There is one Loveless song that blows me away to no end. Pretty well-known, but:

“You Don’t Even Know Who I Am”

Brilliant song, strong vocals and a true connection. Just GREAT.

You mentioned Carrie’s version of “Flat on the Floor” Have you heard Katrina Elam’s version of that song? I saw Kat in concert and her performance just blew me away. I see MANY of the same qualities in Katrina Elam that I see in Carrie, both are vocal powerhouses, and both are beautiful good country girls from OK. I can’t help but wonder if things would have turned out better for Katrina if she came up via American Idol as well. Or if she is struggling in the shadow of Carrie’s success, since they are both so similar in so many ways.

One difference, however is that Katrina’s style is even more consistently Country Rock, whereas Country Pop seems to dominate Carrie’s style. But I agree, Carrie does Country Rock very well also.

Steve, I’ve heard all of Patty’s CDs, and while I find that she has a great connection with her songs, the style of the song itself bores me. Personal taste, really.

Linda, your comment about Underwood not having found her “style” is 100% accurate. That’s what I’ve been trying to say, but I couldn’t phrase it properly. To me, she can sing many different things, but I’d rather she take the “Before He Cheats” and “Flat on the Floor” route, where she sings country-blues and country-rock. Personally, I think it fits her personality best.

Grrrrr.

I was disappointed and even surprised at Brad’s hosting performance. He always sounded just like he was reading, even when he was delivering jokes. I thought he would have seemed more relaxed. I had hoped he would do better because I thought he had Vince’s commedic hosting potential if anyone in the business did. Too bad.

Oh yeah, Patty Loveless is awesome!!

Jerry Reed was the artist that Brad honored. In a way, he was Brad’s predecessor, being a guitar virtuoso himself, and he also a lot of humor to his music. (Amos Moses may be the best example here) He was a frequent guest on the old Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour…and was always very entertaining. He was certainly a great inspiration for Brad Paisley.

And Brad decending the stage to hug Keith, and and the hug and kiss his wife and unborn child…very touching and memorable moment, but what was up with Brad hugging his pal Keith Urban first, before his wife and child? lol…Saving best for last I guess..

Miranda’s performance was great. She has such a unique style that’s all her own.

I realized awhile ago that Carrie is dominating country music because everything she releases to radio is catchy and has a singable melody. But she seriously needs to find her own sound. Props to Miranda for her musical artistry, an area that Carrie doesn’t have.

I really enjoyed the widow’s introduction to Carrie’s performancel. How sad that her daughters will never know their dad.

Kid Rock had really fantastic stage presence. Kellie Pickler should pick up a few pointers from him.

Alan Jackson and George Strait were the usual: stand there and sing. Nothing else to say about that.

I can’t wait for Shania’s new music. She looked very tanned. I am still bummed that she’s getting divorced. How wonderful that the audience, including a traditionalist like George Strait, looked genuinely respectful and was glad to see her there.

Taylor Swift looked very nervous during her performance. She’s another one who has catchy songs but at least she has her own style. Poor girl can’t sing for her life though. She has extremely poor singing technique. Someone please tell her to take vocal lessons! She needs them badly.

I was hoping that someone else (Miranda) would win Female Vocalist but wasn’t surprised when Carrie did. When will the Carrie Underwood train stop??

Loved Brad Paisley’s guitar solo honoring…forgot his name at the moment. Usually we can never hear the singer’s guitar during a performance so it was finally nice to see exactly what at least one star can really do on a guitar. Loved seeing him hug Keith Urban and kiss his wife’s pregnant belly. Awww!

Brad was so stiff as host. He looked like he was just reading cue cards instead of meaning what he was saying. I cringed every time he was hosting. Funny how different he became when he was speaking genuinely during his acceptance speech. Now those were words that he actually meant. Carrie was more relaxed and natural. She has a good speaking voice. I can see her doing more hosting gigs in the future. She’s attractive, can speak well, can deliver a script naturally, and with some more experience, can definitely develop into a good host. But why in the world does a female host change dresses so many times during a show?? Ir’a so show-offy.

First things first, thanks for phrasing your comment in a polite, thoughtful way. That always merits props in my book.

I’ll give you this: I do think “country-pop” too often has a disproportionate ratio of country to pop, and I frown upon the fact that that musical model has been embraced by the mainstream and marketed under the same name once applied to artists like Loretta Lynn. [For example, I have no beef with Taylor Swift as an artist (singing aside), but nothing off of her new album should ever be mentioned in the same breath as 'country music.']

But my problem with country-pop pretty much ends there. My musical tastes are pretty wide, and there’s a lot of country-pop that I genuinely love – otherwise it wouldn’t make a lot of sense for me to write at or frequent sites like this one. Keith Urban is maybe my favorite artist of this decade even though his music has all but completely lost any trace of country influence. I think Sugarland, Tim McGraw, Little Big Town, even Shania Twain have made some excellent contemporary country-pop. I love John Denver. And I’m a big sucker for the old school ‘Nashville Sound’ country-pop of artists like Glen Campbell and Patsy Cline.

So it’s not a matter of me being a staunch traditionalist. But I do expect country-pop to be creative and fresh, and ultimately most of Carrie’s music doesn’t strike me that way. I’m certainly willing to give credit whenever it does; I think “Before He Cheats” was brilliant, and have also been impressed by “Flat on the Floor” and “You Won’t Find This.” I can’t say the same about “So Small” or “Last Name,” personally.

And I do think Carrie’s talent (which is considerable, though perhaps a bit too hyped) would be better served on music that is at least a bit more traditional. With the exception of “Just a Dream,” most of her most revered performances have been of songs that do have a clear country element to them: “Before He Cheats,” “Stand By Your Man” (on the Opry), “San Antonio Rose” (at the Grammys). I think that’s telling.