Folk/Review JD Hinton - Trying To Get It Right
A singer/songwriter, JD Hinton has composed songs and music for Hollywood films, including GLORIA, TICK-TOCK, and Mark Medoff’s film CHILDREN ON THEIR BIRTHDAYS. This 1942 period film features his song I HAVE TO DREAM sung by Celine Dion. JD takes his original music into Los Angeles and New York clubs with sold-out shows at Rockwood Music Hall, Vitello’s, Rockwell, House of Blues, and Viper Room.
JD Hinton’s “Trying To Get It Right” is a charming, gently self-deprecating slice of songwriter that channels the wry intelligence of Randy Newman and the melodic playfulness of Harry Nilsson without ever feeling derivative. Instead, Hinton uses those touchstones as springboards for a voice that is unmistakably his own — warm, wise, and wonderfully human.
At the heart of the song is a narrator who is, quite simply, doing his best. Hinton captures the lovable messiness of romance with disarming honesty: a man who keeps stumbling through love’s contradictions, baffled but hopeful, overwhelmed yet determined. The lyrics unfold like a series of revelations scribbled on the back of a napkin — small moments of realization, rueful laughter, and the quiet courage it takes to keep showing up even when you’re “in way over your head.” His repeated plea, “I’m just tryin’ to get it right,” becomes both confession and mantra, the kind of line anyone who has ever fumbled through love can claim as their own.
Musically, the track glows with classic singer-songwriter warmth: nimble piano flourishes, subtle rhythmic lift, and melodic turns that feel effortless yet meticulously crafted. Hinton’s vocal performance carries the perfect mix of humility and charm, delivering each line with the knowing wink of someone who has lived enough life to laugh at it.
What makes the song linger is its sincerity. Beneath the humor lies real heart — a belief that love, for all its detours and derailments, remains worth striving for. “Trying To Get It Right” is Hinton at his finest: honest, melodic, and quietly profound.