Carrie Underwood, “Cowboy Casanova”
It’s been well established by this point that Carrie Underwood’s eighties pop/rock runs deep in her musical roots. Being part of the MTV generation, this isn’t surprising, as the days of country artists who were only exposed to country music are long gone.
Underwood draws on those roots more than she’s ever done on a traditional single, but fans from her Idol days will have flashbacks to her star-making performance of “Alone” when they listen to “Cowboy Casanova”, as Carrie does her very best to channel Ann Wilson and often pulls it off. I have to say that the verses are catchier than the chorus, though, and if you’re going to do eighties power pop, you need a stronger, bigger chorus.
It’s hard to fault Craig Morgan for recording yet another “we’re a bunch of rednecks having a good time” anthem. Such songs have been his bread and butter.
In lesser hands, “To Say Goodbye” could have been hopelessly maudlin. But Joey + Rory deliver a heavy message with a light touch, without any bells and whistles in the production or the vocal. The end result is that the stories of a woman who loses her husband in a plane crash and of a man who tends to his elderly wife who has lost her memory don’t focus on the tragedy. Rather, there’s an emphasis on the quiet emptiness left in the wake of these events.
Somewhere underneath “Everywhere I Go” is a great song, but to find it, you have to dig a little too deep. The song’s pleasing melody and bittersweet lyrics –Vassar sings of haunting, lingering memories of a lost love– are coated with layers of dramatic, distracting production. Even the conviction Vassar brings to the song starts to feel slightly artificial when he pushes his vocals over the top in the chorus, the most off-putting aspect of the song. 
When you’re a teenager, parents can give you all the advice in the world, based on their wealth of experience, because, after all, they were once teenagers too. But will you listen? Is it really possible to separate parents’ advice from parents’ perceived restrictions? It’s a rare teen who can.
Poor choices lead to a lack of cohesion on the latest Kellie Pickler release. There’s such an incongruity between the softly sung verses and the bombastic chorus that it’s hard to get a handle on how she’s asking the titular question. Is she angry? Sad? Disappointed? Disbelieving? Take any twenty seconds of the song, and you might get a different answer.
Apparently, Kenny Chesney really believes in his new single, “I’m Alive.” Not only is it one of the new songs on his Greatest Hits collection, it can also be found on his previous album, Lucky Old Sun. Furthermore, it was already recorded by Willie Nelson for Moment of Forever, the album that Chesney co-produced with Buddy Cannon. 
Sometimes, it’s tough to know exactly how to fairly evaluate a song, especially one that I like, but know full well is not rooted in country music in any way. Such is the case with Lady Antebellum’s new single that is set to appear on their second album yet to be released.
Country music isn’t exactly known for its exultations to hit the dance floor, so it’s no surprise that this dance request is directed at his wife. Turner is charming as ever, even if he has a bit of trouble keeping up with the beat as he tosses off the lyrics.
One of Country music’s most respected female artists, Reba McEntire, has had an expansive career that has spanned three decades. Those who have assessed McEntire’s longevity have rightly concluded that she has reinvented herself several times within her long career to adapt to the ever changing climate of country music.