Country music from a fan's point of view since 2008
1959: The Battle of New Orleans — Johnny Horton (Columbia)
1969: Running Bear — Sonny James (Mercury)
1979: Nobody Likes Sad Songs — Ronnie Milsap (RCA)
1989: I Don’t Want To Spoil The Party — Rosanne Cash (Columbia)
1999: Write This Down — George Strait (MCA)
2009: Then — Brad Paisley (Arista Nashville)
2019: God’s Country — Blake Shelton (Warner Bros. Nashville)
2019 (Airplay): Whiskey Glasses — Morgan Wallan (Big Loud)
1959: Don’t Take Your Guns To Town — Johnny Cash (Columbia)
1969: Only The Lonely — Sonny James (Capitol)
1979: Golden Tears — Dave & Sugar (RCA Records)
1989: Don’t You Ever Get Tired (Of Hurting Me) — Ronnie Milsap (RCA)
1999: No Place That Far — Sara Evans (RCA Nashville)
2009: God Love Her — Toby Keith (Show Dog Nashville)
2019: Beautiful Crazy — Luke Combs (Columbia Nashville)
2019 (Airplay): Beautiful Crazy — Luke Combs (Columbia Nashville)
1958: City Lights — Ray Price (Columbia)
1968: Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye — Eddy Arnold (RCA Victor)
1978: Let’s Take The Long Way Around The World — Ronnie Milsap (RCA)
1988: Gonna Take A Lot of River — Oak Ridge Boys (MCA)
2008: Everybody Wants to Go to Heaven — Kenny Chesney with The Wailers (Blue Chair/BNA)
2018: Meant To Be — Bebe Rexha featuring Florida Georgia Line (Big Machine)
2018 (Airplay): She Got The Best of Me — Luke Combs (Columbia Nashville)
1958: Guess Things Happen That Way / Come In Stranger — Johnny Cash (Sun)
1958 (Disk Jockeys): Alone With You — Faron Young (Capitol)
1968: Folsom Prison Blues — Johnny Cash (Sun)
1978: Only One Love In My Life — Ronnie Milsap (RCA)
1988: Don’t We All Have The Right — Ricky Van Shelton (Columbia Nashville)
1998: I Can Still Feel You — Colin Raye (Epic)
2008: Home — Blake Shelton (Warner Bros. Nashville)
2018: Meant To Be — Bebe Rexha featuring Florida Georgia Line (Big Machine)
2018: Get Along — Kenny Chesney (Blue Chair/Warner Nashville)
1958: Guess Things Happen That Way / Come In Stranger — Johnny Cash (Sun)
1958 (Disk Jockeys): Alone With You — Faron Young (Capitol)
1968: Folsom Prison Blues — Johnny Cash (Sun)
1978: Only One Love In My Life — Ronnie Milsap (RCA)
1988: Set ‘Em Up Joe — Vern Gosdin (Columbia)
1998: I Can Still Feel You — Colin Raye (Epic)
2008: Home — Blake Shelton (Warner Bros. Nashville)
2018: Meant To Be — Bebe Rexha featuring Florida Georgia Line (Big Machine)
2018: Get Along — Kenny Chesney (Blue Chair/Warner Nashville)
Jason Boland and the Stragglers are usually reliable purveyors of country music infused with a little Red Dirt attitude.
The opening ‘I Don’t Deserve You’ is a pretty good midpaced love song. Sunny Sweeney’s harmony vocal adds charm.
The lovely title track is a sweet story song about a pair of orphaned siblings looking out for one another in the 1930s. This is the best song on the album.
Also great is the solid honky tonker ‘Right Where I Began’, with a protagonist taking refuge in country music and a one night stand for temporary relief from his heartbreak:
Ol’ George sings a leaving song where the cowboy rides away
Hey, Ronnie’s got me figured out
She’s back on my mind to stay
And old Jones said “He stopped lovin’ her”
I hope that ain’t today
So I’ll sit back down on the stool and let the jukebox playI got Jack Daniels by the handle
My best Bud’s in the can
Some Wild-ass Turkey sittin’ next to me
Talkin’ ’bout the plan
But I’ll find a wife for the night and I’ll be her lovin’ man
Then tomorrow morning I’ll take her home and I’ll be right where I began
My next favorite is nostalgic waltz ‘Do You Remember When’, which reflects on “progress”:
Folks might still waltz around dusty dancefloors
But three quarter time’s never played anymore
And shameless promotions may get the place full
So drunk girls can ride a mechanical bull
…
Everyone talks about good old dancehalls
Then make for the tourist traps and shopping malls
Oh, how I wish this was all a bad dream
We’d wake up and Bob Wills would still be the King
…Who would’ve thought it could happen so fast –
The reckless abandonment of all our past?
In one generation forget who we are?
So let’s talk politics and religion in bars
‘Predestined’ is a nice philosophical song with a soothing melody and somewhat unclear lyrics, and ‘Going Going Gone’ is also pretty good.
‘Searching For You’ has a jazzy feel with slightly haphazard doo-wop style backing vocals which is quite catchy but not entirely to my taste. ‘Grandfather’s Theme’ is rather more progressive jazz, and sounds a bit weird to be honest. The musicianship is impressive, but it feels self indulgent. ‘Dee Dee OD’d’ is a rocker which is apparently about the punk band the Ramones. ‘Tattoo Of A Bruise’ is not very interesting and is also quite rock influenced. The set closes with a cover of Van Morrisons folk-rock ‘Bulbs’.
Overall, there is about half of an excellent album, and half one I’m not especially interested in.
Grade: B
1958 (Sales): The Story of My Life — Marty Robbins (Columbia)
1958 (Disc Jockeys): The Story of My Life — Marty Robbins (Columbia)
1968: Sing Me Back Home — Merle Haggard (Capitol)
1978: Out of My Head and Back in My Bed — Loretta Lynn (MCA)
1988: Where Do The Nights Go — Ronnie Milsap
1998: Just To See You Smile — Tim McGraw (Curb)
2008: Our Song — Taylor Swift (Big Machine)
2018: Meant To Be — Bebe Rexha featuring Florida Georgia Line (Big Machine)
2018 (Airplay): Yours — Russell Dickerson (Triple Tigers)
1958 (Sales): The Story of My Life — Marty Robbins (Columbia)
1958 (Disc Jockeys): The Story of My Life — Marty Robbins (Columbia)
1968: Sing Me Back Home — Merle Haggard (Capitol)
1978: What A Difference You’ve Made In My Life — Ronnie Milsap (RCA)
1988: One Friend — Dan Seals (Capitol)
1998: Just To See You Smile — Tim McGraw (Curb)
2008: Our Song — Taylor Swift (Big Machine)
2018: Meant To Be — Bebe Rexha featuring Florida Georgia Line (Big Machine)
2018 (Airplay): I Could Use A Love Song — Maren Morris (Columbia Nashville)
Continuing our catch-up of some of the great 2017 albums we didn’t get round to reviewing, the fourth album released by modern traditionalist and Opry favourite Teea Goans may be her best yet. Teea has an excellent clear, sweet voice, with strong emotional interpretative skills.
Much of the material consists of covers, but Teea avoids ground which is too well worn. One of the best known songs is a lovely cover of the Don Gibson-penned Ronnie Milsap classic ‘(I’d Be) A Legend In My Time’, which has a stunning vocal and classy arrangement led by steel guitar with some tasteful strings added in. Country standard ‘You Don’t Know Me’ is a perfect fit for Teea.
Teea’s version of the opener ‘Go Down Swingin’’ (originally a minor hit for the all-girl group Wild Rose in 1990) is on the jazzier side of western swing with a bit of scatting thrown in at the start. ‘Steel Guitar Rag’ is an old Bob Wills tune which Tees performs vivaciously.
Previously cut by Ray Price (one of Teea’s primary influences) and Gene Watson, ‘A Way To Survive’ is a great traditional country shuffle, with some lovely fiddle and steel. ‘Heart Over Mind’ is a fine Mel Tllis song which was a hit for him in 1970.
She recruits 90s star Mark Wills as her duet partner on a charmingly playful take on ‘It Ain’t Nothin’’, which completely reinvents the Keith Whitley hit. A mid-tempo Don Williams hit from the 1980s, ‘That’s The Thing About Love’ is more adult contemporary than country, but well sung. ‘Tell Me I’m Crazy’ is a ballad which was recorded in the 90s by both Dawn Sears and Shelby Lynne. Teea’s version has an innocent sweetness belying the desperation of the lyrics.
‘Just Because She Always Has’ is a delicately sung ballad offering a gentle warning to a neglectful but complacent husband that things might be about to change. This beautiful song may be my favorite track.
Churchy piano leads into the confident handclapping gospel of ‘I Know The Lord Will Stand By Me’. In a more contemporary style is the emotional ballad ‘Mercy walked In’.
This is an excellent album which I strongly recommend.
Grade: A+
Released in March 1987, Borderline marked Conway’s return to MCA after five year interlude with Elektra/Warner Bros. Frankly, other than the Lost In The Feeling album, I really had consistently disliked his recent output.
I received this album as a birthday present in April 1987. While I had high hopes for a return to the earlier Twitty sound my hopes were dashed when I read the back of the album and saw the following:
Musicians:
James Stroud – Drums
Emory Gordy, Jr. – Bass
John Jarvis – Piano
David Innis, Mike Lawler – Keyboards
Richard Bennett – Acoustic Guitar
Reggie Young, Fred Newll – Electric Guitar
Background Harmonies – Vince Gill and Conway Twitty
That’s right – no John Hughey, or any other steel guitar player for that matter.
My expectations suitably lowered I put the album on the turntable and played it. The album opened up with the first single release, John Jarvis-Don Cook song “Julia” which topped out at #2. This song is bland 80s ballad with cocktail lounge production. The song itself is not bad, but the production ruins it for me.
Brent Mason and Jim McBride collaborated on “Lonely Town”, a mid-tempo song about a one night stand. I would have picked this song as for single release. By the standards of this album, this was a country song
She gave into him last night
She thought he was Mr. Right
But he left like all the others
Before the morning came aroundSame old story in lonely town
The sun comes up, the heart goes down
She’s tried everything she knowsCome so far and yet so close
She keeps searching for the magic
But it’s nowhere to be found
But that’s how it is in lonely townThe sun comes up, the heart goes down
There’s got to be a way out
Someday she’ll find it, she won’t always be aloneThe one she’s been waitin’ for
Will turn her life around and take her away
From this lonely townThe sun comes up, the heart goes down
There’s got to be a way out
Someday she’ll find it, she won’t always be alone
The one she’s been waitin’ for
Will turn her life around and take her away
From this lonely town
Track three was “I Want To Know Before We Make Love” by Candy Parton and Becky Hobbs. Good advice no doubt – no point getting involved with a sociopath – but I think this song works better from the femine perspective. This song also reached #2.
Track four is the title track “Borderline” a decent song marred by cheesy 80s production. Walt Aldridge wrote this song. He wrote several #1 records for the likes of Earl Thomas Conley, Ronnie Milsap, Alabama and Travis Tritt.
Track five (the last track on side one of the vinyl album) concludes with “Not Enough Love To Go Around” a slow R&B ballad that is nice but ultimately uninteresting.
Track six is “Snake Books”, written by Troy Seals. Troy wrote many great songs, but this wasn’t one of them. This is followed by “I’m For A While” by Kent Robbins, a generic song about a man who swears that he is not looking for a one night stand.
Most songs written by committees stink, but “Fifteen To Forty-Three” by Don Goodman, Frank Dycus, Mark Sherrill and John Wesley Ryles is a terrific ballad about a fellow sorting through a box of memories and regrets. This has a very country feel to it and would have made a great single.
<blockquote>I just cut the string
On a dusty old shoe box
And opened a door to the past
Now I’m sittin’ here with my souvenirs
And these faded old photographs.
Fightin’ back tears
Lookin’ back through the years
And wonderin’ why dreams fade so fast
Now the young boy I see
Don’t look like the me
Reflected in this old looking glass.
The man in the mirror
Sees things so much clearer
Than the boy in the pictures
With his eyes full of dreams
Oh, the men that I’ve tried to be
From fifteen to forty-three
Never believed that they’d end up like me.
The ninth track “Everybody Needs A Hero” was written by Troy Seals and Max D Barnes. It’s a great song that Gene Watson released as a single. Although Conway does a nice job with the song, it is not quite as nice as Gene’s version (I like the production on Gene’s record better).
The album closes with Gary Burr’s “That’s My Job”, the last single released from this album. The single reached #6 but deserved a better fate. It is one of the best songs Conway ever recorded
I woke up crying late at night
When I was very young.
I had dreamed my father
Had passed away and gone.
My world revolved around him
I couldn’t lay there anymore.
So I made my way down the mirrored hall
And tapped upon his door.And I said “Daddy, I’m so afraid
How will I go on with you gone that way?
Don’t want to cry anymore
So may I stay with you?”And he said “That’s my job,
That’s what I do.
Everything I do is because of you,
To keep you safe with me.
That’s my job you see.”
Borderline was one of Conway Twitty’s last big hit albums, reaching #25, higher than any subsequent Conway Twitty studio album would reach. There are some good songs on this album, but the filler truly is filler and the production sounds as phony as most late 1980s country production. This album is somewhere between a C and a C+.
By the dawn of the 1980s, Conway Twitty had collected 23 solo number one singles and another five from duets with Loretta Lynn. Changes were afloat in the new decade, the least of which was a tweak in appearance, from his trademark pompadour hairstyle to the head of curls that would carry him through until his death in 1993.
Twitty parted ways with Decca/MCA Records after fifteen years with the label in 1981. He would release his next two albums on Eleketra, a move that would continue his success and allow Twitty to venture into new realms of his career. His first release for the label, Southern Comfort, would give him two more chart-topping singles. The album was produced by Jimmy Bowen.
The first single, “The Clown” was a slow and prodding ballad, typical of the period, with zero country signifiers. The follow-up, “Slow Hand” had been a big hit for The Pointer Sisters a year earlier. “Boy Next Door,” “Love And Only Love” and “It Turns Me Inside Out” are more of the same mid-paced to slow warmed over balladry.
“When Love Was Something Else” is an excellent change of pace, with twangy guitar added into the mix and noticeable effort to resemble country music. “She Only Meant to Use Him” employed the same techniques for another winning number. “Something Strange Got Into Her Last Night” continues the upward trend and could’ve easily been right at home under the care of Ronnie Milsap. “I Was The First” has an engaging melody I really enjoyed. The title track is an awful throwaway, with a cheesy lyric and intrusive background vocalists.
Despite the two singles, which Conway Twitty pursuits consider low points in his catalog, all hope is not lost with Southern Comfort. The majority of songs on the album are good and engaging, but not earth-shattering or remarkable. I wouldn’t rush to seek out a copy, the album can be easily streamed on YouTube, but it’s better than the singles and album cover would suggest.
Grade: B
Kenny Rogers’ thirteenth album, Love Will Turn You Around, was his second studio release since parting ways with longtime collaborator Larry Butler. The album, released in 1982, was a platinum-selling success.
The title track, one of my favorites in Rogers’ catalog, was issued as the lead single. The whimsical mid-paced ballad, the theme to his film Six Pack, peaked at #1 on both the Country and Adult Contemporary charts.
The second and final single, “A Love Song” was written and originally recorded by Lee Greenwood on his Inside Out album the same year. The lush ballad, which peaked at #3, is a bit too slow and delicate for my tastes.
Bobby Harden’s “Fightin’ Fire with Fire” is the story of a man being tormented by a woman named Diana and the new flame she’s literally rubbing in his face. “Maybe You Should Know,” composed by Peter McCann, is a forceful confessional from a man to his woman.
The funky R&B leaning “Somewhere Between Lovers and Friends” was co-written by Brent Mehar and Randy Goodrum, who were enjoying ample success during this period writing for everyone from The Judds and Anne Murray to Ronnie Milsap. With that degree of pedigree, it’s odd this wasn’t chosen as a single.
“Take This Heart,” by J.P. Pennington, moves Rogers’ further away from country with a lyric and melody that would’ve perfectly suited Crystal Gayle. The straight-up rock of “If You Can Lie A Little Bit” recalls his work with the First Edition. “The Fool In Me,” another Goodrum co-write (with Dave Loggins), is one of the album’s strongest tracks, complete with horns.
The best album cut on Love Will Turn You Around is closing track “I Want A Son,” co-written by Steve Dorff and Marty Panzer. The reflective ballad isn’t particularly country but that doesn’t diminish its quality in the least.
Love Will Turn You Around is a mixed bag at best, melding a slew of different styles both effective and ineffectively. The title track is the obvious classic and easily the most memorable cut from this set.
Grade: B
1957 (Sales): Whole Lot of Shakin’ Going On — Jerry Lee Lewis (Sun)
1957 (Disc Jockeys) (tie): Fraulein — Bobby Helms (Decca)
My Shoes Keep Walking Back to You — Ray Price (Columbia)
1967: My Elusive Dreams — David Houston & Tammy Wynette (Epic)
1977: Don’t It Make My Brown Eyes Blue — Crystal Gayle (United Artists)
1987: Make No Mistake, She’s Mine — Kenny Rogers & Ronnie Milsap (RCA)
1997: She’s Got It All — Kenny Chesney (BNA)
2007: More Than a Memory — Garth Brooks (Big Machine/Pearl)
2017: Body Like a Back Road — Sam Hunt (MCA)
2017 (Airplay): Small Town Boy — Dustin Lynch (Broken Bow)
1957 (Sales): (Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear/Loving You — Elvis Presley (RCA)
1957 (Disc Jockeys): Bye Bye Love — The Everly Brothers (Cadence)
1967: I’ll Never Find Another You — Sonny James (Capitol)
1977: It Was Almost Like a Song — Ronnie Milsap (RCA)
1987: Snap Your Fingers — Ronnie Milsap (RCA)
1997: Carrying Your Love With Me — George Strait (MCA)
2007: Never Wanted Nothing More — Kenny Chesney (BNA)
2017: Body Like a Back Road — Sam Hunt (MCA)
2017 (Airplay): Yours If You Want It — Rascal Flatts (Big Machine)
After nearly a decade as a background singer, and singer of television jingles, Janie Fricke finally emerged with her first ever album, released in May 1978. At the time Janie was six months past her 30th birthday, a rather late start for becoming a solo singer. This is not to say that Janie was an unknown quantity in Nashville, as she had sung background for many of Nashville’s elite such as Dolly Parton, Barbara Mandrell, Crystal Gayle, Ronnie Milsap, Lynn Anderson and Conway Twitty.
Ultimately, it was her work on several of Johnny Duncan’s hits “Jo and the Cowboy,” “Thinkin’ of a Rendezvous,” “It Couldn’t Have Been Any Better,” and “Stranger” that brought her talents to the forefront. Whereas she had not been given label credit on the earlier hits, Janie was given equal billing with Duncan on his recording of “Come a Little Bit Closer”.
While Singer of Songs is a bit generic and doesn’t give Janie much chance to show off her vocal prowess, it was a decent initial effort and did produce three decent singles.
The album opens with “I Loved You All The Way”, a bland easy listening ballad with full Nashville Sound treatment. This is followed by “We Could Have Been The Closest Of Friends”, another bland ballad, albeit with a bit more muscular vocal by Fricke.
This is followed by “You Changed My Life in A Moment”, a song I can envision the Carpenters singing – in other words yet another string-laden ballad.
The nights the sky was filled with clouds
My worried mind was filled with fears
I couldn’t count all the lonely hours
Spent with memories and tearsI never thought I would see the day
When I could throw all my sorrow away
But then you came and you showed me the way
You have made all those times disappearYou changed my life in a moment
And I’ll never be the same again
You changed my life in a moment
And it’s hard for me to understand
With a touch of your hand
In a moment of time
All my sorrow is gone
The fourth track “No One’s Ever Gonna Love You”, while not very country, at least has some grit to it and finds Janie giving a forceful R&B vocal that gives a hint as to the power behind her voice.
Track five (aka the last track on the A side of the vinyl release) is “I Believe In You” a nice easy listening ballad that is not the same song as the Don Williams hit.
Track six was the first track on Side Two of the vinyl album, Janie’s cover of Hank Locklin’s huge hit “Please Help Me I’m Falling”. Janie takes the song at a slower tempo than the original but acquits herself well. This is the first song on the album that I would actually describe as Country music, and it is the only track to feature steel guitar. This was the third single from the album and reached #12 – the Canadian country charts had it reach #4.
The first single, “What Are You Doing Tonight” reached #21 and got to #14 on the Canadian country charts. This is a nice pop county song written by Bob McDill.
Maybe I’m saying too much
After all, I just met you
But I’ve got to say just what I feel
I hope it won’t upset youI think you’re the one I’ve been dreaming of
With a little time we might fall in loveSo what’re you doing tonight
What’re you doing tonight
The wind is warm and the stars are bright
What’re you doing tonight
“Week-End Friend” was released by Con Hunley as a single reaching #13. Both Janie and Con gave this song a soulful R&B treatment which effectively showcased the song. This is the only track on the album to feature trumpet and sax.
Friday night don’t come soon enough
When I’ve been waitin’ all week for love
6:05 the train will arrive
He’ll be coming inI’ve got a week-end friend
I’ve got a week-end friendHe’ll have that special look upon his face
And if it ain’t rainin’ we’ll go to my place
And when we close the door the feeling will pour
All over us againI’ve got a week-end friend
I’ve got a week-end friend
Track nine is “Baby It’s You” was the second single, reaching #21 (and #19 in Canada). It’s a mid-tempo ballad, again with more of an R&B feel than country. This is not the same song that the Shirells, the Carpenters and Jody Miller took onto the charts.
The album closes with another Bob McDill song, “I Think I’m Falling In Love”. On this track Janie’s vocals give strong evidence as to what her vocals would sound like on future albums.
This is a very tentative album for a singer is struggling to find her voice and her muse. In my opinion tracks 6-10 are much stronger that tracks 1-5 in that the producers took more chances with the arrangements and material and smothered her less with string arrangements. I would give this album a C+ based on the strength of tracks 6-10.
Like many other country music stars, Janie Fricke grew up singing in school and church from an early age, but unlike most of her peers, she never planned on becoming a star. Instead, the South Whitley, Indiana native was pursuing a career in education. While studying at Indiana University, she landed a gig singing advertising jingles (most notably for Red Lobster), which sparked her interest in a music career. She moved to Nashville in 1975 and became a highly sought-after background vocalist, lending her voice to recordings by many of the era’s biggest names, including Conway Twitty, Ronnie Milsap, Tanya Tucker, Barbara Mandrell, and Crystal Gayle.
It was Fricke’s work with Johnny Duncan, however, which set her on the path for her own solo career. An uncredited line on his 1977 hit “Stranger” led to audiences wondering who the female mystery singer was. As a result, Billy Sherrill offered her a recording contract and signed her to Columbia. Much of her early work was in the highly-produced pop country style that dominated during the late 70s, but she also showed a knack for interpreting more traditional material. Her first two singles “What’re You Doing Tonight” and “Baby It’s You” both just missed the Top 20, but her cover of Hank Lockin’s “Please Help Me I’m Falling (In Love With You)” almost cracked the Top 10, landing at #12 in 1978.
Janie continued to enjoy moderate chart success through the end of the 1970s, finally cracking the Top 10 in 1980 with “Down To My Last Broken Heart”, which topped out at #2. Her follow-up single, a cover of Ray Price’s hit “Pride”, reached #12 and “I’ll Need Someone To Hold Me (When I Cry)” reached #4. From then on, Janie was consistent Top 10 hit maker, including seven #1 hits and became one of the most popular female artists of the 1980s, earning Female Vocalist of the Year trophies from the CMA in 1982 and 1983. Her success began to taper off around 1986 when the shift to more traditional sounds began to dominate on country radio. Her last Columbia album Labor of Love, was released in 1989.
After leaving Columbia, Janie continued to record for a variety of smaller, independent labels and was also a regular on The Statler Brothers’ TNN variety show in the early 1990s. Her most recent album is a 2012 re-release of a 2004 collection of her 80s hits remade with bluegrass arrangements. She records infrequently these days although she continues to tour. Our spotlight will focus on her most successful 80s output and we hope you will enjoy the trip down memory lane.
My Kind of Country 