You Got My Attention

by Dara MacLean

Overview

Christian singer/songwriter Dara Maclean cites The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill as a major influence, which, on her debut album, You Got My Attention, turns out to translate as blue-eyed soul singing, for the most part. Songs like "Suitcases" and "Gratitude" show a little bit of Hill's hip-hop sound, but Maclean more often suggests a fellow Dallas, Texas, resident, Norah Jones, and British neo-soul star Amy Winehouse. The arrangements range from the Motown sound of the title song to acoustic ballads like "Had to Be You," supporting Maclean's supple, expressive voice. As a Christian artist, she belongs to that CCM school that tends to de-emphasize religious specifics. "God," "Jesus," and "Father" do turn up here and there, especially later on the disc, but Maclean prefers euphemistic words like "mercy," "grace," and, especially, "love," as, for instance, in "Unreachable," when she is singing to another person who, she believes, is in fact reachable by faith. More often, she is expressing her own devotion, but in a vocabulary that easily could make the casual listener suppose she was pledging romantic love to an especially worthy boyfriend. ("I'm yours forever, my love," she sings in "Yours Forever.") Complicating this somewhat is the inclusion of "Had to Be You," which really does seem to be about a secular relationship, one sanctioned by heaven, since Maclean continues to sing lyrics more or less similar to those in the religious songs. In any case, her singing is effective and her sentiments doubtless sincere. ~ William Ruhlmann

Product Details

Release Date:	09/23/2022
Label:	Fervent Records / Word
UPC:	0080688821029

Tracks

1. Suitcases
2. You Got My Attention
3. Unreachable
4. What Love Looks Like
5. Free
6. Yours Forever
7. Nothin' That You Won't Do
8. The One
9. Had to Be You
10. So Good to Me
11. Gratitude
12. Home

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Dara MacLean   Primary Artist
Drew Ramsey   Guitar
Chris Wilkie   Viola
David Davidson   Violin
John Catchings   Cello
Kris Wilkinson   Viola
Ben Phillips   Drums
Mike Payne   Guitar
Missi Hale   Vocals (Background)
David Angell   Violin
Tony Lucido   Bass
Ronnie Freeman   Vocals (Background)
Aaron Mortenson   Drums
Tony Lucio   Bass
Max Abrams   Saxophone
Tim Lauer   Bass,Strings,Keyboards
Jon-Paul Frappier   Trumpet
Dan Needham   Drums,Guitar

Technical Credits

Jeremy Bose   Composer
Susan Riley   Executive Producer
Buckley Miller   Engineer
Ian Eskelin   Composer,Producer
Ainslie Grosser   Mixing
Ronnie Freeman   Composer
Kyle Lee   Engineer
Aaron Shannon   Engineer,Programming
Ben Glover   Composer
Shane Tarleton   Art Direction
Samantha Roe   Wardrobe
Tina Davis   Make-Up,Hair Stylist
Dan Shike   Mastering
Melissa Snyder   Design
Paul Alan   Composer
Tim Lauer   Arranger
Marc Lacuesta   Editing,Engineer,Vocal Engineer
Michael Fordinal   Composer
Richie Fike   Composer
Eli McFadden   Photography
Jason Jenkins   A&R
Dara MacLean   Composer