American Idol contestant Casey James releases self-titled debut album

Sometimes the losers of American Idol turn out to be the real winners.

Of course, there are your winners that also found success, like Kelly Clarkson or Carrie Underwood. Then there are those contestants that were eliminated who find much more success than their season’s winner, such as Jennifer Hudson or Kelli Pickler, both of whom finished in sixth place on the show.

Guitar-wielding Texas native Casey James came in third place on the ninth season of Idol in 2010. During a time when albums are often rushed to piggyback off the success of America’s popular television singing contests, James did not release his self-titled debut album until this year. It pays off however through the quality of the album.

James’ album was obviously not a mix of studio songs thrown together. The singer even co-wrote nine of the 11 songs.

A majority of the songs are written about love, so they are not reinventing the wheel,.The first single, "Let’s Don’t Call It a Night," will find its way into rocking bars as well as your car radio. "When you’re next to me, there’s no place I’d rather be/ Everything is feeling so right/ So baby let’s don’t call it a night," James sings before a rocking guitar solo.

James has a huge crossover appeal, as his songs are a mix of country, Southern rock and even a little alternative rock. The CD’s final song, "Miss Your Fire," sounds more like Ben Folds Five or Death Cab for Cutie than Toby Keith or Tim McGraw. That said, it is one of the best songs,coming off as intimate and genuine.

However, "Crying on a Suitcase" has all the elements of an excellent country song. Starting with a toe-tapping beat and a story of a woman crying on an airplane as she has to leave a lover, the chorus explodes with emotion.

The only problem some may have with this album is that it is perhaps too polished. While it may be true that the producers could make the album better by leaving some natural rasp in James’ voice, taking "Casey James" for what it is more than enough. It far exceeds expectation and firmly introduces James as an excellent singer, songwriter and guitarist. The only unfortunate aspect of this being a debut album is that listeners will be left wanting more without any previous albums to which they can listen.