Emitt Rhodes, Emitt Rhodes (side A)

Emitt Rhodes, from 1970, is impressively consistent.  The songs, singing, and performances (all by Rhodes) are all impressive—the mundane pop-song lyrics may be the closest thing to a weakness.  Rhodes recorded this at home, though he did mix it in a studio, and the sound is generally good.  The drum hits (especially the toms) have a bit of a "splat" that might reflect an inexperienced engineer.  Also, the tambourine overdubs, presumably because of some technical limitation in the recording or transfer of basics, preserved a lot more treble than any of the basic tracks, and this was not rolled back on mix.  The front and back cover photos of Rhodes in a run-down old building are impressive—they provide a portrait of the artist which is beautiful but not overly sentimental.