CD: Pop review: James Morrison, Songs for You, Truths for Me

James Morrison is incontinent with sincerity. In case the title of his second album weren't earnest enough, just check out the cover picture of him fretting soulfully on the kerb, and, if you must, explore the music inside. Despite looking as if he has been cloned from cell scrapings taken from Chris Martin and James Blunt, Morrison has neither the former's quivering anxiety nor the latter's creepy streak, thus attaining a level of blandness that is almost zen. Almost every song here is about a woman who has wronged him, a woman he has wronged, or little children, who can do no wrong. "You see life is a crazy thing," he explains on Please Don't Stop the Rain. "There'll be good times and there'll be bad times." Indeed. And despite Morrison's Rod Stewart-esque rasp, this overproduced blue-eyed soul, co-written with a small army of MOR hitmakers, is dead from the waist down. The result: airplay for him, boredom for you.