Single Reviews
CU Roundtable Review: Martina McBride, “I’m Gonna Love You Through It”
Written by Ben Hayslip, Sonya Isaacs, and Jimmy Yeary
Leeann Ward:
After changing record labels and subsequently releasing the refreshingly sassy “Teenage Daughters”, not to mention interviews that hinted that she hadn’t been completely happy with the direction that her music had taken in recent years, it seemed that blessedly gone might be the days of overwrought, cloying power ballads with generic productions for Martina McBride. The release of “I’m Gonna Love You Through It”, however, laid that hope to rest for those of us who had tired of such songs a zillion Martina songs ago
Retro Single Review: Shania Twain, “Any Man of Mine”
1995 | Peak: #1
By now, “Any Man of Mine” has become such a familiar Shania classic that it’s easy to take for granted what a bold artistic move it was at the time.
Though feminist viewpoints previously had surfaced in country music at times through the likes of Loretta Lynn and Kitty Wells, they were the exception rather than the rule in 1995. In the early to mid-nineties, it was more common for female artists like Reba to be topping the charts with sad songs that often cast the woman as the victim.
Retro Single Review: Tim McGraw, “Don’t Take the Girl”
1994 | Peak: #1
After the loud, thumping, controversial nature of “Indian Outlaw”, it’s a good thing that Tim McGraw had another trick in his bag to be found on that second album, which needed to be successful after his debut album, as he has stated, “went wood.” There’s little doubt that the sappy, three act single is what catapulted McGraw’s status to the superstar level that he’s enjoyed since.
Retro Single Review: George Strait, “Marina Del Rey”
1982 | Peak: #6
“Marina Del Rey” was an early attempt by George Strait at recording a pensive and thoughtful ballad.
He wasn’t quite ready for it, yet. The lyrics are appropriately longing and sentimental for times gone by, but Strait hasn’t yet developed enough as a vocalist to pull off the mature performance required.