It's hard to describe a singer like him. He's like the guy you might have seen on TV, the friend you might have had in high school, or the musician on the corner you might have stopped to hear.

There is something about him that you just can't pinpoint.

The name is Mraz, Jason Mraz.

He's a pinch of John Mayer; a dash of Howie Day and a smidge of David Gray mixed in a batter of lyrical talent.

His 2002 album Waiting for My Rocket to Come is a savory find. Although not chart topping, his music has the originality and addictive nature to make him an instant coffeehouse name.

When the Mechanicsville, Va. native relocated to southern California, he perfected his acoustic stylings at coffee shops and bookstores. He built an incredible following from coast to coast based on his live shows, and is currently touring the country.

Inspired by both Dave Matthews and Michael Jackson, his music fits genres of incredible proportions. Songs like "You and I Both" and "The Remedy" can pass for pop vocal, and "Curbside Prophet" clearly falls into the folk category.

Overall, there is a quality about this album that makes me want to soul search for days and smile foolishly for no apparent reason. He writes about his muse, his past relationships and life in the city. All would be very commonplace topics, with the exception of the comical spin he puts on each verse and rhyme.

"Tonight, Not Again" is about his crave for love in this lonely world, and in "Too Much Food," he describes what it would be like if he were a french fry.

Waiting for My Rocket to Come is characteristic of any debut album. Mraz's 12 songs are mostly vocals with acoustic accompaniment. A few are backed up by his partner in crime, Toca Rivera.

Mraz hooked up with Rivera during his early coffee-shop days and the two have been an inseparable odd couple ever since.

Instruments or not, Mraz's voice and lyrics are the most important assets of his music.

In every song, he sings a refreshing tune of perfect-pitched harmonics with a unique blend of rhythm.

The originality of his lyrics can be heard in every song, such as in "You and I Both," -- "See I'm all about them words, over numbers, unencumbered numbered words, hundreds of pages, pages, pages forward."

They are complicated, yet understandable; tongue twisting, yet easy to follow along with.

Mraz has the versatility to assume a different character with each song and still relate it to the audience.

In "Curbside Prophet," Mraz sings about his life as a "down-home brother, redneck undercover" prophet while banging away on the banjo. It sounds like he was composing from the back of a pickup truck.

The only complaint I have, if anything, was that the tempo of the entire album did not go above that of a normal heart rate, therefore the songs sounded somewhat repetitive. But because his fans don't expect Mraz to sell out and collaborate with a rap artist anytime soon, perhaps it is a good thing to stick with what works.

Even though there are still many people naïve to his talents, it's my prediction that he will be gracing the stage of the Grammys next year.