Kenny Chesney, "The Boys of Fall"

After having to tolerate Kenny's lackluster performance of "Ain't Back Yet," I was ready to hate this one.  The first single from his upcoming album Hemingway's Whiskey is about playing high school football.  But it goes deeper than you might expect.

The songwriting is surprisingly well-executed.  The song comes from the point of view of a man who visits the field where he once sported a jersey, and has a flood of memories come rushing back.  It describes the small-town hype surrounding each game, and touches on the character traits that a good player had to have.  The imagery in the verses paints vivid pictures of the narrator's memories and experiences.  One of the song's most appealing aspects is its portrayal of the camaraderie between the members of a team.  Thus, this nostalgic look into the past turns out to be very engaging.

Finish it off with a solid lead vocal, and we've got a keeper.  Kenny delivers a believable and convincing performance, making it easy to see him in the role of the song's main character.  These days, each new Kenny Chesney song is practically guaranteed a spot in the Top 10, but in this case, that spot is well-deserved.

SPOILER ALERT:  This song does NOT turn into a party on the beach by the time it ends.  That's a nice change of pace.

KENNY'S SCORE:  8
(Scores are given on a scale of 1 to 10)

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