Cowgirls Don't Cry – Brooks & Dunn Maybe the speaker in Toby Keith's “She Never Cried in Front of Me” wasn't so obtuse after all. Maybe he was just in a relationship with the main character of this song, a woman raised to hide her emotions at every turn. Even when she realizes that her husband's carousing is tearing apart their home, she doesn't bother confronting him about it: She didn't let him see it break her heart / She didn't let him see her fall apart. As though being … [Read more...]

Country Boy – Alan JacksonThe bouncy repetitions of the chorus overshadow the barely-there plot, which might be for the best. The discomforting storyline involves a truck-driving man who picks up a female pedestrian (car problems? hitchhiking? just walking?), promises he's not a stalker, then quickly - and rather inappropriately – shifts into a series of come-ons (“you sure look good sitting in my right seat”) and seedy sexual innuendos (“climb in my bed / I'll take you for a … [Read more...]

Unbelievable (Ann Marie) – Josh GracinIf someone wrote an indistinct, universal, radio-ready love song about you, would you be honored or offended? Gracin wrote this about his wife. I'm sure she won't mind if it's a big hit, but I wonder if she notices that it could just as well be about anyone else in the world. The only hint of particularity isn't in the lyric – it's in the title, hidden away in parentheses. Other than that, this is every other love song.Don't Think I Can't Love You … [Read more...]

She Wouldn't Be Gone – Blake SheltonI've really warmed up to Blake's singing over the years, but I'm not crazy about this song. I like the verses, but the choruses sound like they were ripped from Lonestar's playbook. I don't think Blake needs to go that big.Shine – Matt StillwellThe production and subject matter remind me of “Hicktown.” The similarity is unfortunate, as – considered separately – I would actually prefer this song and performance. However, given the John Rich … [Read more...]

Let It Go – Tim McGrawRobert Johnson at the crossroads, devil on your back, carrying the past in a hundred-pound sack, head up high, standing in the rain, skeletons and ghosts hiding in the shadows, no more tears to cry, wash it all away. Way to settle on an image, team.Flip Flops – Billy CraigRaffi wrote this island song for Kenny Chesney. Kenny passed on it, so Billy Craig got it. Actually, that's not true. Billy Craig apparently wrote it himself. Very strange, but a daring release in … [Read more...]

When I'm feeling particularly concise (or just lazy), I'll compile a few abbreviated reviews into one post that I call A Six Pack to Go. These are intended as off-the-cuff comments, not impeccably reasoned reviews, so please take them in the spirit of an exchange of opinion between friends. As always, you're welcome to talk back in the Comments section. Just a Dream - Carrie Underwood I wish I could debate the lyrical intricacies of the song with you, but I just couldn't get past the … [Read more...]