Overbluecity

Skypark: Tyrone Wells (vocals); Joey Aszterbaum (guitar); Tony Deerfield (bass); Keith Gove (drums).
Additional personnel: Maire Brennan (vocals); J'Anna Jacoby (violin, viola); Greg Adamson (cello); Roger Keast, III (horns).
Recorded at Castle Oaks Studios, Calabasas, California.
Though Skypark releases its albums through Word and pens the occasional lyric making a specific reference to Christianity, initial exposure to its second album could cause the listener to recall the summer of 1966, when John Lennon stirred up a fuss by commenting that the Beatles were more popular than Christ. At least on this record, the two co-exist harmoniously. You don't have to wait until the seventh track, "The Girl in Your Picture," and its opening line, "I went on down to Penny Lane," to realize that the members of Skypark have spent a lot of time listening to the Beatles; long before that, the Fab Four's influence is all over the record, from its melodies to its ornate arrangements. True, Skypark tends to rock a little harder than its favorite band, but you're never far from a harmony line or a guitar riff that recalls the famous quartet from Liverpool. In "What God Does" and "Under Your Mercy," Skypark reveals its religious background explicitly, and the lyrics of other songs, such as the title track and the album closer "That's What You Say," support a religious interpretation, but for the most part Overbluecity is no more spiritual than your average U2 album. You might listen to the record through without thinking much about Jesus Christ, but it would be harder to avoid thinking about Paul McCartney. ~ William Ruhlmann