years ago,  the albums 'after you' and 'manalapan' won me over with their subtle, refined melodies and sharp lyrical focus.  'so few things' picks up right where those albums left off.  i would call earnhart's sound "contemplative" if that didn't seem such a glib word.   yes, it's contemplative--in the best sense--but it's exacting as well.   few can conjure situation, mood, scene and emotional fallout as precisely as earnhart.   "daniel,"  "as you were,"  "here & here,"  "it's not love," “these weeks,” the endless wordplay of "everywhere."  all these stories stick with you.  all stellar.   there's a singular territory earnhart carves out and it's his domain alone.  on these chilly fall nights, i put on his cd and feel perfectly at home.  so few artists i can say that about.
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I played this CD for the first time on the way to Richmond, a trip I make quite often.  I found myself replaying the songs over and over, and listening and singing along as I went down 95.  Even though it was heartbreaking, I especially loved "Daniel," the story of a gay soldier, home on leave, and his last night with his boyfriend.  I wanted it to end happily; I wanted Daniel to be OK.  I also especially  liked "Wild Nights" and I think Emily Dickinson would approve.  A high quality of composition and musicality and a depth of feeling and intimacy pervades not just these two, but all the songs.   I feel as if I have been invited into the singer/songwriter's living room and we are sitting relaxed on his couch, a drink in hand, as he sings to me--there is comfort here, and closeness, and home.  

Well done.
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