Due to lack of mainstream attention, not enough people know about Sunny Sweeney’s debut album, Heartbreaker’s Hall of Fame, which was nothing short of a pure honky tonk delight. Her crisp nasal voice sounds as if it’s only meant to sing country music, which is probably, somehow, underselling her range of talent, but good for the prospect of permanence in the genre nonetheless.
For better or for worse, the first single from her sophomore album, this time produced by Brett Beavers (Dierks Bentley), has a slicker sound than that of her first album. As one can expect from a big name producer, the record is tighter both in instrumentation and vocal performance. Of course, these factors are hardly criticisms, but merely something to become accustomed to as someone who thoroughly enjoyed the looser nature of her more relaxed independent project.
“From A Table Away” is a perfect and interesting concept for a country song. It is from the perspective of “the other woman” who is forced to acknowledge that her lover is still in love with his wife. Gone is the naive fantasy that he will leave his wife as he had been leading her to believe he would. Instead, the scene that she witnesses, from a table away, portrays a loving relationship that she is unable to deny.
As an obvious attempt to aim for mainstream approval, this song is well positioned to reach that goal. It is traditional in sound while still being progressive enough to not completely stick out like a sore thumb on mainstream radio’s playlist. Moreover, Sweeney’s raw performance turns a decent song into something quite good.
Even with some of the compromises, it would be nice to hear a talent like the traditional leaning Sweeney on the radio. What’s more, with a song like this, we likely will.
Written by Bob DiPiero, Karyn Rochelle & Sunny Sweeney
Grade: B+
Listen: From a Table Away
…good song. she can definitely wear slick production.
I tried to read the review but the m&m pretzel ad wouldn’t go away. what’s the trick? there’s no “x” to click on to remove it.
It won’t go away. I unsubscribe from the ad, and it comes back again a day or two later. It’s driving me crazy, too!
I hear Fleetwood Mac in so much contemporary country today, “Little Lies” in this case (at a different tempo, of course). Sunny Sweeney marries that with a Texas country twang that sort of recalls Natalie Maines, but sounds more wounded and less cosmopolitan. It’s not the most interesting of what Sweeney can do, but this is still a very good track.
It would be nice to hear some more traditional-leaning music on country radio. I hope Sweeney can get some airplay. Considering Easton Corbin’s recent success, I suppose it’s possible that country radio may begin leaning toward music that actually sound country.
Great review, Leeann – a very accurate a well-written description of this song.
Very good song. I hope she has better luck than Emily West had on radio.
I really, really love this song!! But you know what song will get all the airplay. The teeny bopping, bad vocalist will shoot up the charts and this great one will fade away!!
Great review. Now that Miranda has broken at radio, Sunny is tied with Laura Bell Bundy as my favorite mainstream underdog.
…that sort of recalls Natalie Maines, but sounds more wounded and less cosmopolitan.
I think she sounds a lot like Maines here. This song doesn’t do much for me, personally, but it’s a good song, and it’ll be refreshing to hear on country radio.
Absolutely love this song, I reviewed it over on my own blog
I couldn’t believe how much she sounds like Natalie Maines the first time I heard this song. I think that drew me to the song more.
I’ll have to check out her debut album, too. “A Pure Honky-Tonk delight…” seems like something I would enjoy.
the cd is boring….sounds like another ‘over produced’ nashville cd!!!!
she should have stuck to the sound of her 1st cd.
@Bob: Firefox + AdBlock Plus. I haven’t seen an ad in years :)
I just heard this song on the radio for the first time yesterday. The DJ kept calling it Sunny’s “debut single.” It’s not her debut single – it’s just the first single that country radio paid any attention to.
@ ben foster
…awkwardly enough, that’d be also some sort of a debut.
A really interesting site
LOL, this is fun, I just took this album, very nice song
Sunny was appearing at a harley dealership and our local country station played it all the time–now that the time has passed–they are not playing it hardly at all—She is a lot better singer than Taylor Swift—(she can’t sing)-but yet i hear her terrible voice on radio all day long.
I love this. Sung with the right amount of cynicism and pain. It’s catchy but not corny. Sweeney is a far better singer than Swift (who can’t deliver a big line without taking a huge audible breath halfway through).
I have fallen for this single From a Table Away. Can’t stop playing it. The video is extremly well done. Sunny hope you do more of this type of music.
sounds like good old Dixie Chicks
This song is so awesome! I can’t stop playing it. Sunny Sweeney and this song are so polished. I’m so tired of hearing poorly written, simplistic, badly produced songs on the radio in addition to bad, over-hyped singers like Taylor Swift. Sunny Sweeney and Miranda Lambert are the real deal.