Celebrity

Solo guitar guys take over

Boy-band fever is over and out. Now solo guitar guys are taking over the stage

By


Boys of Summer
Boy-band fever is over and out. Now solo guitar guys are taking over the stage

With so many crooners on the loose, it’s hard to tell which guitar-cradling guy is worth the download. To help fuel your iPod/MP3 player with Mr. Right, we’ve called on a few pop-hunk faves for every girl’s listening pleasure.
 

 
 
Teddy Geiger   Daniel Powter   James Blunt
         

 
 
Jack Johnson   Teddy Thompson   Matt Costa
         


The Pop Prince: Teddy Geiger
His shtick: 17-year-old musician/actor from Rochester, N.Y. Think of him as the male
version of Hilary Duff.
Recent release: his debut, Underage Thinking
His crowd: O.C. fans
His sound: John Mayer-ish tunes you’ll hear blazing in the high school parking lot
His look: American Idol meets GQ
Put it on your playlist now: his latest single, “These Walls”
Our prediction: more music and a leap into the film biz
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The Crowd-Pleaser: Daniel Powter
His shtick: This Vernon, B.C.-born 35-year-old has mastered the catchy kind of mainstream pop that lingers in your head for days (“Bad Day”).
Recent release: his Juno-winning self-titled debut
His crowd: boy-band die-hards looking to expand their horizons
His sound: straightforward piano-driven pop
His look: vintage
Put it on your playlist now: his latest single, “Jimmy Gets High”
Our prediction: TV sound-track gigs will abound.
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The Sensitive Type: James Blunt
His shtick: The 29-year-old ex-military Brit hit it big with “You’re Beautiful.”
Recent release: multiplatinum-selling Back to Bedlam
His crowd: suckers for a sore heart His sound: soft rock/pop ballads
His look: Gap-commercial chic
Put it on your playlist now: his next two singles, “High” and “Goodbye My Lover”
Our prediction: Blunt’s next disc, Chasing Time: The Bedlam Sessions, will give him yet another awards-show victory lap.
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The Boy Next Door: Jack Johnson
His shtick: This 31-year-old Hawaiian surfer/rocker/filmmaker is the big kahuna behind his own label, Brushfire Records.
Recent release: Sing-a-Longs and Lullabies for the film Curious George.
His crowd: twentysomething R&Rers, pub lovers and cottage dwellers
His sound: soulful folk
His look: a collegiate Baywatch boy and back-to-schooler
Put it on your playlist now: “Lullaby”
Our prediction: He could go either way: Eric Clapton-type heights or Ted Nugent-esque lows.
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The New Folkie: Teddy Thompson
His shtick: The 30-year-old Brit (his mom is famed folkstress Linda Thompson) has been singing backup vocals for both Rufus and Martha Wainwright for a couple of years now.
Recent release: his debut, Separate Ways
His crowd: soy-latte fans, boho-chicsters
His sound: hard-core folk with a bite of country peach
His look: suit jackets and tees
Put it on your playlist now: his anti-celeb anthem, “Shine So Bright”
Our prediction: writing songs and singing with A-list performers
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The Next Big Thing: Matt Costa
His shtick: 24-year-old skater dude turned popster from Huntington Beach, Calif.
Recent release: his first disc, Songs We Sing
His crowd: know-it-all indie-music junkies His sound: Van Morrison meets The Beatles
His look: artsy, under the radar, could be a Viper Room regular
Put it on your playlist now: “Astair”
Our prediction: mainstream invasion
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