On LeAnn Rimes' 13th album, she covers country standards originally made famous by men. Rimes' take on Freddy Fender's "Wasted Days and Wasted Nights" is a heartbreaking gem with sad, twanging guitar and a slow, shuffling beat that wraps around the song like a comforting blanket. Merle Haggard is such a man's man, you wouldn't think Rimes' spin on any of his songs would ring with authenticity, but "I Can't Be Myself" and "The Bottle Let Me Down" are two of Lady and Gentlemen's finest moments. She also offers two new songs, the inspiring "Give" and the Miranda Lambert-esque "Crazy Women."
Lady Antebellum's sophomore effort proves the trio has gelled into one powerhouse of a songwriting machine. Need You Now overflows with romantic, wistful power ballads, including the title track and "American Honey," both of which made a home on the country singles chart. Lady A makes it easy to get lost in the starry-eyed drama of their songs, but the cheeky, sly-wink moments that made their debut so lovable are in short supply here.
There just aren't enough pop-country songs about snow, a scarcity Canadian vet Terri Clark aims to rectify here with both metaphors ("Flowers in Snow") and proud I-am-who-I-am anthems ("Northern Girl"). Along with the temperature drop, there's usually a bit more rock 'n' roll snarl to her backing band, at least -- "Breakin' Up Thing" starts off exactly like "Tumbling Dice" for a reason. Elsewhere, there's a forlorn C&W waltz ("The Good Was Great"), a sweet mother-daughter ballad ("Smile") and a boppy George Strait echo ("We're Here for a Good Time"). The flowers might even survive.
Mockingbird Time is a reunion record for Jayhawks fans, featuring both Mark Olson and Gary Louris, who split after the near-breakthrough of 1995's Tomorrow the Green Grass. The album comes with the trademarks of the Jayhawks' sound: reedy harmonies, aching mid-tempo rockers and gritty Americana imagery. The first time around, this formula kick-started the early '90s alt country movement. Fifteen years later, Mockingbird doesn't have the artistic urgency, but sounds older, wiser and more reserved. The band's strength is displayed in spades on the chiming "She Walks in So Many Ways."
When Hank Williams died in 1953, he left behind notebooks filled with lyrics to over 60 songs. In 2002, Bob Dylan was approached to finish these songs, and he, in turn, enlisted help. Nearly a decade later, The Lost Notebooks of Hank Williams is released. There are a number of sad waltzes here -- including Alan Jackson's wistful "You've Been Lonesome, Too," Levon Helm's forlorn "You'll Never Again Be Mine" and Norah Jones' hushed "How Many Times Have You Broken My Heart." Patty Loveless turns in the most authentic-sounding offering, while Jakob Dylan's "Oh Mama, Come Home" gets a warm, contemporary spin.
Despite its title, Here for a Good Time houses some of the darkest material King George has recorded to date. After the frivolous twang of the opening track comes "Drinking Man," which chronicles the life of an alcoholic one heartbreaking episode at a time; the character's helplessness is magnified by Strait's deep baritone, which is as velvety as ever. "Poison" delves into vices including drink and pretty women, while "House Across the Bay" ruminates on a failed relationship. "Lone Star Blues," "Blue Marlin Blues" and the title track will perk you right up when the others leave you down.
Rodney Atkins' brand of down-home country shines a light on small town living. "He's Mine" features a dad expressing his love for his rambunctious son; that sentiment is echoed in "Family": "I didn't choose 'em/ Wouldn't want to lose them/ You got to love them/ Man, they're family." Other highlights include "Feet," an insanely cute song about going to bed mad at each other ("We'll go to bed butting heads and tugging sheets/ But we never fall asleep without touching feet") and "Tips," which cleverly incorporates a riff from Skynyrd's "Gimme Three Steps" before unleashing some sage advice.
American Idol winner Scotty McCreery has the sort of deep, rumbling voice that makes you sit up and listen. Though Clear as Day benefits more from McCreery's vocals than it does originality, his youthful enthusiasm when singing of girls, trucks, small towns and budding relationships make up for it. "Dirty Dishes," a cleverly written, heartfelt song about a mother giving thanks for her noisy kids, gets a 10 on the "cute" scale, as does "Back on the Ground," a song about missing home and family. Other highlights: "Write My Number on Your Hand" and "That Old King James."
It's obvious from the opening notes of the downright chipper "Don't Forget How Much I Love You" that John Doe is in a happy place. Indeed, the self-described "sad sack" seems to have turned a corner. In "Giant Step Backward," Doe theorizes that if you step backward in a relationship, you give your partner the opportunity to come forward and catch up, and his well-worn vocals lend an air of first-hand experience. The shades-of-X-sounding "Never Enough" is a call to action for hoarders -- both the physical and emotional kind; Doe assures it's all just "junk."
Bon Jovi's working-class grit settles all over this Nashville country-rock band's debut. That's a compliment. These raucous, pedal-steel-and-distortion-pedal anthems highlight both economic and romantic scarcity -- how both your buddy getting a part-time job and your girl sleeping with your best friend are proof that there's "Always a Reason" to drink. Willie Nelson briefly and bizarrely cameos; the title track and the shuffling blue-collar credo "Name on My Shirt" hit hardest, and closest to home: "Punchin' clocks/ Raisin' kids/ It's all there is in all these towns."
Having survived a round of lung cancer in 2008, you'd think Merle Haggard would have mellowed a bit. But some 40 years after helping ignite the "outlaw" movement, there's still plenty for Haggard to rail against. "Too Much Boogie Woogie" is a commentary on the state of country music, which he says "is enough to make you cry." That, coupled with the western-swinging title track, leaves little doubt his fightin' side still runs deep. But it's not all us vs. them. "Laugh It Off" is a goofy "find your Zen" song, while "Truck Driver's Blues" allows a laid-back Hag to stretch his vocals a bit.
This three-disc set, featuring previously unreleased gems, is a boon for Hank fans. The bulk of the collection consists of live takes from Williams' syndicated radio series, the Health and Happiness Show. The quality of these recordings, which include staples "Lovesick Blues," "Happy Rovin' Cowboy" and "Lost Highway," is impressive. The Rare and Unreleased disc surprises with "Fan It" and "Alexander's Ragtime Band," songs Williams recorded at age 15. Engineers were able to restore the decades-old acetate, and the scratches and pops make you feel like you're listening to a part of history.
Jake Owen isn't afraid to trick out his twang with a few rock riffs, and his third album, Barefoot Blue Jean Night, sounds the better for it. Take the incessant boogie-woogie drive of "Nobody Feelin' No Pain," whose honky-tonk piano and booming guitar riffs recall the Stones at their boozy best. If it doesn't top the country charts, it will top the rock charts. Or it should, anyway. Also see "Wide Awake," whose anthemic chorus is swathed in the kind of reverberating-yet-chiming guitars that brought Tom Petty to the masses. When Owen's not rocking out, he connects with a gentle ode to grandpa on "The Journey of Your Life."
Just a year after the soft-rock crossover smash Need You Now made stars of this sweetly harmonizing coed Nashville trio, Lady Antebellum are back, still more Fleetwood Mac than "country," still rhapsodizing love in its various permutations, from vaguely sensual reminisces to the hit abstinence anthem "Just a Kiss." Pianos and pathos are your constants. Aside from the distorted guitar on "Friday Night" and the strings-and-flute outro to "Cold as Stone," nothing gets too corny. Album thesis: "Love is the heart of the world." "When You Were Mine" is not a Prince cover. It's for the best.
