Though millions already appreciate former Tonic frontman Emerson Hart's poignant lyrics, smart songcraft and evocative voice, Hart's debut solo album, Cigarettes and Gasoline, begins a new chapter for the renowned performer. His 12-song debut disc is a cathartic journey and intimate lyrical portrait that includes the irresistible, melodic "Run To," the thoughtful and unforgettable "I Wish the Best For You," and the memorable first single, "If You're Gonna Leave." As lead singer for alt-rock radio and concert favorites Tonic, Hart enjoyed platinum sales, chart topping singles and albums--including the # 1 hit "If You Could Only See"--and two Grammy nominations in 2003. Striking out own his own with Cigarettes and Gasoline proved "freeing and educational in the way that I had to learn to again trust my instincts about what is best," Hart relates. "That was the greatest experience for me in making this record; I learned to trust myself as a writer." Thematically, Cigarettes and Gasoline has an underlying current of forgiveness, and also touches on the difficult topic of his father's still-unresolved murder when Hart was a boy growing up in New Jersey. ...show more

Though millions already appreciate former Tonic frontman Emerson Hart's poignant lyrics, smart songcraft and evocative voice, Hart's debut solo album, Cigarettes and Gasoline, begins a new chapter for the renowned performer. His 12-song debut disc is a cathartic journey and intimate lyrical portrait that includes the irresistible, melodic "Run To," the thoughtful and unforgettable "I Wish the Best For You," and the memorable first single, "If You're Gonna Leave." As lead singer for alt-rock radio and concert favorites Tonic, Hart enjoyed platinum sales, chart topping singles and albums--including the # 1 hit "If You Could Only See"--and two Grammy nominations in 2003. Striking out own his own with Cigarettes and Gasoline proved "freeing and educational in the way that I had to learn to again trust my instincts about what is best," Hart relates. "That was the greatest experience for me in making this record; I learned to trust myself as a writer." Thematically, Cigarettes and Gasoline has an underlying current of forgiveness, and also touches on the difficult topic of his father's still-unresolved murder when Hart was a boy growing up in New Jersey.

"This record, I had to address those issues before I moved on, so I had to forgive the people who killed my father and let that go," Hart says. "Also, learning how to come full circle with that, thinking about being a father myself someday." The CD title also casts a backward glance: "It refers to an olfactory sense from my childhood--my dad smoking Marlboro Reds and getting gas in Jersey; I remember sitting in the back of his 'Caddy, and the smell of that, and his arm up on the armrest and him smoking, early memories for me," Hart reminisces. "Also, working on boats as a kid in Jersey, going out on the water, in the mornings, that boat smell...and cigarettes." Cigarettes and Gasoline marks the culmination of a journey that began when Hart, who moved to Los Angeles and co-founded Tonic in the mid-'90s, relocated to Nashville in 2002. In the Music City, with a refreshed perspective and introspection, Hart wrote for himself and outside projects, including the song "Generations," the theme for TV's American Dreams, the tune earning Hart the 2003 ASCAP Award for film and TV.WruitiThe In 2005 Hart penned "If You're Gonna Leave," the keystone track that set the tone for the songs that would eventually comprise Cigarettes and Gasoline.

"I obsessively write every day, so I started building up songs that weren't necessarily songs that I would give away to other people," he explains. "Writing is my therapy, that's how I exist. 'If You're Gonna Leave' became the song that summed up where I was at that point in my life, and from there I started writing other songs about where I was. For the first time I was at a place where I was peaceful and without distractions. ...show less