"Hey hey hey, what's so wrong with one more drinking song?" Nothing at all, provided that it's a good drinking song. Especially one that goes beyond simply identifying itself as "One More Drinkin' Song," and that actually manages to distinguish itself among all the other drinking songs in country music.
The trouble with this particular drinking song is that is that it doesn't aspire to be anything more than... well... "One More Drinkin' Song." It declares itself to be a drinking song, and asks its listeners to sing along, but brings no distinctive characteristics of its own. Leaning on "hey hey hey" hooks wrapped in a singalong melody, it reaches the height of its cleverness in a tacked-on line about "bartenders tryin' to get paid while the rest of us are tryin to get..." which substitutes a hokey sound effect for the word "laid." But since the song fails to offer its own fresh take on its theme, it's as if where listening to the sonic equivalent of a skeleton with no flesh.
Then the song devolves predictably into a canned barroom singalong chorus, which adds an uncalled-for layer of cheesiness. I'm just going to put this out there while we're on the topic, but I absolutely hate crowd singalongs. Passionately. (I might even like Brad Paisley's "I'm Gonna Miss Her" if not for that danged singalong) Whenever I hear one, I always feel as if someone is trying to convince me to like a song because other people like it. It's a measure that often reeks of desperation. I say if you want to convince me to like a song, try writing a song that's actually good.
While there's still nothing wrong with a good old drinking song, it's easy to see why one might gravitate toward a drinking song that's more unique and memorable than this one. Jerrod's "Drinkin' Song" may be palatable on the first listen, but it's overall a weightless track that leaves hardly enough of an impression to garner a replay.
JERROD'S SCORE: 5 (Scores are given on a scale of 1 to 10)
After being cut off by U.S. country radio, Terri Clark eventually parted ways with her label home of Mercury Nashville, and focused her efforts on her native Canada, where she has continued to enjoy chart success.
In a similar vein as Faith Hill's "Mississippi Girl," Terri celebrates her Canadian roots on her brand new single "Northern Girl." We may have become accustomed to hearing country artists proclaim the joys of the Southern lifestyle in the U.S.A., so it almost comes as a surprise to hear Terri Clark singing about how she "grew up drivin' on black ice, spinnin' in circles under neon lights." But that's exactly the kind of place Terri Clark came from, so it's a nice change of pace from hearing so many cliche-laden songs about backwoods Southern living.
The arrangement on "Northern Girl" meshes electric guitars together with steel guitars, while still allowing Terri's strong vocal performance to cut through. With a jubilant melody and an infectious opening guitar hook, the song will no doubt make you very happy. Even the na-na-na-nas, which often threaten to be annoying, sound right at home on this track The line "You can take me out of there, but you can't take it out of me," is gratuitous, but it's not enough to sour the song's sweet flavor. Granted, it would be desirable to hear Terri dig into some deeper subject matter with the rest of her new album, but for now we can all just join Terri in her joyous celebration of her "Northern Girl" heritage.
Since U.S. country radio hasn't shown much interest in Terri Clark since 2004, it's unlikely that a song so ripe with Canadian references would bring her back into their good graces, though the song has already become a Top 20 hit in Terri's Canadian homeland. Still, it's a solid entry into Terri's catalog, and an enjoyable preview of her upcoming new album
TERRI'S SCORE:8 (Scores are given on a scale of 1 to 10)
Craig Campbell's self-titled debut album has drawn well-deserved praise for a sound that is distinctly country enough to appeal to traditional-leaning fans, while still being fresh and contemporary enough to be commercially viable. Where the album all too often goes wrong is in mediocre lyrics with a few failed attempts at cleverness. In that regard, the current single "Fish" ranks as one of the worst offenders.
"Fish" draws on a double entendre in which a fishing trip is used as a drawn-out metaphor for sex. It pairs a lethargic melody with a forgettable hook ("Man that girl sure loves to fish"), resulting in a real yawn of a single. With cliche-filled verses that are continually dull in content, "Fish" is too nondescript to be offensive, and too bland to be amusing. It's hard to determine the point of the song's existence.
I really do like Craig Campbell. He's a talented guy with an enjoyable musical style. But when it comes to showcasing Craig's talent and artistic potential, "Fish" is a wasted oppurtunity.
CRAIG'S SCORE: 5 (Scores are given on a scale of 1 to 10)
Never Be the Same, the second studio album from Canadian singer-songwriter Victoria Banks, includes a fair helping of delicious slices of pop-country, kicking off with the charming opener “Come On.” It’s about as simple a song as its title leads us to expect, but with an uplifting melody, a cool fiddle-laced arrangement, and a competent lead vocal delivery, the sum of its parts make for an enjoyably breezy contemporary country love song.
The track “Jackson” might have you expecting a cover of the well-known Cash classic, but it’s far from it. It boasts the most attention-grabbing opening line of any song on the album – “It’s a long way back to Jackson in a beat-up Cadillac/ With a Bible on the floorboard and a body in the back.” The absorbing story-song is easily the most striking track on the album. It reaches a climax in the bridge after the second chorus, when Victoria’s character sneers at the ineffective justice system, and opts to take things into her own hands – “There was never any crime, ‘cause there wasn’t no proof/ But a big sister always knows the truth/ So when he gets home tonight, I swear I’ll make things right/ I’ll be waitin’ inside with a forty-five.” Title track “Never Be the Same” is sonically interesting thanks to Victoria’s nuanced lead vocal, but the song is lyrically unfulfilling, leaning upon the crutch of laundry-list songwriting. It touches on a number of life experiences the narrator has had, with her simply concluding that she “will never be the same.” On the song “Somebody Does,” Victoria visits similar lyrical territory to that of the recent Sugarland hit “Little Miss,” in which a narrator offers comfort and encouragement to a downtrodden companion. It’s a solid concept, but the lyrics seem to call for a little added specificity, with the hook “Right now you think nobody cares, but somebody does” seeming hollow and vague. Never Be the Same is clearly not an album without its faults, with lyrics that don’t often scratch below surface level. Even on the strongest songs, layers of production often act as an unnecessary distraction. A primary example is the rather awkwardly-constructed empowerment anthem “Barefoot Girl,” which extols the joys of pick-up trucks and torn-up jeans, while the heavy beat and thumping production would seem more at home in the “high-rise high heels world” that the narrator rejects. The trait re-surfaces in the spousal abuse tale “Remember That, written by Victoria with Rachel Proctor, which appeared on Jessica Simpson’s 2008 country album Do You Know. Victoria’s performances sounds a degree more invested in the lyrics than Jessica’s, but her sincerity is undermined by an overwrought arrangement. The arrangement threatens to detract from the fact that “Remember That” ranks among the album’s strongest lyrics, in which a woman addresses an abused victim in a manner that is gentle, sympathetic, and not at all condescending. As a whole, Never Be the Same includes many of the building blocks necessary to construct a great album, but they sometimes wind up scattered hither and thither with needless clutter falling in between. Still, the album has its share of great moments demonstrating the magic that can happen when all of the pieces fall into alignment.
VICTORIA'S SCORE: 7 (Scores are given on a scale of 1 to 10)
On hearing a new track from Wynonna, one might wonder if it will be closer to the classic "No One Else On Earth" version of Wynonna, or the underwhelming "I Will Stand By You" version. As it turns out, her new single is definitely closer to the former. Much closer.
"Love It Out Loud" was written as a tribute to Wynonna's mother and musical cohort Naomi Judd. But instead of laying on the sap, "Love It Out Loud" turns out to be a rocking throwback to Wynonna's "No One Else On Earth" glory days. Fiddles and electric guitars sit side by side in a driving country-rock arrangement, yet Wynonna's Ferrari of a voice continually acts as the main instrument. Her voice shows some signs of wear, but that does not detract from our listening enjoyment in the least. She throws herself into the performance head on with all the gritty soulfulness that has characterized her best work. Her voice rises from a deep growl to an aggressive roar while exuding a punctuated swagger in a consistently engaging performance.
Besides the obvious fact that "Love It Out Loud" is such an unabashedly cool record, it has a heart and a message at the core of all that toe-tapping fun, not to mention a great title hook. "Love isn't love, really love, until you love it out loud," Wynonna sings with fierce conviction. Isn't that true? 'Love isn't love until you love it out loud' is great advice that could be applied in just about any relationship scenario, whether it be a parent-child relationship or a romantic relationship. The chorus is surrounded by a variety of quirky rapid-fire rhymes that don't always have a close tangible connection with the title hook, but that still contribute to the consistently interesting lyrical content.
Had it been released in the mid to late nineties, "Love It Out Loud" would have totally torn up the charts. Whether it will do so today is less certain. One thing is for sure: If country radio programmers ignore it, they will be ignoring what is hands down one of the best country singles of 2011.
WYNONNA'S SCORE: 9 (Scores are given on a scale of 1 to 10)
Songwriters: Eric Paslay, Dylan Altman, Terry Sawchuk
Jake, I hate to break this to you, but Rascal Flatts already did this. So did Jack Ingram. And Brad Paisley. But maybe you realized that. Maybe you realized that another song about hot girls and cold beer is about as unique and memorable as a speck of dirt. You had to know that you weren't going to make any lasting impression with those lyrics. Maybe that's why you went for all-out cheesiness instead.
With a cacophony of echoing whoa-oa-oas and robotic hand claps, "Barefoot Blue Jean Night" is easily bad enough to make the listener physically cringe on the first listen. Purists have often complained that modern mainstream country sounds like bad eighties pop, but it's almost eerie to hear a song that fits the description this perfectly. Thus, instead of evoking feelings of youthful nostalgia, "Barefoot Blue Jean Night" only leave an extremely bad taste in your mouth.
"Barefoot Blue Jean Night" is another calculated effort to capitalize on country radio's annual obsession with summer songs. Like most of its fellow summer songs, its lyrics don't delve much deeper than the requisite references to hot girls and cold beer. But summer songs are not inherently evil. The right amount of cleverness and personality can be just the right thing to get listeners in the summertime party mood (see "Redneck Yacht Club"). There's no personality here - The track sounds like business as usual, but with an extra layer of bad taste.
"Barefoot Blue Jean Night" tosses out cleverness in favor of the generic, aiming only to fit in comfortably between all the other summer songs on radio playlists. This leaves the finished product feeling like a clumsy grasp at commercial success, and a lazily thrown-together mashup of random ingredients.
JAKE'S SCORE:3 (Scores are given on a scale of 1 to 10)
Lots of great new vids to talk about this month, so we're going to split this round-up over two parts. Part 2 will be coming soon!
Josh Abbott Band, "Oh, Tonight"
Overall simple, but including a few more dramatic touches - like fire, for instance. The music video preserves the same conversational tone that the song itself has, in that it shows Josh Abbott and Kacey Musgraves playing guitar and singing to each other in a simple fireside setting.
The Dirt Drifters, "Something Better" (Embedding disabled - Click here to watch) This video follows a blue collar worker through his grueling everyday routine. It includes quite a few odd camera angles, and a good bit of humor. Quirky, fun, and off-beat, just like the song.
David Nail, "Let It Rain"
Eh, didn't really care for this one. Kind of boring. Never really went anywhere. All that really happened was sitting around and watching the soon-to-be-ex-lover get dressed.
Thompson Square, "I Got You"
A Sonny & Cher spoof - seems appropriate, considering the song's title. This video finds Keifer and Shawna Thompson playing muliple roles - the hosts of the Keifer & Shawna Show, themselves performing as Thompson Square, and others as well. Still not a fan of the song, but this is a cute video.
Sugarland, "Tonight"
Some interesting visual elements, including a variety of colorful costumes worn by Jennifer Nettles.
Emerson Drive, "Let Your Love Speak"
What could possibly be a cooler setting than Sydney, Australia?
Songwriters: Dave Haywood, Charles Kelley, Hillary Scott, Dallas Davidson
Their previous single may have been one of their weakest, but the new single from Lady's Antebellum's upcoming third album may be a step in the right direction. On "Just a Kiss," lead vocalists Hillary Scott and Charles Kelley play the parts of young lovers in a budding relationship, experiencing strong feelings of desire, yet adhering to their better judgment. They opt to take it slow, settling for "Just a kiss on your lips in the moonlight, just a touch in the fire burning so bright."
As a lyrical composition, "Just a Kiss" is neither memorable nor outstanding. Lyrics about being "Caught up in this moment, caught up in your smile" aren't particularly interesting. Without the right treatment, a song like "Just a Kiss" would be a total bore, but the song is saved by the grace of Charles and Hillary's beautifully acted out performances. As Hillary sings the opening verses, her vocal carries just the right air of vulnerability combined with passion. Charles' deep-throated voice supplies the ideal contrast to Hillary's restrained delivery.
"Just a Kiss" is very much a straightforward pop power ballad, similar in some ways to the Jason Aldean - Kelly Clarkson smash "Don't You Wanna Stay," though without the obligatory steel guitar fills. It's not country by a long stretch, and it doesn't pretend to be, with a twang-free line-up of piano and strings pulling the weight instead. Like the aforementioned hit, "Just a Kiss" is largely built around one big chorus that serves as the song's centerpiece. The chorus boasts a surprisingly infectious melody, which carries a sense of urgency, while echoing the underlying passion of the song's characters, not to mention planting itself firmly in the heads of listeners. As a lyric, "Just a Kiss" is not groundbreaking, but as a performance, it works.
LADY A'S SCORE: 7 (Scores are given on a scale of 1 to 10)
I received some sad news today, and I couldn't let the day go by without writing a few words about it. The 9513, deservedly the web's number one country music blog, is retiring, as announced today by editor Brody Vercher.
Since it's first post in 2006, The 9513 has defined what a great country blog should be, featuring reliably excellent writing, a wide variety of music covered, and a consistent standard of high-quality content, all overseen by founders Brady and Brody Vercher. News roundups were posted regularly, helping readers keep thoroughly well-informed on all the goings-on in the world of country music. In addition, it included the insightful musings of columnists such as Barry Mazor, Paul W. Dennis, and Chris Neal. Impossible to forget are the site's detailed, well-thought-out, and unabashedly honest reviews of current album and singles, authored by talented writers such as Jim Malec, Blake Boldt, Karlie Justus, Juli Thanki, and C.M. Wilcox. The 9513 was valuable for the way it introduced us to talented artists of the independent music scene, while still giving mainstream country generous coverage as well. The 9513 writers always praised the music where praise was deserved, while never hesitating to offer criticism when such was warranted.
If it were not for The 9513, The 1-to-10 Country Music Review would not exist. It was The 9513's insightful, yet always entertaining content that inspired the creation of my own little blog. I've been happily blogging away for over a year now, growing as a writer, meeting great new people, and having a good old time. I have The 9513 to thank for that.
