There is no substitute for good timing of a release. Just as NBC's SMASH comes towards the end of it's 'smash' second season, Broadway Records release a compilation of Drew Gasparini's songs I Could Use a Drink. The link ? Gasparini was responsible for some of the songs in Hit List - the 'other' musical in Smash (Bombshell, the main focus of the show has already had a cast album, as I reviewed last month).

There is no shortage of talent on this recording, both in performance and writing. Jeremy Jordan (Newsies, Smash), Jennifer Damiano (Spider-Man: Turn off The Dark, Next to Normal), Justin Guarini (American Idol) and Caissie Levy (Ghost) all perform here, as well as some I've not heard of - Alex Brightman and Lindsay Mendez being the stand outs for me.

The songs, well, they are a bit of a mix bag to be honest. Not that I didn't enjoy the album, I just found some incredibly unmemorable. Much of his writing (and I've found this with Hit List) is extremely contemporary, but instantly forgettable. There are some numbers of note, that show not only a talent for song structure composition, but also for thoughtful lyric writing. I loved 'A Little Bit', with its very clever conversational style, and also 'Two Little Lines'. There are some classy riffs in a lot of the numbers, but unfortunately they don't develop into as classier songs.

The production and arrangements are second to none - a clear, crisp sounding recording, and the usual attention to detail from Broadway Records that we have come to expect. But for me, it needed more substance.

6

Ian Gude