“”Let the mountains talk, let the river run There is wisdom here, there is much to learn There is much to know, much to understand In this healing time all across the land.”

“I don’t want to entertain people. I want to touch them.” – John Denver

Thanks, Paul.

Times Like These by Kid Rock. Outstanding. A troubled past of his own in the pursuit of the empty things of the world, and the subject of Detroit’s despair coalesce into a simple heartfelt ballad. When things get really shitty and lonely, people can forget that they have each other, and that we are connected by a force greater than us all, but also within us all. Times Like These upholds the underlying beauty of life, even when outer disappointments seem to dull its vitality. While that may be easier as a rock star with a lot of money, the sentiments in the song ring true as can be, and that’s what counts. This song is full of God’s Grace, and gets what it’s all about – bringing people together for the good. The lyrics are perfect, and something about it hits home in a way many songs that have tried to do the same do not. In my view this is definitely the best song Bob Ritchie (Kid Rock) has recorded in his career.
(Here is the studio version).

I’ve always felt Brad Paisley is at his West Virginian best when picking along on old Gospel tunes. And he has always ensured to include at least one Gospel song on each album. On new album This is Country Music his cover of “Life’s Railway to Heaven” is compelling and well-done, with great backup vocals blending with simple traditional instrumentation. Brad’s addition at the end of “Life’s Railway to Heaven” advises “So turn it on/ Turn it up/ And sing along,” borrowing nicely from the chorus lyrics of title track “This is Country Music” and wittily superseding his own observation in the same song that “Tellin’ people Jesus is the answer/ Can rub ‘em wrong.”

This theme runs into very strong writing throughout the album that explores the relationship between the divine and human on a deeper level. This includes Brad’s biting rebuke to a hellfire-and-damnation preacher in “A Man Don’t Have to Die.” Listing off a series of ills and empty dead-ends that people go down in life Brad opines that “a man don’t have to die to go to hell/ So tell us ’bout them angels/ how they fly around and sing/” emphasizing the need for messages of redemption and beauty, rather than condemnation.

Brad is a great guitarist. I’ve seen him live, and unlike some new artists, he doesn’t just sling a guitar across his back and call it a performance. Brad can actually play and he can play really damn well. He is also probably the strongest songwriter in Nashville today. His writing credits appear on 13 out of the 15 tracks on This is Country Music. The only songs Brad didn’t co-write here are the traditional “Life’s Railway to Heaven” and “A Man Don’t Have to Die,” written by Rivers Rutherford, George Teren and Josh Thompson. Much of the writing was done with Brad’s frequent co-writer Chris DuBois, also an exceptionally-talented songwriter.

“Old Alabama” (feat. Alabama) has been criticized by some for being overly-derivative and unoriginal, borrowing as it does, many lyrics from old Alabama songs. However it is a catchy and great party tune that shows Brad’s masterful ability to tune into his youthful demographic of listeners while keeping his older audience equally engaged with music from a band that used to be the height of country music. Also it is co-written by Randy Owen of Alabama, so it clearly has the Alabama stamp of approval!

“Camoflauge” is a fun tune that, while not exceptional, brings back to mind the fun of Brad’s older work, even reminding me of the exuberant melodics and instrumentation of songs like “I’m Gonna Miss Her” and “Me Neither.” “You can blend in in the country/ You can stand out in the fashion world/ Be invisible to a white-tail/ Irresistible to a redneck girl.” [cue cheering girls]. The end riffs on “Dixieland” in a way that, while clearly a bit exploitative of the rural confederate flag “type” is infused with enough self-conscious semi-parody to avoid being offensive and also handily avoid political over-correctness. Plus earlier lyrics even admit that Brad can see why “the stars and bars may offend some.” 

Duet with Carrie Underwood “Remind Me” is one of the weaker songs on the album, (and as the weakest song it is still stronger than most of what is coming out on other albums lately) despite strong vocal performances, its standard-fare lyrics and weak hook of…you guessed it “remind me,” gets stale rather quickly.

“Working on a Tan” is a brilliant throwback to old-fashioned surf music, perfect for summer with its groovy instrumentals and vocals “Soakin’ up the sun/ gettin’ next to nothin’ done/ There’s a term paper due/ In a week or two/ Oh, but she don’t give a damn/ She’s working on a tan.” Brad goes on to elaborate, telling how “All the Kappa Sigma boys/ Been lifting weights/ Hittin’ that gym drinkin’ protein shakes/ They got a cooler full of beer/ And it’s loaded in the jeep/ Why you think they’re going to the beach?….” ’cause she’s working on a tan!” a humorous paean to female beauty and summer beach life.

“Love Her Like She’s Leavin” (feat. Don Henley) is a nice little ballad of advice on how to make a relationship last. Paisley does these songs well, extending his chorus lines with the syrupy conviction (“love her like she’s leavinnnnn/ and I guarantee she won’t”) that made hits out of songs like “Then.”

“One of Those Lives” written by Paisley, Lovelace and Lee Thomas Miller is a solid count-your-blessings tune, kind of an up-tempo “Hello World” that packs a walloping punch. “I’ve got no right to complain I guess/ ‘Cause right now all I can see/ Is a little angel in a Yankees cap/ It makes me realize/ It’s just been one of those days for me/ But for him it’s been one of those lives.” This kind of writing and subject matter is also a bit of a return to Brad’s style on his earlier albums, and it is very well-chosen. What could be corny if done by another performer is everything it should be here.

“Toothbrush” echoes the track “Ain’t Nothin’ Like” from Brad’s 2003 album Mud on the Tires. Cataloguing the mechanics of a growing relationship and the objects associated with its progress this is a cutesy little tune that will also go over really well with Brad’s fan-base.

Banjo-infused “Be the Lake,” rolls along at a rollicking rhythm echoing the sentiments of “Working on a Tan” and earlier work on the song “Ticks.” Brad is pretty straightforward here, with a kind of simply-said caveman poetry: “Wish I could be the lake/ that you’re swimming in.” 

“Eastwood” (Feat. Clint Eastwood) is hilarious. “You want Western?”asks Clint. “This is Western.” A grandiose, creative exploration beyond the limits of the Western movie soundtrack follows.

“New Favorite Memory” is a nice little nod to married life of the kind that Brad’s gotten so good at putting together.

“Don’t Drink the Water” (feat. Blake Shelton) – here Brad teams up with Twitter funnyman Blake on a song about getting drunk in tropical places. It goes down a little rough, however, by somewhat arrogantly using poor infrastructure in developing countries only as the basis for a joke about getting drunk. “I ain’t goin’ down to Mexico/ to drink the water anyway.” It is also fairly derivative, borrowing directly from “It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere.” Brad: “Blake ain’t you been there before?” Blake: “Yeah, I been there a time or two.” 

“I Do Now,” is a good old heartbreak song that is well sung, although not overly-original.

This is a good album. Brad is back to his old greatness, that seemed to be getting obscured in some of his recent albums with their overproduction and pop-suffused blandness.

Despite a few standard fare tracks like “Remind Me,” “Don’t Drink the Water” and “New Favorite Memory,” the album is really good.

I would go so far as to say this is country music at its best.

10/10

The title track, a nod to disappointments and changes in life remarks “in the snow/ emptiness grows” and echoes  a singing style reminiscent of a young Gordon Lightfoot.

Track ”Window” brings to mind a rather polished, folksy retro bluegrass-tinged ballad. And the more up-tempo “Nothing at All” that treads more mainstream country music territory with its sawing fiddle and earnest vocals. Clever lines like “displaced communications/ kept my head and lost my peace of mind,” show an emerging lyrical maturity on display throughout Northern Redemption. At times the atmosphere is somewhat melancholy as on “Leaving Love Behind,” a pop-music sounding mournful tune remarking on love lost and tying the immolation of the individual under materialistic pursuits with romantic heartbreak: “hiding myself behind/ this shirt and hat and tie/ I hear a voice/ say goodbye.”

The standout track for me was “Where I’m Bound,” a rollicking old-time bluegrass tune full of feel-good banjo picking, fiddle and straightforwardly youthful vocals tinged with the stresses of growing up, a kind of ‘innocence begins to reckon with the pressures and disappointments of adult life’ feel, retaining its free spirit, as it sings about “growing old is the grand price of living/ so I’m told/ and if it’s true/would you mind if I’m going there with you?”

On “While You Sleep,” a great song takes you along for an emotional drive through a relationship and its ups and downs, with a satisfying conclusion. “All our sadness/ In the rearview mirror.” The song’s steel guitar licks and solid fiddle track give it a great country music and roots feel.

The inclusion of an amped-up electric cover of the song “Thirteen” by legendary band and one of my personal top five favorite bands of all-time, Big Star, is absolutely outstanding! The original Big Star (which broke up and since re-formed without Alex) was a power pop group headed by Alex Chilton in Memphis, Tennessee whose influence even today is wide-ranging and significant in many genres of music. The fact that the Abrams Brothers chose to include this song on Northern Redemption says a lot about the variety and depth of their musical leanings, not to mention the incredibly brilliant job they did covering it, with added nostalgic strains of fiddle bringing an extra resonance to the greatness of Big Star’s “Thirteen.” Others more familiar with mainstream contemporary music will also rejoice at inclusion of the Abrams Brothers’ bluegrass version of Coldplay hit “Viva la Vida.”

“Where will you go/ when the joker’s done his part and that’s the show?” ask the Abrams Brothers on Northern Redemption, an album aiming for authenticity and layered with heartbreak and happiness that is a coming-of-age from aworld-class Canadian talent!

9.5/10

Ronnie Dunn's new album released today!

First off, Ronnie Dunn’s anticipated self-titled debut album is out today! You may have heard his hard-hitting lead-off single”Bleed Red,” or seen the superb music video directed by Thien Than. If you are in the Barrie or Southwestern Ontario region August 26-28 this summer you’re also in luck because Ronnie will be headlining the Saturday afternoon show, undoubtedly playing material from his new album! I am definitely hoping to be there depending how my financial situation and schedule works out. It’s a chance to hear one of country music’s all-time best male vocalists. I saw Ronnie live a few years back when he was still part of Brooks & Dunn, and man that guy can sing.

A few other notes on music I’ve been getting into or back into lately, to be more specific. Two American bluegrass bands that I’m into lately are Chatham County Line, with songs such as “The Carolinian,” and “The Ghost of Woody Guthrie.” .And the Avett Brothers.

Avett Brothers performing

I just love the Avett Brothers’ music. A couple favorites are “Salvation Song” ( or a live performance with bad audio but that shows spirit of the group), and “Head Full of Doubt/Road Full of Promise” (and check out the great video for it here).Their lyrics are insightful and full of heart, and they seem to be a band who really has something worth saying and music worth playing!

An Avett Brother picking away

I also love Latino music, bands like Mana, with songs like “Bendita Tu Luz,” and classic “Rayando El Sol.” I’ve also been listening to  Makano from Panama, “Yo Quisiera Vivir,” and “Te Amo,” make for some satisfyingly junky schmaltzy summer music

More updates soon, enjoy the hot weather everyone.

“Protect and Survive”

Hest is an introspective thinker and very intelligent guy. The album is awash in a joining of the personal with the universal, both musically and lyrically, and Hest has an extraordinary ability to connect with the listener vocally somewhat akin to the appeal of a singer like Adam Duritz of Counting Crows.  For example, the personal heartache and insecurity of “Until Next Time,” “Down the Mountain” and “Sunset Over Hope Street” merge with the more universal concerns of the human condition and modern society in songs like “Business of America,” “A Way Back Home” and the natural metaphors of “Swan Song.” In “Business of America” Hest explores modern Western society singing that “faith is a victim of circumstance/ In this shallow age/ It doesn’t stand a chance.” The guitar rhythmically picks its way through, accompanied by plucked strings and an angry driving rhythm that picks up after the two-minute mark. Hest goes on to question materialism and “the system” for always putting money first and thereby sanctioning a lack of compassion in fellow citizens. “Gather up the goods like a good robot/ It isn’t what you are/ It is what you got…/ Pay no attention to the dying man/ If you ain’t got cash we won’t lend a hand../Oh that’s the system at work/ Everybody’s a jerk.” Hest wonders if America can live up to his vision of being, presumably, less materialistic, more brotherly, and more caring for the downtrodden. But by (perhaps semi-satirically) naming the system as the ever-present culprit, he seems to credit the left’s idea of reforming the system into the social welfare state, a concept that has got bankrupt signs going up all over Europe and often perpetuates the poverty it is trying to alleviate. The potential for satire exists in that the song could be taken as a suggestion that individuals themselves take action to help one another and stop using the system as an excuse and justification for why they are a “jerk.” In other words stop waiting for the government to fix everything. While this is is a rather simplified version of political and economic events, the critique of the isolation of the modern individual and the walls that people place between themselves and the suffering around them is an important insight and the song is a vital debate to bring up.

Other stirring observations abound, and the lyrical maturity of the album is considerable. “We’ve grown immune to sorry sights/ brought to us in black and white,” Hest sings in the yearning desperation of “A Way Back Home,” pointing out that the stratification of larger events under dualistic interpretations by the powers-that-be is one of many things making us further and further away from both an inner and outer home; a remove from a moral center in our own self and in the larger society to which we belong. Identity, compassion, perception. These themes figure deeply in Sunset Over Hope Street. But most of all, Hest’s vocal style and delivery convey a spirit of seeking and this is a strong basis for all the tracks on the album. Even the mostly-despairing outlook of “Swan Song,” is driven by a spirit of seeking and with its almost flamenco-lite picking and symphonic swells it ends up emphasizing simply the scale of changes approaching in the lyricist’s internal development and the wider world more than it does any attributive judgment on them. “Gone is the world that I have relied/ It has shed its sweet lullaby/ For a swan song…One day soon we will follow/ Leave the familiar/ For places unknown.”

In fact a cautious tone of hope and acceptance finds its way through Sunset Over Hope Street in songs like “Give It Time,” and “A Good Look Around.” Even the melancholic bent of much of the album is refreshing in a way. Rather than play up a jaunty or poppy affectation as some singer/songwriters might do, Hest is very honest about the challenges facing himself and the world, and sings with a kind of empathy that is somehow all-the-more inspiring when it doesn’t shy from sadness and disappointment but instead frames a mature outlook where “when nothing’s going the way I planned/ and the times that I cannot understand/ when I go after things beyond my reach/…You come to me to let me know/ That the good, the bad, is how I will grow.”  Indeed, throughout Sunset Over Hope Street Hest delivers enduring, memorable lyrics that take the situational and make it universal, creating a remarkably timeless atmosphere – while all the while experimenting in original and captivating ways with vocals and instrumentation.

8/10

Also, don’t forget that you can win an autographed copy of Sunset Over Hope Street by emailing me at paulrb7@hotmail.com or tweeting me. The deadline is 11:59PM, Monday, February 28th. A winner will be chosen at random, announced on my Twitter page and here on Country Chorus and have their own copy of Sunset Over Hope Street autographed by Ari mailed to them on March 1st. Entries are limited to North America.