Rob Thomas

Like any band that sticks around for a long time, Matchbox Twenty has earned a measure of respect, mostly because Rob Thomas is a solidly professional pop songwriter. This generation’s Journey, his band has churned out reliably populist rockers since the grunge era; on his own, Thomas is essentially this generation’s Steve Perry, turning out hits that sound exactly like his band's without the burden of having to share all the credit. This year’s Cradlesong is a typical piece of perfectly calculated mainstream pop, built on big, easy hooks designed to fit in a variety of corporate-designated radio formats.

Updated 09/29/2009