Jonny Diaz (pronounced "DYE-az") turned down a promising baseball career and instead chose to follow an even more promising path as a Christian singer/songwriter. After three independent albums and numerous festival gigs,
Jonny signed with INO Records and penned the triumphant
More Beautiful You, released in May 2009. The album has a
Brandon Heath-meets-
Matt Nathanson vibe throughout, echoing with a mastery of acoustic guitar.
Diaz shows off his accomplished songwriting chops on the title track, a message encouraging young women to learn their true worth in the same vein as
Chasen's "Crazy Beautiful" or
Steven Curtis Chapman's "Fingerprints of God."
Diaz has a lot to say, and he says it well. Other gems on this disc, including "Soon Will Fade," "One Thing," and "Prodigal Like Me," are pleasantly told stories all wrapped up in polished songcraft and told with a silky smooth voice. While he chose not to follow in his three big brothers' footsteps and pursue baseball professionally (brother Matt Diaz played left field for the Atlanta Braves),
Jonny's music makes it clear that he headed down the path that most suits him and his listeners. ~ Jared Johnson