While I let you go / Just walk away real slow / Real Slow / And it might take a while / Maybe a couple million miles / Until I forget your smile."

   Another treat comes in the form of the folk track "Little Bird."

   This song honestly sounds like it came straight out of the '70s, to the point it could have been a hit for The Carpenters.

   "So tell me, little bird / All of the good things that you've heard / Cause I need you, little bird / To sing me a sweet song,"  White sings.

   If the '70s references did not strike you before, they will with "California Song" as she sings them.

   "America sang me all the way / Across ventura highway / I was chasing the sun / Just chasing the sun / Walking up the boulevard / Looking down and counting stars / Singing ladies of the canyon," she begins the track.

   More references of White's influences appear when she sings, "The weather on the golden gate / And the sunsets on the palisades / And the beach boys are looking at me / Oh and I'm bought in to that perfect scene / That the mamas & the papas sing / I was dreaming ... I was dreaming yeah."

   The sets of references link together through a catchy chorus and a series of "Na na na..."

   The album also includes White's songs "Out of the Ashes," "Phoenix," "When We Were One," "Sometimes Love," "Be Careful" and the disco-like title track, "High Hopes and Heartbreaks."

   "Use Somebody," the one song on the album not written by White, covers rock group Kings of Leon's hit in a new fashion.

   White toned the track down to the piano but kept the echoes of "Woah oh," throughout the song. Her version heads in a different direction than Kings of Leon's, but her tweaks make her version just as good, if not better than the original.

   With the classic sound of the album, one wonders what it would sound like on a vinyl record, because it belongs there, with all the other classic albums of the '70s.

   As promotion for the album, White recorded a set of "Live Sessions" for iTunes. On it, she included stripped piano versions of "Hold Up My Heart," "Radio Radio" and "High Hopes and Heartbreak,"  She also added the previously unreleased track "Take It Away" and a cover Fleetwood Mac's 1976 hit "Rhiannon."

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