Video Reviews – Country Universe

Joey + Rory + Taylor = Video Gold

May 5, 2009 Dan Milliken 7

No formal post cooked up here; I just wanted to thank these artists for bringing mainstream country some much-needed personality. Joey + Rory, “Play The Song” I've started having my doubts about the strength of

Alan Jackson, “Sissy’s Song”

March 25, 2009 Guest Contributor 23

Alan Jackson is blessed with a voice that exudes sincerity. It’s a rare gift in country music, but one that many of country’s greats have shared. Jackson utilizes this gift most effectively on songs like

Taylor Swift, “White Horse”

February 9, 2009 Guest Contributor 11

In the new video for her single, “White Horse,” our little Taylor Swift is growing up. A convincing reconstruction of a real-life breakup (Swift only sings her brutal truths), this project is the most subtle

Jimmy Wayne, “I Will”

October 25, 2008 Dan Milliken 21

With all due respect, this is the most unintentionally hilarious video of the year. The song is so fiercely un-country that it makes “Bob That Head” sound like Bob Wills, and the screen adaptation exacerbates

Single/Video Review: Toby Keith, “God Love Her”

October 20, 2008 Dan Milliken 24

What’s going on, Toby? Seriously, now: when one of the genre’s finest mainstream voices is stooping to tired numbers like this one, something is seriously up. “God Love Her” is an uptempo, Mellencampish toss-off about

Zac Brown Band, “Chicken Fried”

October 16, 2008 Dan Milliken 10

In my earlier review of the single “Chicken Fried,” I criticized co-writers Zac Brown and Wyatt Durrette for penning what struck me as an uncreative, thoughtless appeal to Southern pride. It frankly wasn’t my favorite

Hayes Carll, “She Left Me For Jesus”

October 4, 2008 Dan Milliken 6

Here’s my disclaimer: if you found the song “She Left Me for Jesus” uncomfortably irreverent, the video is almost certainly not for you. Objectively speaking, this thing is downright blasphemous; where the humor of the

Randy Houser, “Anything Goes”

October 4, 2008 Dan Milliken 4

Clearly, it wasn’t enough for Randy Houser to produce one of the year’s finest debut singles; he also had to make one of its finest music videos. Excepting the bikini model who’s supposed to be

Miranda Lambert, “More Like Her”

October 3, 2008 Dan Milliken 6

“More Like Her” is perhaps the most intimate, clearly personal single of Miranda Lambert’s career thus far, so it’s no surprise to see the music video for the song follow suit. Taking a cue from

Video Review: Taylor Swift, “Love Story”

September 15, 2008 Dan Milliken 41

There’s nothing I could say about Taylor Swift that hasn’t already been said – and that’s the point. She knows how to score that attention; she knows how to make the dough. With a strong