Search - Jeff Michaels of Even Elroy :: Red Jacket

With a voice similar to Ben Folds and a flowing piano style comparable to Elton John, you might expect the debut album from San Francisco singer/songwriter Jeff Michaels to be just another album full of sappy piano ballads, or a Coldplay rip off. But the unique sound of RED JACKET hits you right from the opening, pounding piano chords, and you quickly realize this is not the case. Featuring some of Northern California?s finest musicians, including Steve Bowman (Counting Crows, Third Eye Blind), Matt Blackett (Guitar Player Magazine), and members of the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, Red Jacket is a sound unlike any band currently on the radio. It?s an amazing array of texture, from mandolin, to accordion, to layered electric guitar, with a lyrical depth uncommon in today?s popular music. Highlight tracks include the catchy Going Back to Bed, This Life, and the beautiful blend of piano and lyric, Ciarda. "I?m a big fan of story songs," says Michaels, citing Adam Duritz from the Counting Crows and Bruce Springsteen as two of his mentors. "I think if you can somehow immortalize someone in a song, and make a listener step into their shoes for just a moment and really feel what their life is like, if only just for a moment? well, then you?ve done your job as a songwriter."