JETTISON EDDY – Trippin On Time [Reissue]

Produced by longtime AOR-man Keith Olsen (Bad Company, The Babys, Foreigner, Ozzy, Scorpions, Saga), Jettison Eddy is an American band … that sounds just like an American band. This is not a Metal-release, but you can easily place it in the same category as albums by bands like The Goo Goo Dolls and Live.

Jon Manitta is the “main-man,” and does all of the songwriting, lead vocals, and guitar. This quintet is a great sounding band, and even though Trippin On Time doesn’t seem to have large production costs, it sounds better than it looks at the onset.

The material is straightforward, American Post-Grunge/Contemporary Rock ‘n’ Roll, but lyrically, Jon Manitta might have one or two things yet to learn. In the opening lines of “Long Break,” Manitta sings “Woke up this morning / Knew you were gone / Couldn’t believe my eyes – Pulled back the covers and the bed was still warm / My, my, my, just another day.” Not exactly state-of-the-art lyrics, eh?

Despite the lyrical short-comings, Manitta has put together a great set of tunes for Jettison Eddy’s (weird band name by the way) debut album, ranging from contemporary tunes like “The Wall,” to the more rock-based and sometimes funky “Walk With Me,” to the big “Whoo-Hoo” chorus on the title track “Trippin On Time.”

Trippin On Time’s sleeve and cover art reveals a low-budget release, but with Keith Olsen behind the wheel, the album sounds as good as any major-label rock band from the top shelf. By including 11 ear-friendly and chorus-based songs, you indeed get more than a decent record release.