Country Singles Jubilee 7.06.09: The Playin' Possum Edition
Posted by Jasper Jones on 07.06.2009
The Jubilee's got possum, lonesome drinkin', barefoot people, spaghetti with cheap wine, and much more! Come on in and hear the latest from Jack Ingram, Lee Ann Womack, and Hootie!
Country Music Tidbits
Baby Number Two
The deep voice behind "Long Black Train" and "Would You Go With Me", Josh Turner, just welcomed his second child into the world. Colby Lynch Turner was born on Friday, June 26th to Turner and his wife Jennifer. "I'm just a proud daddy right now," said Turner. "Jennifer gave birth to another healthy baby boy. Hampton loves being a big brother and we're just one big happy family." Congrats go out to Mr. Turner.
Old Crow Gets a DVD!
Live At the Orange Peel and Tennessee Theater, Old Crow Medicine Show's first live DVD is set to be released on August 18th. It was recorded last December by Lee Tucker (director of the band's '"Wagon Wheel" and "Tell It To Me" videos) and includes fifteen songs from their studio albums and five you can only hear at their live shows. Tucker did a great job with the video for "Tell It Me", but the "Wagon Wheel" one was a little off base. It's a good video but really has nothing to do with the song. Songs from the DVD's set list include "Down Home Girl", "Caroline", "Wagon Wheel", "CC Rider", and many more.
MUSIC TIME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Country Singles Reviews
Jack Ingram - "Barefoot and Crazy"
Jack Ingram is an artist that hasn't caught on with me yet. Other than his song "Love You", which I thought was super clever, most of his stuff is uninteresting to me. The majority of the credit for "Love You" goes to the songwriters, Jay Knowles and Trent Summar, but Ingram did put his own spin on it. His lone Number 1 so far has been 2005's "Wherever You Are". It was a good song, but sounded too much like Keith Urban. I'd rather not comment on his "Lips of an Angel" cover. Lets pretend that never happened. I will give him some props for his duet with Miranda Lambert on "Gun Powder and Lead". That was excellent. Lets see how his latest turns out.
"Barefoot and Crazy" is the second single from Jack Ingram's upcoming album, Big Dreams and High Hopes, dropping on August 25th. Much like the rest of his stuff, there is nothing particularly interesting about this song. Ingram has yet to find his own personality and continues to float in limbo. It's a "good time at the lake/river with my baby" song. Summer time is finally here and this song is bound to get some airplay, but no one is going to remember it come next year. The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band's "Fishin' in the Dark" is mentioned in the lyrics. My advice would be to skip Ingram's tune and just listen to "Fishin' in the Dark" instead. It's a much better song.
Favorite Lyric: "Just me & her & the man in the moon/ Drinkin' on a cold bud brew/ Mornings gonna come way too soon"
Rating: 2/5
Lee Ann Womack - "Solitary Thinkin'"
Lee Ann Womack is one of the reasons that I still have faith in country music. Here's a girl with a beautiful traditional voice who hasn't strayed off too far into pop. With influences like Dolly Parton and Tammy Wynette, her roots are firmly planted in the traditional sound. Call Me Crazy is an excellent country album. If it doesn't win some sort of a award, it's a crying shame! Tracks like "Last Call", "The Bees", and "I Think I Know" are light-years better than what most country artists are releasing to radio right now.
"Solitary Thinkin'" is the second single released from Lee Ann Womack's Call Me Crazy. It's a bouncy, groovy, mellow tune about a girl at bar who has just broken up with her lover. She's drinkin' some whiskey, listening to some sad songs, and doin' some thinking about how to move on. Much like the double-barrel whiskey she sings about, Womack's voice is warm, smooth, and goes down easy. The back ground vocals and the organ add groove to the song and makes you want to bounce along. "Solitary Thinkin'" was written by Waylon Payne, son of Sammi Smith and godson of Waylon Jennings. This could explain the old-school feeling of the tune.
Favorite Lyric: "There's two things that'll kill a girl/ They'll strike her down right where she stands/ One is his voice and one is the rock glass sitting in my hand"
Rating: 4/5
Darius Rucker - "Alright
After big pop success in the early-mid 90s with Hootie and The Blowfish, Darius Rucker took a stab at the would of country music in 2008. Growing up in South Carolina, he claims to have always been a country music fan. Rucker says he longs for the days in his childhood when you could here Steve Wonder and Buck Owens on the same AM radio station. When asked how long he plans to stay in country music, he responded with, "I'm going to make country records back to back for a while — until country radio doesn't want me anymore or until I get my own theater in Branson — one of the two." It looks like country radio certainly wants Darius Rucker right now. He's scored a Number 1 country album and two consecutive Number 1 hit country singles.
"Alright" is the third single released from Rucker's 2008 album, Learn To Live, which has already spawned two Number 1 songs. Rucker doesn't have any Dom Perignon or any five star reservations, but he's got spaghetti and a cheap bottle of wine. That's alright with him, but not alright with me. "Alright" is pretty bland with it's highly overdone theme of "I don't have the best, but I've got it good". Rucker doesn't even bother trying to put a new spin on it. Just dusted it off and threw it out there. Maybe the greatness of "Don't Think I Don't Think About It" was just a fluke.
George Jones - "The King is Gone (And So Are You)"
"The Godfather of Country Music" is often imitated, but never duplicated. George Jones truly is one of a kind. Whether he's tearing your heart out with "He Stopped Loving Her Today", or he's making you chuckle with "High-Tech Redneck", The Possum is always at the top of his game. However, despite being one of the most beloved acts in country music history, George Jones doesn't have as much chart success as you think. He's only scored two Number 1 albums (one solo and one with Tammy Wynette) and just fourteen Number 1 songs in his fifty plus years in country music.
"The King Gone (And So Are You)" is one of my all-time favorite George Jones songs. It can be found on George's 1989 album from Epic Records, One Woman Man. This was one of his last albums with famed Nashville record producer Billy Sherrill. It's a very simple song instrumentally. The lyrics/story is what makes the song special. It's the tale of a man whose wife just left him and took just about everything they owned with her. He's left with an old Jim Beam decanter shaped like Elvis Presley, a Flinstones jelly bean jar, and a table. So naturally, he gets drunker than a skunk on the whiskey. In fact, so drunk that Elvis and Fred Flinstone begin to give him advice on the ladies. Anyone who is familiar with George Jones knows that back in the day he was nuttier than a payday candy bar. This sort of ludicrous story coming from him seems plausible. Check it out.
Favorite Lyric: "Elvis said, "Find 'em young"/ And Fred said "Old Fashioned girls are fun"/ Yabba Dabba Doo/ the King is gone and so are you"
Kris Kristofferson - "This Old Road"
Kris Kristofferson might be the exact definition of a jack-of-all-trades. He's a singer, songwriter, musician, actor, writer, and something tells me he can skin a buck and run a trout line too. Kris has done many b-movies, but he's been in some big hits as well. He played Whistler in the Blade movies, stared opposite of Barbara Streisand in A Star Is Born, and played the villain in the Mel Gibson movie Payback. Music is where he shines though. He's written a number of superb country songs like "Sunday Morning Coming Down", "Help Me Make It Through The Night", "Why Me Lord", and "For The Good Times". He's never been a very good singer, but most people forgive him because he sings with passion and truth.
Kris put out an album in 2006 called This Old Road that included some really great songs. Tracks like "Chase The Feeling", "The Final Attraction", and "In The News" were great tracks that proved he still had what it takes. However, none of those songs struck me like the title track. "This Old Road" is an excellent career retrospective song. Kristofferson takes a look at an old photo of himself and can't believe that was him. He then goes on to reflect on things that brought him down this old road. One day I would like to look back at an old picture of myself and be proud of where this old road has taken me.
Favorite Lyric: "Look at that old photograph/ Is it really you?"
That's if for this week's Jubilee! Come one back next week, ya hear!
