Artist: Marc Teamaker Album: Lust for Wanda Label: Hive Music Rating: **** (out of 5)

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Marc Teamaker is a singer and songwriter loosely based in New England. As the pun in the title of his debut album "Lust for Wanda" implies, he likes to travel, both physically and musically. While his music hovers on the edge of "alternative," his wide-ranging instrumental and compositional talents take him through som interesting terrain before the CD has played out.

The first thing that comes to mind when the album's first track, "Gabriel," begins to play is that the melody seems heavily inspired by John Lennon. There are hints of that all through the album, including some Beatlesque over-dubbed harmonies, but the sum total of influences equals something idionsyncratic and unique. Once you've heard Teamaker, you'll easily recognize his voice and style the next time.

Teamaker's musical talents are evidently multi-instrumental; he plays everything but percussion on the recording. Studio magic puts it all together very nicely into a full but particularly clean sound that highlights Teamaker's clear voice and poetic lyrics. Listen for the great slide guitar on "No Fool My Girl," or the ringing and tasty electric guitar on "Sugar Actress."

Teamaker at Songwriters in the Round

I think "Gabriel is a shoe-in for a modern rock radio hit, with the potential to cross over into folk and adult contemporary formats, and I wouldn't be surprised if a few other cuts started getting some chart notice.

Anyway, concering Marc Teamaker's Wanda Lust, he'll be traveling through this area in the coming weeks, with a stop at the Ann Beal Bocht Cafe in Riverdale on April 15th; a gig with Annie Haslam at the Towne Crier Cafe in Pawling on April 17th; and a stop at the Tinker Street Cafe in Woodstock on April 21st.

For more information about Marc Teamaker, visit his web site at http://www.beehivepro.com

Posted on April 10, 1998