Neal E. Boyd - My American Dream (CD)

All Music Guide

Like many winners of televised talent competitions, Neal E. Boyd fits into no particular marketing schematic of the 2000s. He's a smalltown Missouri guy who has always struggled with his weight and always loved opera. He pursued his love, winning the 2000 Music Teachers National Association Vocal Collegiate Competition, which awarded him a solo spot on the stage of Carnegie Hall in 2001, but instead of being the beginning of a musical career it was the end, with Boyd choosing to leave music in favor of selling insurance. Years later, he auditioned for NBC's America's Got Talent, making it onto and eventually winning the 2008 season. My American Dream followed roughly a year later in the summer of 2009, and it's an effective showcase for his supple singing if not quite an artistic statement of purpose. Thankfully, Boyd avoids the ersatz Euroschlock of Il Divo, never trying to have a pop production, instead being happily symphonic. Boyd pairs familiar opera and classical pieces with fami...liar pop standards and show tunes. It's a comforting songbook performed in a friendly way, which is Boyd's chief charm and it's on display on this amiable debut. - Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide Read more Less