Week ending 4/7/12: #1 singles this week in country music history

1952: (When You Feel Like You’re In Love)Don’t Just Stand There — Carl Smith (Columbia)

1962: She’s Got You — Patsy Cline (Decca)

1972: My Hang-up Is You — Freddie Hart (Capitol)

1982: Bobbie Sue — The Oak Ridge Boys (MCA)

1992: Is There Life Out There — Reba McEntire (MCA)

2002: Blessed – Martina McBride (RCA)

2012: Alone With You — Jake Owen (RCA)

Week ending 3/31/12: #1 singles this week in country music history

1952: (When You Feel Like You’re In Love)Don’t Just Stand There — Carl Smith (Columbia)

1962: She’s Got You — Patsy Cline (Decca)

1972: My Hang-up Is You — Freddie Hart (Capitol)

1982: She Left Love All Over Me — Razzy Bailey (RCA)

1992: Is There Life Out There — Reba McEntire (MCA)

2002: Blessed – Martina McBride (RCA)

2012: Ours – Taylor Swift (Big Machine)

ACM Award predictions

The Academy of Country Music is announcing its annual awards live on TV on Sunday. Here are our predictions and hopes for the ceremony:

Entertainer of the Year

Jason Aldean
Kenny Chesney
Brad Paisley
Blake Shelton
Taylor Swift

Jonathan: First off, let the Carrie Underwood backlash begin. And end. I agree with the fans who love her, but she didn’t make enough of a splash in 2011 to be considered here. At least you need to release a solo single. I agree with this list as it features most of the big players in country music right now. I would’ve included Zac Brown Band here as musicianship should win out over star power. But I can’t say any of these artists don’t deserve it from a numbers perspective.
Will Win: Taylor Swift – it’s still a fan voted award and she has the largest fan base for these kinds of contests.
Should Win: Blake Shelton – not because of his radio hits but because he’s the only one here to ascend to the next level in 2011. He makes country music look cool on The Voice, too. He may not have a strong catalog of singles but we could do far worse in Hollywood’s ideal of country music.

OH: I think I would also lean to Blake Shelton here. Chesney, Aldean and Swift have all had bigger tours and more impressive sales, but Blake has been representing country music to a mass audience thanks to his TV exposure. However, this being a fan-voted category, I think Taylor Swift will be Sunday’s winner, with only the fast-rising rocker Jason Aldean likely to challenge.

Razor X: Taylor Swift has this one in the bag, as it’s fan voted again this year.

Note: Voting is still open for anyone who wants to make their contribution.

Classic Rewind: Matraca Berg – ‘Back In The Saddle’

This song was a single in 1999.

The recorded version featured a starry backing chorus of Patty Loveless, Suzy Bogguss, Faith Hill, Trisha Yearwood and Martina McBride.

Classic Rewind: Martina McBride – ‘When You Are Old’

Martina McBride’s version of a great Gretchen Peters song:

Album Review: Gretchen Peters – ‘Hello, Cruel World’

Anyone who has followed country music closely during the past twenty years is familiar with Gretchen Peters, or will at least recognize some of her songs.  Most country music fans, however — myself included — are relatively unfamiliar with Gretchen Peters the performer, despite the fact that she has released nine albums over the past fifteen years.  Her latest effort, released this past January, is far removed from the realm of country music. It is more accurately described as a vanity project with no ties to a particular genre and not intended for mass appeal; in other words, “singer/songwriter.”  Those expecting to hear her take on her compositions that became hits for other artists will be disappointed; no such examples appear here.  Nor are there any songs that are likely to become mainstream hits for others in the future.

It’s interesting to hear how very different Peters’ own recordings are from the mainstream fare that did so much for the careers of the likes of Pam Tillis, Patty Loveless, George Strait, Martina McBride, and Trisha Yearwood.   As the title suggests, this is not a particularly happy album; it is a serious, introspective and often bleak affair, that unfortunately is at times quite tedious to listen to.  Peters wrote or co-wrote all of the album’s songs and co-produced the project with Doug Lancio and Barry Walsh.  The mid-tempo title track was released as a single — Gretchen’s first in 16 years — but it failed to chart.

Not surprisingly, the album’s main strength is its well-written songs, which are quite literate and tastefully produced.  However, I found myself enjoying them more as works of poetry, reading the lyrics in the liner notes than I did actually listening to them.  There is little variety in tempo throughout the album, and like most people who fall into the “singer/songwriter” category, Gretchen is a much better at writing songs than she is at singing them.   Her limited vocal ability doesn’t make it any easier to enjoy songs that I’m not particularly drawn to in the first place.

One song that I did enjoy very much is “Five Minutes”, told from the point of view of a downtrodden waitress taking a cigarette break and reflecting on a life that hasn’t quite turned out the way she planned.  While I felt little empathy for the characters in most of the album’s songs, the story in “Five Minutes” is told quite skillfully, and the listener is immediately drawn in.  It’s a song that I couldn’t help but tune into and pay close attention.  Other songs, though far removed from the mindless fluff dominating the mainstream airways, are confusing and are sometimes borderline pretentious.   “St. Francis”, co-written with Tom Russell, talks about the saint walking on water, playing the role of a beggar, a shepherd and a guest taking a cup of tea at a stranger’s table — all themes that have been used in songs countless times before,  but why St. Francis was chosen to fulfill a role that has almost always been used to refer to God or Jesus, is unclear.   Even more confusing is the bizarre “Idlewild”, told from the point of view of a child riding in the backseat of a car that is en route to the airport on the day of John F. Kennedy’s assassination.  The song’s gratuitous use of a racial epithet earned the album an “explicit” warning from both iTunes and Amazon, and quite possibly other vendors as well.

It’s quite likely that some crisis in Peters’ personal life inspired these songs, and perhaps knowing the backstory would make them easier to relate to.  But one shouldn’t have to have all the inside baseball knowledge in order to enjoy an album.  There is very little here to appeal to most country fans, unless they are also die-hard Gretchen Peters fans or enjoy spending 52 minutes listening to tales of unabated misery, in which case Hello, Cruel World may be just the ticket.

Grade:  C

Album Review: Gretchen Peters – ‘The Secret Of Life’

Gretchen Peters’ melodic literate songs are hard to pin down to any particular genre, but they have been popular with many country artists, particularly women. Possessed of a strong, smooth voice herself, she has pursued a solo career away from the mainstream. Her debut album, released in 1996 on the shortlived independent Imprint Records (and distributed by Curb) contained a strong selection of songs, many of which either had been or were later to be picked up by successful mainstream country artists.

The very good opener ‘Waiting For The Light To Turn Green’ is a reflective song about a woman living in limbo. The literal traffic jam she is stuck in symbolises the frustrating realities elsewhere in her life.
I could be anywhere but here I am…

What about the love I long for
What about the child I want someday
Where are they?
What about my heart’s desire?

Some of the vocal inflections sound a bit like Suzy Bogguss, who wrote the song with her.

It is followed by the delicately sung and engrossing story of a ‘Border Town’ and beaten Carmelita, a semi-literate farmer’s daughter who has dreams but who life beats down, and who ends up working caring for richer peoples’ children. The sunny ‘Room With A View’ portrays an unambitious cab driver happier with her lot than the solitary highwire performer whose lonely travelling life is revealed in ‘Circus Girl’.

A lowkey but gutsy take on Steve Earle’s ‘I Ain’t Ever Satisfied’ is effective if less forceful than Earle’s rocking original. The impassioned AC ballad ‘I Was Looking For You’ about a restless spirit isn’t bad but is one of the less memorable songs. ‘Over Africa’ is also quite AC with a faint Gracelandish feel to it; well done but not to my taste.

A number of the songs unveiled here subsequently found favour with mainstream country artists. The title track was covered by Faith Hill and a hit single for her in 1999. It has been much admired but I find it a bit facile to conclude,
The secret of life is there ain’t no secret

The other songs picked up by other artists are much better. The sorrowful beauty of ‘On A Bus To St Cloud’ (one of Peters’ finest ever compositions) has a slightly jazzier arrangement than Trisha Yearwood but is almost as well sung, which is saying a lot.

The lovely melody and tender vocal on the love song ‘When You Are Old’ make this another standout, and perhaps my favourite track. It is the only Gretchen Peters single to chart at all (if unimpressively). It has been covered by Martina McBride, but I think I just prefer Gretchen’s beautiful version. I definitely prefer her take on ‘This Uncivil War’ (also later covered by Martina), an intense and incisive look at a couple whose economic woes are undermining their marriage, which in turn is affecting their children:

Both sides say they’re winning
And both sides know they’re losing
And neither one knows what they’re fightin’ for
In the quiet little places
You can see the little faces
Huddled right outside the bedroom door
Praying for an end to this uncivil war

Papa needs a new job
So he’s swallowing his pride
Oh, but it don’t go down easy
And it eats him up inside
And mama, she don’t notice
Little sister’s ragged dress
Lately she don’t notice
Much of anything I guess

They’re just fightin off the hunger
Tryin to keep from goin under
But the wolves just keep on
Gatherin’ round the door
There’s no place to run for cover
So they’re turning on each other
‘Cause there really ain’t no winners any more
Just victims in this uncivil war

This is another of the highlights.

The original CD was reissued in 2001 with a bonus including of Gretchen’s version of another of her early songs, Martina’s breakthrough hit ‘Independence Day’, so it’s worth making sure that’s the one you get. Both versions can be found fairly cheaply.

It’s not really mainstream country, but has appeal for fans of Trisha Yearwood and Mary Chapin Carpenter as well as of female singer songwriters. Regardless of genre, there are some truly outstanding songs here, and Gretchen is a fine singer and interpreter to boot.

Grade: A

Single Review – Martina McBride featuring Pat Monahan – ‘Marry Me’

After seeing the top 5 for the first time in six years with “I’m Gonna Love You Through It,” Martina McBride seems poised for a comeback at country radio. And “Marry Me,” her duet with Pat Monahan of Train, is the best vehicle to make that happen.

A lush re-working of Train’s mega-hit from 2010, “Marry Me” owes more to pop than country, even though a faint sprinkle of steel guitar can be heard throughout. But the song compensates for its lack of down-home appeal with committed vocal performances that perfectly convey the romantic lyrics.

“Marry Me” is a classic tale of boy meets girl in a café where both develop an instant attraction to each other. The original recording was good, but the lack of female perspective made it feel one-sided. Turning the song into a duet gives us both sides of the story, without having to amend any of the lyrics.

This is best exemplified on the bridge, the track’s crowning achievement, as both characters are singing directly to each other before coming together on the final chorus. In the liner notes from Eleven, Martina praises the un-traditional aspects of this duet, mainly the separation of their voices until that final chorus. By holding off singing together they only increase the love at first sight aspects of the story, which adds another layer to the song.

That being said, “Marry Me” is still one of the safest singles lyrically, but especially vocally, that Martina has released in years. But in the current climate of country music, that’s the main ingredient for heavy rotation at radio.

Grade: B+ 

Spotlight Artists: Female Singer-songwriters

For our March spotlight, we’re taking a look at four distinct country songwriters who all, at one point or another, found themselves on the cusp of stardom when they scored major label deals. None would be superstars in their own right, but their songs would be turned into some of the greatest country records of the last thirty years by some of the best female (and sometimes male) voices the genre has to offer.

In celebration of the release of Gretchen Peters Hello Cruel World and Matraca Berg’s The Dreaming Fields we’re taking a look at:

Nanci Griffith

Nanci Griffith’s life hasn’t been without its struggles. Born Nanci Caroline Griffith on July 6, 1953 in Seguin, Texas, she suffered a tragic loss when her boyfriend was killed in a motorcycle accident the night of their senior prom. His loss forever altered her life and became a big inspiration to her songwriting. Griffith has since survived both breast (1996) and Thyroid (1999) cancer.

As an artist, she released her debut album There’s A Light Beyond These Woods in 1978.  She would release four albums (none of which charted) before Kathy Mattea brought her fame after her version of Griffith’s “Love At The Five and Dime” peaked at #3 in 1986.

This success led to a deal with MCA Records. Lone Star State Of Mind was released in 1987. The title track would peak at #36 and the album would peak at #23. Tony Brown would also produce the follow-up, Little Love Affairs, released in 1988. It would also chart, although not as successfully. Griffith’s deal with MCA would span just three more albums, two (One Fair Summer Evening and Storms) of which charted quite low.

The 1990s would bring further success. Suzy Bogguss had a #9 peaking hit in 1992 with “Outbound Plane,” a song Griffith co-wrote with Tom Russell. In 1994, Griffith won her first (and only) Grammy award, Best Contemporary Folk Album for Other Voices, Other Rooms; a collection of songs that inspired her.

Griffiths has a new album, her first since 2009’s The Loving Kind. Although not yet released in the United States, Intersection is available in the UK.

2012 Grammy predictions

The Grammy awards are probably the world’s most prestigious cross-genre awards in the word of music, although within country music the CMA and ACM awards hold greater weight. The significance of the Grammies has been further affected this year with the contraction in the number of categories of interest to country fans. But awards shows offer a way of taking stock once every few months regarding the genre as a whole, particularly the more mainstream end. In a few days, we’ll learn who has won this year’s awards. In the meantime, here are our predictions:

Best Country Solo Performance

This new category combines the former nods to performances by male and female vocalists.

‘Dirt Road Anthem’ – Jason Aldean
‘I’m Gonna Love You Through It’ – Martina McBride
‘Honey Bee’ – Blake Shelton
‘Mean’ – Taylor Swift
‘Mama’s Song’ – Carrie Underwood

Razor X: I can’t remember the last time I came across a more underwhelming list of nominees. “Honey Bee” is the only one on the list that I can tolerate, but it doesn’t seem like the sort of song that usually wins Grammys. I think Taylor Swift and Carrie Underwood are the two real contenders here; I’ll predict that Underwood will win.

Occasional Hope: A remarkably uninspiring lineup in this category. I suppose by default my vote (if I had one) would have gone to Blake Shelton. Carrie Underwood’s song is well-meaning but bland; Martina McBride’s is the epitome of emotional manipulation; Jason Aldean’s record is horrible; and Taylor Swift’s song has nice production for once, but the lyric collapses into juvenile namecalling (and I’m afraid I’m still unimpressed by her vocal ability). That leaves Blake Shelton with a slight but not unlistenable song, making it my lukewarm favorite by default. Who will actually win it? The Grammy voting pool is a bit different from the specialist country awards shows, so I’m going to predict Taylor Swift as although Aldean has had a big breakthrough over the past couple of years, I think his lack of cross-genre name recognition will limit his appeal to voters. He, Swift and Blake Shelton all have performance slots on the show (Blake as part of a Glen Campbell tribute and Jason Aldean revisitng his duet with Kelly Clarkson), which could be an indication that the battle is between these three.

Jonathan Pappalardo: It seems as though the Grammy organization can’t win. If they go by artistic merits they’re deemed out of touch with reality. If they go with what’s popular, they’re deemed too mainstream. For my tastes these nominees are awful. There isn’t a song here I can get excited about, apart from Taylor Swift’s “Mean.” If she has to win an award this year, let it be this one.

Album Review: Tim McGraw – ‘Emotional Traffic’

Were I unaware of the longstanding feud between Tim McGraw and Curb Records, and the resulting lawsuit surrounding the release of Emotional Traffic, I would likely be asking myself what on earth Tim was thinking when he recorded this collection. It’s difficult to imagine that he thought his fans were clamoring for an album of overproduced junk that, with only a few exceptions, is far removed from the realm of country music. One possible explanation is that it is an act of deliberate sabotage on Tim’s part, a parting shot at an unscrupulous company that went to great lengths to extend his contract term. It seems like a stretch at first, but the more I listened to the album, the more plausible the theory seems. While I do think that Curb treated McGraw shabbily, I’m slightly more sympathetic towards them after giving Emotional Traffic several spins. While Curb’s legal objections to Emotional Traffic were concerned with the timeframe in which the album was recorded, a more meritorious argument would have been that it doesn’t meet the standards of McGraw’s earlier work and that it provides them with very little usable material to promote to country radio. Make no mistake, this is one hot mess of a record.

Emotional Traffic was co-produced by Tim and Byron Gallimore, who has had a hand in producing Tim’s records since the very beginning of his career. Originally recorded in 2010, the album was shelved in favor of a redundant hits compilation and was then further delayed by the court case. One track, “Felt Good on My Lips” was released as a single in September 2010 and made it to #1. Though I’m not overly fond of the song, it does have a catchy melody, and despite its throwaway, fluffy lyrics, it’s one of three songs on the album that is at least tolerable. It was written by the Warren Brothers — who contributed four songs to the album — along with Brett Beavers and Jim Beavers. This foursome also collaborated on the rather annoying and sing-songy “Hey Now.” Tim himself shares songwriting credits along with Brett and Brad Warren and Martina McBride on “I Will Not Fall Down”, an introspective song about getting older that aims to be inspirational (“I will not fall down without getting up”), which ultimately falls flat due to the constant repetition of the title line, over-processed vocals and too-busy production.

“Touchdown Jesus”, written by Rhett Akins, Dallas Davidson, and Ben Hayslip is not a great song but it’s infinitely superior to most of the other offerings here. It has the potential to be a hit single, and I think I could get to like it more with repeated listenings, although it does degenerate into a bombastic gospel-like song towards the end.

Of the twelve tracks on this album, only one — the current single “Better Than I Used To Be” — is truly good — although, as Occasional Hope recently pointed out, it cannot compete with Sammy Kershaw’s far superior version. Nevertheless, I’m glad that someone who is still getting radio airplay decided to give it a chance. The only truly country-sounding song on the album, it is currently on the verge of cracking the Top 20 and will likely reach the higher rungs of the chart.

With the exceptions of “Better Than I Used To Be”, “Touchdown Jesus” and the mediocre “Felt Good On My Lips”, I’m afraid that I found Emotional Traffic to be quite unlistenable, and I imagine that all but the most dedicated McGraw fans will be disappointed in it. While Tim has never been one of my favorite artists, he has had a knack for picking some very good material in the past. Hopefully he has some better songs on hold for his next project once the remaining legal issues play out.

Grade: D

Album Review: Lee Ann Womack – ‘The Season For Romance’

Following the immense crossover success of “I Hope You Dance”, MCA Records continued to push Lee Ann Womack further in the pop direction, hoping to make her into a pop diva like Shania Twain or Faith Hill. Something Worth Leaving Behind, released in August 2002, bore very little resemblance to country music and was both a critical and commercial disaster. Two months later, Lee Ann released a Christmas collection, which also had little to no connection to country music. While it’s not uncommon for country stars to go for a more traditional pop or big band sound on holiday collections, the timing of The Season For Romance, on the heels of Something Worth Leaving Behind, added to the perception that what Lee Ann was leaving behind were her country roots.

Many people are nostalgic for Christmas music in the vein of Bing Crosby, Dean Martin and Johnny Mathis, even if this isn’t the type of music they normally listen to throughout the year. In the past, country stars such as Vince Gill, Lorrie Morgan, and Martina McBride have attempted to recreate those sounds on their holiday albums, and it’s often been quite effective. But unfortunately, this is decidedly not the case with The Season For Romance. Seldom have I heard an album where the singer seemed so ill at ease with the material as is the case here. Throughout the entire album, Lee Ann seems to be working too hard to erase her Texas accent, and too often seems to be competing with the orchestra rather than singing with it. Songs such as “Let It Snow” and “Winter Wonderland” sound as though Lee Ann recorded the vocal track without any knowledge of the type of arrangements or instrumentation that would be used with it.

The album’s worst track is the remake of “Baby, It’s Cold Outside”, which has never been one of my favorite songs. A pop standard dating back to the 1940s, its best known version is probably Dean Martin’s 1966 recording (Martina McBride’s duet vocals were added in 2006). Lee Ann is joined by Harry Connick, Jr. I may perhaps be a little biased since I’ve never particularly liked this song, but I found Lee Ann’s very breathy performance that tries too hard to be sexy, to be quite annoying.

I don’t mind so much that this isn’t a country album; my main gripe is that Lee Ann seems uncomfortable and out of her element throughout most of it. The sole exception is “The Man With the Bag”, which is the one song on which she really seems to be engaged and enjoying herself. “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” and “Silent Night” aren’t bad — though I could have done without the distracting saxophone on the latter — but this is, for the most part, a lackluster and poorly executed project. I really hate to pan a Christmas album, particularly one from an artist whose work I usually admire, but I found this album very painful to listen to. Lee Ann is capable of much, much better and hopefully one day she’ll release a better Christmas album.

Grade: D

Album Review: Martina McBride – ‘Eleven’

In recent years Martina McBride has struggled to remain commercially relevant. Having landed only one Top 10 hit in the past seven years, she left her longtime label RCA last year in the hopes of reviving her flagging career. Unfortunately, the move to Republic Nashville has done little to change her commercial fortunes, as it has become apparent that her chart decline is due not to any neglectfulness on the part of RCA, but to her seeming inability to select decent material. She shares co-writing credits on six of Eleven’s tracks, the most she’s ever contributed to a single album, but for the most part this doesn’t result any measurable improvement over her other recent efforts.

When an artist ends a long term relationship with the label where she scored her greatest achievements, it can signal a bold new change in direction or a continued long period of stagnation. In Martina’s case, it’s definitely a case of the latter, as Eleven is more or less in the same vein as her last few, very lackluster albums for RCA. Her debut single for Republic Nashville, “Teenage Daughters”, offered a brief glimmer of hope that she might be getting her mojo back, but those hopes were quickly dashed as rest of the album is mostly a relapse back into the bubblegum pop she’s been peddling since 2006.

Though not a great song by any means, “Teenage Daughters” showed a spunkier side of Martina, which we’ve not seen in quite some time. Written by McBride and the Warren Brothers, the song deals with the challenges of raising adolescent daughters and was in no doubt inspired by Martina’s real-life experiences. The record peaked at #17. It was followed by what appears to be the intended centerpiece of the album, the God-awful “I’m Gonna Love You Through It”, the most shameless attempt to manipulate the listener’s emotions to hit the airwaves since “God’s Will”. McBride and producer Byron Gallimore were likely hoping for a big power ballad hit that explores serious issues, in the vein of “Concrete Angel” or “A Broken Wing”. The problem is that the lyrics lack any subtlety whatsoever. It’s currently at #19 on the charts, but since most radio listeners really don’t want to hear songs about people suffering from cancer, I’ll wager that this one isn’t going to go much higher.

Most of the other tracks on the album, from the opening track “One Night” to the annoyingly sing-songy “Always Be This Way” and “Broken Umbrella” sound like throwbacks to 1970s-era Top 40 AM radio, reminiscent of the poorer efforts of artists like Helen Reddy, The Carpenters or The Captain and Tennille.

Despite these considerable drawbacks, Eleven does have its brighter moments. Though not very country, “Marry Me”, a cover of last year’s minor adult-contemporary hit by the pop/rock group Train, is quite pleasant. It is performed with the song’s writer and Train’s lead singer Pat Monahan. The bluesy “Whatcha Gonna Do”, written by Rachel Thibodeau, Rebecca Lynn Howard and Jason Sever also works quite well and I’m guessing that it will eventually be released as a single. And things improve considerably with the album’s last three tracks, “Summer of Love”, “When You Love a Sinner” and the stunningly beautiful closing track “Long Distance Lullaby”, which Martina co-wrote with Mark Irwin and Josh Kear. These three numbers are the album’s best tracks, and serve as a reward of sorts for having persevered through the earlier tracks.

Having been disappointed by Martina’s previous three albums, I wasn’t expecting Eleven to be an outstanding effort, and it definitely isn’t, but it’s worth the $4.99 that Amazon MP3 is currently asking for it (the version with digital liner notes is $9.49). A deluxe version with four bonus tracks and three music videos is available exlusively from Target stores.

Grade: C

2011 CMA award predictions

The Country Music Association annual awards ceremony will take place on November 9th, 2011, presented by the pairing of Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood, who have become something of a fixture in that role in the past few years. Last year Brad also triumphed by winning the Entertainer of the Year title for the first time. The show will feature performances from many of the nominees, plus American Idol Scotty McCreery and pop star Lionel Richie, who has been recording duets with country stars for release next spring.

Here are our thoughts about who will walk away smiling next Wednesday night, category by category:

Entertainer of the Year

Jason Aldean
Brad Paisley
Blake Shelton: Jonathan Pappalardo, Occasional Hope, Razor X, J.R. Journey
Taylor Swift
Keith Urban

Occasional Hope: I feel this is a genuinely open category this year. Brad Paisley is the reigning Entertainer, having finally won the long overdue title last year, and is clearly popular with voters. However, I think he has passed his peak both commercially and (more importantly) artistically, with relatively disappointing sales figures for recent albums, although he continues to do well at radio with a #2 and two #1 hits over the period. He is also one of the top earners in country music, alongside Taylor Swift. Teen favorite Swift won the title controversially in 2009, then was largely ignored last year, and is back again with a brace of nominations. She undoubtedly has the biggest international and pop profile of all the nominees, as well as the biggest sales, with over three million copies sold so far of Speak Now in the U.S. and platinum or multi-platinum status in a number of other countries, some (like the Philippines) with little exposure to country music. She has also toured successfully overseas this year. Of course, that makes her an international pop star as much or more than a country star who has gotten lucky with pop airplay; how far should that sway the CMA?

I have a sneaking suspicion that Jason Aldean could be a big winner this year overall. He’s had a good year, with one of the best-selling albums (over 1.5 million sales), and his brand of country-rock, while far heavier on the rock than the country, has carved out a niche in the market for himself. I’m not a fan myself, but he is undeniably one of the big names in country music at the moment, with two #1 and a #2 hit single from this album, and a crossover AC hit thanks to his duet with Kelly Clarkson. But my gut feeling is that it’s a bit soon to win the top award this year. Blake Shelton, despite his title as reigning Male Vocalist, is the other surprise nominee, and he could just swing it based on the impact he has had as an ambassador for the genre, with his TV role on The Voice. He has also had two #1 singles with ‘Who Are You When I’m Not Looking’ and ‘Honey Bee’, and the frankly baffling inclusion of his poorly selling EP among the Album nominees signals that the Association voters are keen to reward him.

Razor X: It’s hard for me to get very excited about any of these nominees, but Shelton seems to be on a hot streak so I think he will win. And if I have to root for one of these nominees, I’d probably go with him.

Jonathan: This is a case of the veterans versus the newcomers. Urban hasn’t won since 2005 and I don’t expect that drought to end this year. Paisley (who should win) and Swift are strong contenders, but their steady success isn’t enough to help them prevail. It comes down to Shelton versus Aldean, and in a battle between the country rocker and the TV star, Shelton walks away with his first Entertainer trophy.

J.R. Journey: I think Paisley and Urban are just slot-fillers at this point in their careers, so they’re out. Jason Aldean had a strong year and so did Taylor Swift, but neither exploded into the mainstream – Taylor’s been there for several years now – like Blake Shelton, with a major television and soundtrack push. He’s on a major upswing, and that ought to sway voters enough to give him the edge.

Week ending 10/22/11: #1 albums this week in country music history

1966: Bill Anderson – I Love You Drops (Decca)

1971: Merle Haggard and The Strangers – Hag (Capitol)

1976: Waylon Jennings – Are You Ready For The Country? (RCA)

1981: Ronnie Milsap – There’s No Gettin’ Over Me (RCA)

1986: Randy Travis – Storms Of Life (Warner Brothers)

1991: Garth Brooks – Ropin’ The Wind (Capitol)

1996: LeAnn Rimes – Blue (Curb)

2001: Martina McBride – Greatest Hits (RCA)

2006: George Strait – It Just Comes Natural (MCA)

2011: Scotty McCreery – Clear As Day (Mercury/19/Interscope)

Week ending 10/15/11: #1 albums this week in country music history

1966: Bill Anderson – I Love You Drops (Decca)

1971: Ray Price – I Won’t Mention It Again (Columbia)

1976: Linda Ronstadt – Hasten Down The Wind (Asylum)

1981: Eddie Rabbitt – Step By Step (Warner Brothers)

1986: Randy Travis – Storms Of Life (Warner Brothers)

1991: Garth Brooks – Ropin’ The Wind (Capitol)

1996: LeAnn Rimes – Blue (Curb)

2001: Martina McBride – Greatest Hits (RCA)

2006: Alan Jackson – Like Red On A Rose (Arista)

2011: Lady Antebellum – Own The Night (Capitol)

Week ending 10/8/11: #1 albums this week in country music history

1966: David Houston – Almost Persuaded (Epic)

1971: Ray Price – I Won’t Mention It Again (Columbia)

1976: Linda Ronstadt – Hasten Down The Wind (Asylum)

1981: Eddie Rabbitt – Step By Step (Warner Brothers)

1986: Janie Fricke – Black and White (CBS)

1991: Garth Brooks – Ropin’ The Wind (Capitol)

1996: LeAnn Rimes – Blue (Curb)

2001: Martina McBride – Greatest Hits (RCA)

2006: Kenny Chesney – Live Those Songs Again (BNA)

2011: Lady Antebellum – Own The Night (Capitol)

New singles roundup: Reba, Jackson, McBride

Reba McEntire – “Somebody’s Chelsea”     Listen.

Romantic themes have never played a big part in Reba’s catalog probably because she simply doesn’t sing them well.  At the bottom of every great Reba single, there’s a hint of sadness or desperation, provided by the natural ache the singer accomplishes just by opening her mouth and bending a few seemingly irrelevant notes.  With that, she has the ability to bring most any song to life, save for her attempts at love songs. That damns her latest single right away, with its plucking mandolin and piano intro and a swaying chorus built for the slow dance portion of the next wedding reception you attend.  Her attempts to meander sweetly through the verses come off as more rehearsal run-throughs than finished product. The story revolves around the narrator’s encountering an elderly widower on a plane.  After hearing of that couple’s love story and seeing the man’s continuing love for his departed, she simply closes her eyes and daydreams of a love of her own. McEntire co-wrote the song with Liz Hengber and Will Robinson, and I have to wonder how three songwriters couldn’t find something more meaningful to say.  She’s one of the best honky-tonk, swing, and heartbreak singers in the business, who has no business squandering her talents on fluff like this.

Grade: C-

Alan Jackson – “Long Way To Go”     Listen.

Songs about drinking away your troubles, be they love or money-related, with the beach as your background has been fertile subject matter for country’s leading male artists even before Kenny Chesney made a career out of them. With his first single release for new-label home Capitol, Alan Jackson adds another to the long list. As with nearly everything Jackson does, he pulls this off so damn capably, it’s hard to fault him even for overused concepts.  ”Long Way To Go” follows the same sound format as past Jackson hits “Chattahoochee” and “It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere”, with their blistering electric guitars mixed right beside a heaping helping of fiddle and peppered with the singer’s signature “yee haws”.  Even the unrelenting rain showers, bug in his margarita and encountering another poor soul in the same predicament doesn’t seem to damper the singer’s spirits as he pours on his best feel-good vocal here.  With this single, Jackson is not hitting the ground running with his new label release, nor does it sound like he’s altered his sound or style at all. And that’s okay by me.

Grade: B

Martina McBride – “I’m Gonna Love You Through It”     Listen.

Two singles into her personally-praised upcoming album for Republic Nashville, the singer with the big voice, all those orchestrations behind her, and a penchant for singing topical songs to tug at someone’s heartstrings is back. The story of a woman recently diagnosed with breast cancer is told.  She is personified by the added details of her life – she’s 38, has 3 kids. The track is led by plentiful strings and drums, and there’s even a short steel guitar solo in the bridge.  McBride hits all the right notes, and takes the listener as high as humanly possible with her blue-in-the-face belting (if he’s still paying attention by the end).  It was in a different package – usually domestic violence –  but we’ve heard all these notes before, and even with its gravely universal message, it’s nothing more than a new step to the same old dance. Fans hoping McBride would return to the hard-hitting neo-traditionalism of “A Broken Wing” or “Cry On The Shoulder Of The Road” will be disappointed.  Likewise, those who really dig the “Concrete Angel”, “God’s Will” side of the singer’s catalog should be very pleased.  Count me among the disappointed.

Grade: C

J.R. Journey’s American Noise excerpts #1

For the past 5 weeks, I’ve been lucky enough to get to share my thoughts on 10 of the latest country singles in my Weekly Country Songs Roundup column at American Noise.  I have to first say a very big thanks to Jim Malec for giving me the chance, and a first-rate venue, to review the newest releases to country radio.  This is the first in a bi-weekly installment where I’ll share few excerpts from the past few weeks, some of my critics picks.

Kenny Chesney featuring Grace Potter – “You and Tequila”

Listen here

Kenny Chesney and Vermont rocker Grace Potter offer my favorite Chesney single since “Better As a Memory” with this sparse and brooding number, written by Matraca Berg and Deana Carter. The two lament the liquor and the love that make them crazy on the song’s winning chorus, with Potter’s silky vocal being the perfect match for Chesney’s smooth crooning. The verses tell of the willingness of the narrator to self-destruct for one more night flying high, offering a bit of self-realization along the way (“It’s so easy to forget, the bitter taste the morning left”) as the acoustic rhythm guitar that makes up the bulk of the production plays on.

Grade: A

Zac Brown Band featuring Jimmy Buffett – “Knee Deep”   

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At this point in their ascension to country’s reigning supergroup, Zac Brown and Band have earned the right to show off their musical chops a bit, and even to flaunt their famous friends. From the snazzy opening to the solo verse performed by island king Jimmy Buffett, this reggae-infused number allows these six talented musicians some jam time on-stage, while the singer “searches for paradise.” There’s little else to the lyrics than that utopian pursuit, but it’s warm now, and with a melody like this nobody’s pondering the lyrics anyway.

Grade: B

Emmylou Harris – “The Road”

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Addressing the loss of Gram Parsons directly in song for the first time since the epic “Boulder to Birmingham,” Emmylou Harris’ self-penned “The Road” is more an open elegy to her late mentor than song of heartbreak. It’s swelling alt-country sound doesn’t lend itself to quiet contemplation as much as it marks a turning point when wounds begin to heal, and forging ahead is inevitable, even though you never forget. Harris’ emotive skills are on full-display here and she sounds utterly despondent at crucial moments, such as when she sings, “So I carried on, you can’t be haunted by the past/People come and people go and nothing ever lasts.” Still, she always brings the listener back to that place of peace she’s found.

Grade: A-

Martina McBride – “Teenage Daughters”

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Leading off an upcoming album for Republic Nashville, Martina McBride offers this tongue-in-cheek take on child-rearing, made all the more believable because we know Martina has teenage daughters of her own, but also because she has carefully cultivated an image of being a fellow soccer mom to her female listeners. Far from being just another tale of unconditional love between parent and child, “Daughters” focuses on the often funny, always chaotic period when teenagers begin to assert their independence by avoidance of their parents at all costs. As she sings of remembering when her daughter “used to think she was cool” and bemoans the current state of their relationship which has left her “tired,” “crazy,” and “in need of a drink,” McBride offers up her most restrained vocal in years. Chunky and scattered rhythms make the track melodically clunky, but that is salvaged by the smart message and a to-the-point vocal.

Grade: B+

Classic Rewind: Tim McGraw featuring Martina McBride – ‘Angry All The Time’