Released in 1994 by Island Records, Healing Bones probably wasn't going to end Jules Shear's years of obscurity, but it does deliver another batch of terrific songs -- as intelligent as they are melodic. Guided by producers Rod Argent (the Zombies, Argent) and Peter Van Hooke (Mike + the Mechanics), Shear and his crack four-piece band bring out both the charm and depth in the material, steering clear of the sort of production that has stamped a date on some of his recordings in the past. Listen to What She Says, A Bird in That Cage, and Two Friends, thanks in part to Elliot Easton's infectious guitar lines, are as direct and engaging as Shear's pop/rock gets, while Healing Bones, Over the Lane, and By and By possess a beautiful sadness. Like the haunted suffering that pervades the title-cut -- a cryptic tale of a husband losing his wife in a freak plowing accident, that's able to transcend the story -- there's an underlying pensiveness that runs through the bulk of Healing Bones. This tone is even evident in some of the album's catchier moments, such as the mournful A Prayer (For Those Not Here), or the album's lone cover, the melancholy pop ofthe Walker Brothers' 1966 hit The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore. His last recording for a major label, as well as his last for nearly four years, Healing Bones can be added to Jules Shear's growing list of neglected gems. ~ Brett Hartenbach, Rovi

1		Listen To What She Says
2		A Bird In That Cage
3		Healing Bones
4		The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore
5		Over the Lane
6		When You Finally Gonna Come Through
7		Never Again Or Forever
8		Heaven/Hell
9		Two Friends
10		How Many Wheels
11		A Prayer (For Those Not Here)
12		By And By