Rob Alexander releases “When I’m Gone” tribute

The fifth single release from Rob Alexander’s Long Road Coming Home, “When I’m Gone (for George Michael)”, follows the same trajectory of excellence defining the album’s four preceding singles and further illustrates the immense talents driving this singer/songwriter’s art. Comparisons are often drawn between Alexander and Elton John and his debt to the English born icon extends to even using three members of John’s touring band on this next release but, ultimately, his songwriting voice bears its own identity rather than sounding imitative. Producer Gabe Lopez understands how to frame Alexander’s talents for maximum effect and his contributions are the crowning touch on an exceptional piece of pop songcraft. This Florida based recording artist waited a long time before recording his first release, but “When I’m Gone” and the earlier singles prove he is more than ready to meet the world head on with his art.

The gradual escalation of this song is one of its chief strengths. Alexander’s songwriting demonstrates a thorough understanding of how dynamics can make a song more memorable for listeners than it might be otherwise and its evolution from essentially a piano and voice opening into a full throated cinematic pop gem sticks with you. He brings a full battery of instruments into play to realize the song’s potential. Powerhouse drumming, acoustic and electric guitar, and synthesizers all play crucial roles in fleshing out the song for listeners. There’s an electric guitar solo in the song’s second half, but it is functional rather than ornamental and puts an emphatic exclamation point on the arrangement.

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The vocals do as well. He is never overwrought, but Alexander pulls out the emotional stops to bring home the reality of someone pondering what will happen in the aftermath of their death. Even a cursory listen makes it apparent that George Michael’s death affected Alexander on a deep level but, as is often the case with such songs, “When I’m Gone” ends up saying just as much if not more about the writer, Alexander, as it does about the track’s nominal subject. He conveys that early on and his vocals double down on the sense of high personal stakes as the song progresses.

Those vocals enhance already moving lyrics. As mentioned before, the song is just as much if not more about Alexander than it is about George Michael and many will be unable to help themselves wondering if the words aren’t reflective about Alexander’s own musings on mortality. He writes from a place of deep maturity – it is pure guesswork, but it is easy to assume his career in the medical profession as an anesthesiologist has exposed him to his fair share of sorrowful ends. There is a streak of sadness running through this song, it is true, but “When I’m Gone”, in the end, is cathartic and healing. It also a glittering example of Alexander’s musical and songwriting talents representative of his album as a whole. The fifth single from Long Road Coming Home sets high goals for itself and reaches each one of them.

Mindy McCall

The music of ROB ALEXANDER has been heard all over the world due to the promotional services offered by Danie Cortese Entertainment & Publicity. Learn more here – http://www.daniecorteseent.com/