Four years after "Heart Shaped World", Chris Isaak returns with a brilliant collection of songs that overall has a more "upbeat" mood than his previous records.

From rousing rockers to heartfelt ballads and even a couple of jazz-flavoured tracks, this is easily Mr. Isaak's best album. His natural sense for melody is even more evident on this record than the previous ones. Among the best cuts are "Can't Do A Thing (To Stop Me)" and "Two Hearts", which has an irresistibly catchy melody, and a vocal delivery that pays tribute to Roy Orbison, complete with flawless high notes. The jazzy "5:15" has a great smoky vocal and bass line. "Lonely With A Broken Heart " sounds uncannily like Elvis Presley, and "Solitary Man", the only cover song on the album, sounds better than the Neil Diamond version.This is one of those albums where every song is nothing short of excellent.

"San Fransico Days" is a brilliant album and a as much a classic as "Rumours" or "Band On The Run".

I bought all of his Cds in one fell swoop last year. Listened to most of them once and got so hooked on Baja Sessions that I didn't spend much time on any of the others.

Well, I went back and relistened to the rest and am very glad I did.
This album rocks, and it's definetly one of my favorites.

San Franciso Days, Beautiful Homes, Two Hearts,
Except The New Girl, Waiting, and I Want Your Love are all classics.
This one is in heavy rotation here in my home office, and it truly does get better with each listen. Kudos to the musicians that back Chris up - I'm getting closer and closer to taking up guitar thanks to wanting to play along while I listen!

Chris Isaak took a four year workup between his breakthrough "Heart Shaped World" and "San Francisco Days," and used that time to hone a very cool collection of songs. He also allows a few new elements to seep into the songs. A strong example is the rhythm machine that accents the rock-a-billy guitars of "Round And Round." He also gained new confidence as a singer, pouring even stronger vocals than before into songs like "Two Hearts," which evoked Roy Orbison as flawlessly as ever. "San Francisco Days" also finds Isaak in a more flirtatous mode. Instead of all the angst and heartbreak, there is some playful teasing in "Except The New Girl" and "Lonely With A Broken Heart."

For those that got hooked on Isaak via the success of "Wicked Game," there is "Can't Do A Thing To Stop Me." While certainly not as dark as "Wicked Game," Isaak still sends his shimmering falsetto heartbreakingly over a hypnotic mid-tempo melody and a mysterious sounding organ base. Just as effective in the high lonesome mode is, oddly enough, the CD's lone cover. Isaak outdoes Neil Diamond on "Solitary Man," completely understanding the song's unhappy retreat into reclusion.

"San Francisco Days" was a slight step back from the intensity of "Heart Shaped World," but follows Isaak's musical game plan pretty effectively. It's Isaak's most "California" sounding disc (followed closely by "Baja Sessions"), and a unique disc from a unique artist.

After the belated surprise success of Heart Shaped World, Chris Isaak let four years go by before following that album up. The wait was worth it as San Francisco Days is a magnificent collection of retro-rockers from the king of brood. The title track opens the album with a country flavor, while "Beautiful Homes" explores envy and heartache. "Two Hearts" is a pretty little number and "Can't Do A Thing (To Stop Me)" has a languid, dreamy sound with Mr. Isaak finding the higher end of the vocal scale. "Except The New Girl" has a nice steel guitar passage and "Waiting" is a mournful moaner. "5:15" chugs along with a pulsating guitar and Neil Diamond didn't write "Solitary Man" for Mr. Isaak, but no one has covered a song that was more appropriate for them than this. "Solitary Man" is classic Isaak and he sings it with the verve and it closes this great album on a perfect note.

Something - or somebody - good must have happened to Chris Isaak during the four years between "Heart Shaped World" and "San Francisco Days". Could it be he's happy now? Oh, there's still a melancholy feel to each tune - that's why I listen - even the upbeat title track, "San Francisco Days", and the outside looking in, "Beautiful Homes", make you think he might be smiling. But then he reassures us with the dreamy "Can't Do A Thing (To Stop Me)". This album exudes a hopefulness that "Heart Shaped World" didn't have - thank goodness - but here it works. Fortunately, Chris ends this set with a bittersweet rendition of Neil Diamond's "Solitary Man". Whew! For a minute I thought we'd lost him.