Jamie Meyer Gets Rave Reviews at Novel Cafe
By Terry Miller
Published: Thursday, October 7th, 2010
Swedish Musician Jamie Meyer – Gets Rave Reviews at Novel Café in East Pasadena
Great Big Change is Coming to East Pasadena
Once again an outstanding performer has found his way into what I consider one of East Pasadena’s coolest hubs for live music, Novel Café: Last Saturday David Harbaugh, who represents Jaime Meyer through his company D2R Artists Management, said I should stop by and see what this 30 year old musician from Sweden was like in person.
I wasn’t expecting ABBA but I know I knew I was in for a real treat! Actually I only liked ABBA because two gorgeous women Frida and Agnetha kept haunting me in my dreams as a kid!
But I digress…I’d already listened to Meyer’s CD “Great Big Change” and was really overwhelmed with not only Jamie’s vocal ability but the production value of the CD. It is really bloody, bloody good! The bass player and drummer particularly impressed me as their playing was full of what they left out didn’t overplay anything – as is a tendency ( especially with drummers) . If I had one suggestion to give the producers of that album it would be add a truly unique guitar solo in a couple of the middle eighths – one was there but the mix was too low to really hear it.
During his first break of the evening I asked Jamie to play my particular favorite on the album made in 2008 (Heaven isn’t far Away) but unfortunately it really needed the full band to do the number justice and therefore my wish wasn’t granted.
Meyer’s vocal range is superb and spot on. The few songs he played off his 2008 CD were testament to his strong vocal ability and propensity for great hooks. The commercial appeal of Meyer is not superficial – the music gets down into your bones.
The owner of Novel Café, Andrew Lo, has recently joined forces with D2R ( who manages Jamie Meyer) to handle the music promotion side of his eclectic music café/restaurant that is constantly evolving based on musical themes.
I liken the Novel Café to a really cool club in New York, called the Bottom Line on W 4th Street I frequented some years back. Actually I think the club is still kicking out some of the best Jazz to this day.
There is no pretentiousness, nor ever a cover charge at Novel. There’s always great food and drink (excellent beers and wines) plus a young crowd of music lovers like David Peterson who pops in regularly for “a cool beer and some really cool atmosphere.” Peterson, a long time Pasadena resident who happens to be of Swedish descent, knows talent when he sees it and is quick to recommend bands like Anita and the Yanks (which is how I heard about them, thanks Dave) as well as support local businesses in East Pasadena.
Firm believers in the growth potential for East Pasadena, Andrew Lo’s vision is fast becoming a reality.
Other area businesses such as Luigi Ortegas, just one block west of Novel Café, is also seeing increased traffic and interest in the area. L.O’s owner frequently pops in to say hi to Lo.
Andrew Lo is an illustrious music lover and has an uncanny knack of attracting musicians with something a little diverse to offer his customers each week. Instinctively he’s managed to find some of the best in the business in just about all genres.
This Friday, one of the more popular Irish Bands Andrew Lo first hired sometime back, Anita and the Yanks will appear for their bi-weekly performance of traditional meets classic Irish rock. As an added bonus Rachel and Leah ( not the Biblical wives of Jacob) might be found playing some incredible violin(s) with Anita. Rachel Grace and Leah Zegar are two amazingly talented young musicians.
Getting back to Jamie who began 2010 by connecting to the film industry with an invitation to perform at Sundance Music Festival in Utah.
His new single “Good Night To Be Young” has been
greeted with brilliant feedback from L.A Music Connection & the HOLLYWOOD MUSIC
in MEDIA AWARDS Jury 2010 which , handed a nomination to Jamie in the Country category.
In the spring the song also charted and reached #1 in the Country genre by the
Ourstage.com community. The new album “Good Night To Be Young” with 2 years in the
making is to be released Oct 12, 2010.
From the shores of, Gothenburg in Sweden …moving to world showbiz
world of Los Angeles, Meyer proved that it’s possible to achieve
success with talent and positive attitude. He was presented an award for
Best/Singer Songwriter at L.A MUSIC AWARDS 2008 for his second album
“Great Big Change”.
Jamie Meyer is the “real deal “– said one critic recently. However I’d like to add my two cents: Jamie is a truly a natural talent and passionately expressive. When he played last Saturday there was an intensity I rarely see, that of a true natural musician whose energy exceeds that of mere mortal musicians. The songs he sang were truly from his heart and after a long and tireless first set, two other musicians joined Meyer on stage to fill out an already surprisingly strong solo act.
There is a CD Release party for Jamie soon. Check out his website for more details :
www.jamiemeyer.com
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