Reviewed by Dave Brassington

One thing you could never accuse George Hamilton IV of is just churning out records. OK he may not be the world's greatest singer, but the scope and extent of his recordings never cease to amaze me. Recorded back home in North Carolina and produced by his good buddies The Moody Brothers, this album finds George going back to his country roots, like his previous album with The Moody Brothers, "American Country Gothic". George always puts a lot of thought into his choice of material, and for "Homegrown", the writers range from Carlton Moody, John D. Loudermilk ("It's My Time"), which George recorded in his ICA Days, Shel Silverstein, Britain's own Charlie? ("No Time At All"), and Canada's Gordon Lightfoot ("Spin Spin"). There are a couple of tracks by Robin Williams who I confess to knowing nothing about, but one of these "Daughter Of McLeod" is a truly outstanding song. For 10 of the tracks, it's George IV leading off with George V lending support. George V does two songs on his own "Love 2" and "Precious Hand" both of which he wrote for this album. George V stays within his Dad's softer country style. As those who have seen him on stage know he is really quite a country rocker! In the sleeve notes George IV says he's more proud of this album than any of the other 50 or so that he's recorded. Whilst not actually saying it's his best, "Homegrown" is a very good album of contemporary country music that deserves a wide audience. Highly recommended.

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