Written By Ronnie D'Addario

Ronnie DAddario spent years as a professional musician, playing guitar with Tommy Makem for decades among other gigs writing jingles and working in various other bands. Along with all of his other accomplishments, DAddario consistently wrote and recorded solo material, beginning with a string of three exceptionally good but under-distributed solo albums in the late 70s and early 80s which showcased his rich sense of arrangement and gift for Beatles-inspired, motivational power pop. Somewhere along the way, DAddarios sons Brian and Michael also went down a musical path with their band the Lemon Twigs, and with Written By, theyve curated a selection of their fathers songs to rework, bringing in guest artists to help both pay tribute to DAddarios powerful songwriting and shine a light on his abundant but often overlooked back catalog. These 12 tracks (and a brief instrumental prelude) showcase the versatility of DAddarios songwriting. The reflective and bittersweet "A Very Short Dream" is a lush and slow-moving number cut from the same cloth as Brian Wilsons harmony-heavy style while the peppy "Be Like Him" (featuring contributions from Darian Sahanaja and Probyn Gregory) is upbeat orchestral pop complete with blasts of Bacharach-like trumpet and rubbery electric bass. Power pop/rockers like "5th of July" or album standout "Not Today" are handled entirely by the Lemon Twigs and illustrate just how strongly the groups music was informed by their dads songwriting style. Other special guests on Written By include Mac DeMarco, who stops by for the atmospheric, 80s soundtrack-styled ballad "Loves Won Me Over," Todd Rundgren who sings on "I See the Patterns," Sean Lennon on the playfully romping "So Thats How It Is," and Matt Jardine on the slick Beach Boys-y pop of "Dont Wait for Yesterday." Written By is a delightful introduction to DAddarios eras-spanning songbook. Listeners already enamored with the Lemon Twigs will recognize some familial similarities passed down from DAddario to his sons, and fans of power pop who werent already aware of his output can use this lovingly assembled tribute as a starting point for discovering the rest. ~ Fred Thomas