Where, exactly?
Besides the fact that Wilson has once again turned out a country pride anthem in the vein of “Redneck Woman”, she name drops several legends of Southern Rock while appropriating their style for her own.
Gretchen, I’ll give you a pass on Hank Jr. and Charlie Daniels, even though you sang about both of them on your first hit. But come on, the Allman Brothers Band? ZZ Top? Are you kidding?
I’d say it’s like she’s not even trying anymore, but she probably is. It just turns out that she’s a one-dimensional character, and that character hasn’t been fresh or interesting since 2004.
Written by Tom Hambridge and Jeffrey Steele
Grade: D
Listen: I’ve Got Your Country Right Here
Another tough review (second in under a week).
I have to agree with it, though. She has been running on fumes for a while now; and if she doesn’t put in some new ideas, it won’t be long before she becomes a nobody (IMHO).
I don’t get Gretchen Wilson. If she really wants chart success again, than why does she keep turning out song after song beating to death the same tired redneck theme? Is she really not able to sing about anything else?
Kevin, I agree with this review 100%. If she can’t find better songs than this, she should just hang it up. What a waste of a great talent.
“I don’t get Gretchen Wilson. If she really wants chart success again, than why does she keep turning out song after song beating to death the same tired redneck theme? Is she really not able to sing about anything else?”
To be fair, Gretchen attempted to show a different side of her artistry many times with ‘When I Think About Cheatin,” “Come To Bed,” “I Don’t Feel Like Loving You Today,” and others. It’s too bad that all Gretchen’s ballads failed at radio, because people think she’s pigenholed herself, when radio hasn’t supported anything else.
I think Gretchen is an average talent, and I’m not a fan of her voice or style, but I wouldn’t doubt that Gretchen has tried to be taken seriously as an artist. Just because radio has chosen to ignore her serious efforts doesn’t mean she’s one demonsional.
Personally, I think Gretchen’s career was over a few years ago; she can’t get a hit on radio if it’s not an obnoxious, name-checking redneck anthem, and people are tired of that. I hope she can continue to make a decent living for the sake of her daughter, but she’s never going to be at the level she once was.
“When I Think About Cheatin” did hit the top five when released from her debut album. I love that song. Gretchen sings a pure country ballad better than almost any female singer around today.
Lately it seems she’s tried to get back into radio’s good graces by releasing “Redneck Woman” type songs since her rockers always clicked more with fans and radio programmers. I believe it was radio that asked her to release “You Don’t Have To Go Home” a few years back.
K is right when saying she did try to do something different; it just seems all her new music is the same tired themes which makes forgetting her ballads, like I did in my previous post, way too easy. It’s a shame because some of her ballads (and K listed them) are among her best work.
Gretchen is one artist who definitely needs to shake up her catalog. She needs to recapture the lighthearted fun of “Redneck Woman” instead of constantly retreading the same tired theme.
Regardless, this a really stupid song on its own.
…there are quite a few places that need such loud redneck anthems to sell enough drinks on friday and saturday nights to its partying customers. these kind of songs are more like booze promo material than serious musical attempts. clearly, you can get thirsty in those backwoods and on those dirt roads way out there.
perhaps, a new grad might help: bwd (best when drunk)
What I think would benefit Gretchen a lot is for her to get away from the influence of the Muzik Mafia and stake out her own territory. That, I think, would get people to take her seriously.
I remember on her previous album All Jacked Up, she recorded a song (“Rebel Child”) that she felt had the feel of one of Linda Ronstadt’s late 1970s albums. If she explored this area a bit more, perhaps her creative juices might be revived (IMHO).
This is, to say the least, just so lazily written.
I can leaf through my own CD library and just jot down rock and roll, or jazz, or Goa Trance records I’m particularly fond of in the verses, then string them together with a “Yeah, I got your rock and roll/jazz/Goa Trance right here! Just grab a beer/glass/canteen and pull up a chair/stool/yoga mat!”
I appreciate that the production sounds natural as though you could easily mistake it as a live concert recording, and Wilson doesn’t oversing until near the end of the song, but the writing is utterly lame and Wilson has little to work with in an attempt to lift the song from terribly mediocre to somewhat memorable.
If I wanted to hear an infectious tip of the hat to Charlie Daniels, I could just play “Redneck Woman” if I wanted to, which is much more playful, well-constructed and anthemic than this. This is easily the worst track from her album of the same name, which is otherwise a very decent album I’d recommend listening to (I do wish she’d cut ballads more as I actually believe she handles more emotional material better, but she definitely handles most of the up-tempos well on this album nonetheless).
This is certainly a lame exception to that rule.
I love Gretchen, but I honestly think this is the worst song on the album. I loved the lead single… it was an example of her formula done right, IMHO, while this is more of a mess.
Still, love her voice and the way she stands out from other female artists in the genre.
“Word Hard, Play Harder” wasn’t terribly original, but it did have a strong catchy factor on its side, and I have to admit that I liked. But “I Got Your Country Right Here” doesn’t even sound catchy to me. The hopeless inanity is just downright depressing.