song review

In 'Party Like Cowboyz,' Big and Rich once again become the wild-eyed, brash, cowboy rockers that originally attracted so many fans to their diesel-powered style when they debuted in 2003.  No one is going to accuse John Rich and Big Kenny of excessive versatility, but they do what they do with genuine conviction and passion.

Aaron Lewis seems capable of landing a country music hit, if he'd only quit looking inward and begin looking outward. The longtime rocker's outlaw sensibilities and genuine love of the country lifestyle resonated with fans on 'Country Boy,' his most successful solo single to date. On 'Forever,' we hear all about the struggles of life on the road. The story is hardly something the average fan can a

Josh Abbott Band's new release to radio isn't as much of a single as it is a statement. The signature track from his 'Small Town Family Dream' album paints Abbott as a champion of outlaw country or a cantankerous whiner envious of greener grass, depending on one's personal view of music coming out of Nashville.

The title of Dustin Lynch's new single 'She Cranks My Tractor' will make the country boys snicker, but in case someone doesn't quite get the joke, the song doubles back with line after line of gratuitous innuendo. It's a rowdy good time, one that ends just before the singer finds it necessary to spell out S-E-X.

How do you convince a skeptical country audience that you're country? You get Vince Gill to sing and play guitar on your first true country single. That's what Kelly Clarkson did with 'Don't Rush,' a song she'll perform at the CMA Awards on Nov. 1. The pairing is magic.

New label, same sound for Tim McGraw. His new single 'One of Those Nights' falls in line with the soaring ballads from the singer's last half-decade. The song's production value battles the simplicity of the storyline during this just-released-to-radio cut from the upcoming 'Two Lanes of Freedom' album.

Two notes and two hand claps into the Band Perry's new single 'Better Dig Two' and one finds assurance that the sense of drama and danger the sibling trio infused into the best songs from their self-titled debut album will be back on album No. 2. Some ambient knocking combined with thin, haunting plucking make this song an instant soundtrack for Halloween. But it will likely have legs long after O

With George Strait announcing a retirement from the road after his next tour, it's tempting to gush all over his new single 'Give It All We Got Tonight' like a school girl going on about a cute new teacher. A wave of nostalgia threatens objectivity, even though Strait will still be recording after 2014. The first song from his upcoming new album can be summed up in three words...

Thompson Square's new single 'If I Didn't Have You' is the fifth straight love song from the married country duo. While some may yearn for more varied subject matter from Keifer and Shawna Thompson, an easy argument could be made for the "If it ain't broke ..." philosophy of life and country music.

Kyle Park's new single, 'The Night Is Young,' is as straight forward of a country song as you'll find. Park sets off to tell a simple one-night story of a guy, a girl and a little trouble, and does so effortlessly. The Texas country singer has surrounded himself with a strong production team to make the first single from an upcoming new album easy to remember.

'Only God Could Love You More' is a song that doesn't leave many places for Jerrod Niemann to hide. The second single from 'Shinin' on Me' is vulnerable a la 'Stay' by Sugarland. Niemann steps up to the challenge and delivers what should be his biggest hit. This could be a career-defining song.

What's remarkable about Hunter Hayes's three singles -- including his newest, 'Somebody's Heartbreak' -- is the consistency. There is nothing amateur about this country newcomer. All three fly flat along a bar raised high above the reach of many Nashville singers, both young and old.