 |
| Photo credit: Debra Rothenberg/PictureGroup |
“Sweeter” serves as the title track and second single from American singer/songwriter Gavin DeGraw‘s fourth studio album. Written and produced by DeGraw and Ryan Tedder, “Sweeter” is a worthy follow up to “Not Over You,” which was released all the way back in May of 2011. Why the wait Gavin? “Not Over You” peaked at a reasonably decent #18 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart so you’d think that the label would have been a bit more aggressive with album promo.
Starting out with a funky, head-boppin’ guitar solo, DeGraw comes in and starts showcasing his skills on the piano. DeGraw really exhibits well-roundedness on this song, coming in strong vocally at the beginning of each verse, and showing restraint towards the end of each line, all the way through dazzling us with his beautiful falsetto. He really sounds his best on those big wailing choruses, mixing the gritty & gruff hard elements of his sound with the soft & delicate falsetto. This is DeGraw really in his funky pop/rock element and I love it.
The song was originally released as a promotional single preceding the album’s release back in October. “Sweeter” was officially released as DeGraw’s second U.S. single March 12th, peaking at #40 on Billboard‘s U.S. Adult Pop Songs chart. For the song’s only bit of mainstream promotion, DeGraw took the stage at The Tonight Show with Jay Leno on March 28th, DeGraw to perform the single. Check out the Lenny Bass-directed video for the song, which premiered on E! News March 15th and later on VEVO March 16th. The super fun video features a mischievous DeGraw going on a sneaky little adventure with Sports Illustrated model Genevieve Morton.
Earlier this month, DeGraw announced a summer co-headlining tour with singer/songwriter Colbie Caillat. The tour kicks off Friday, May 25th in Simpsonville, SC and will see the two talented artists play 22 cities, wrapping up June 29th at the Ravinia Festival in Highland Park, IL (right down the street from where I grew up). Check out a list of tour dates below:
Tour Dates:
5/25/12 Simpsonville, SC Charter Amphitheatre at Heritage Park
5/26/12 Biloxi, MS Hard Rock Hotel
5/27/12 St. Augustine, FL St. Augustine Amphitheatre
5/29/12 Pittsburgh, PA State AE – Outdoors
6/1/12 Philadelphia, PA Penns’ Landing – River Stage
6/2/12 New York, NY Rumsey Playfield
6/5/2 Bethlehem, PA Sands Bethlehem Event Center
6/7/12 Pomona, NY Provident Bank Park
6/8/12 Norfolk, VA Town Point Park
6/9/12 Vienna, VA The Filene Center at Wolf Trap
6/10/12 Baltimore, MD Pier Six Pavilion
6/12/12 Raleigh, NC Raleigh Amphitheatre
6/13/12 Atlanta, GA Chastain Park Amphitheater
6/14/12 Charlotte, NC Time Warner Cable Uptown Amphitheater
6/17/12 Fayetteville, AR Arkansas Music Pavilion
6/19/12 Bee Cave, TX The Backyard
6/21/12 Lake Charles, LA L’Auberge Du Lac Casino Resort – Pool Stage
6/22/12 Thackerville, OK WinStar Casino
6/24/12 St. Louis, MO Peabody Opera House
6/26/12 Sioux City, IA Orpheum Theatre
6/27/12 Apple Valley, MN Weesner Amphitheater
6/29/12 Highland Park, IL Ravinia Festival
Download “Sweeter” on U.S. iTunes HERE.
Check Out Gavin DeGraw on the web: