Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #8528 in Digital Music Album
• Released on: 2008-10-21
• Running time: 2732 seconds

Customer Reviews

Hopelessness Vanquished
I'm thrilled to report that "Hope for the Hopeless" is a terrific follow-up to "So Much More", and I was delighted with that one as well. There's no doubt that Brett Dennen is one of the best new talents to come along in years. I personally feel very fortunate to have "discovered" him (quite by accident), as I'm a Boomer who became disappointed and disillusioned with the state of the music "industry" ages ago.

And I hear tell that Dennen doesn't pay much mind to critics' opinions, as he "made the album he wanted to make"... Wow - a musician with talent AND integrity; and he's young besides, so I look forward to following him throughout what I expect to be a long and remarkable career.

Brett Dennen rocks - in this case, beginning with the first song ("San Francisco") all the way thru to the final one ("Ain't Gonna Lose You"). And the entire recording grows on you the more you hear it. Those are the best kind. Five solid stars.

Dennen delivers
Why is it that some of us always feel like the new music can't surpass the old? I remember back when I first got So Much More thinking I would never like it as much as his debut album. Well it soon moved into rotation much more often than the first album until I eventually thought "I really like this one better." Of course hearing "Blessed" still makes me feel so happy and "Desert Sunrise" is still one of the most beautiful love songs I've ever heard - but overall I do prefer the second album to the first.

So when I first played Hope for the Hopeless I was expectant and...well... 'hopeful'. I didn't love it first time around. I remember thinking there are a few good songs on here. But after listening to it a few more times I really started to like it and now I love it just as much as the others. I really think "San Francisco" may be my favorite followed closely by "Follow Your Heart." I really like ALL of them though. Seriously, every last one.

I love his lyrical phrasing and his unique voice and he still plays upon that in this album. Something I have really enjoyed about Dennen's music is watching him grow. The first album seemed to be almost a tribute to (maybe) a personal lover and being in love with life. The next one still talked of personal love but also took on an intense look at the world around him. This one seems to focus on a loss of love to some extent but sharing his worldview. That's just my take - and I was already a big fan.

Even Better Than The Last
This is a great album. They took a slightly scary step for a folk artist by adding some heavier production to it, but it pays off extremely well for Brett.

His voice is just amazing, and I'm glad to see his stream of solidly amazing music keep coming.