Personal hardship can be important source of inspiration for many artists. For Keith Urban, it’s been downright essential. Since his star-making Golden Road, the luster of Urban’s aesthetic package – talent, looks, catchy tunes – has stood in fascinating contrast to the pronounced sense of struggle in his music. When that struggle is present, it seems to manifest itself in every detail: the lyrics, the performances, even the restless arrangements. It’s as if Urban is fighting for salvation from untold demons with every note, like his music is the only thing powerful enough to dispel all the built-up pain.
Defying Gravity, however, marks a noticeable departure from that paradigm. Marriage to Nicole Kidman has apparently been good stuff, and this is Keith Urban at his most contented, both emotionally and – perhaps not by coincidence – musically. On both fronts, he seems to have found a comfortable, polished groove to play off of, and he and standby producer Dann Huff do so with ease and confidence over the course of these eleven tracks.
But here’s the thing: it’s kind of boring. Without the slightest bit of edge fueling his expression, Urban seems curiously devoid of the passion that marks his best work, and curiously uninterested in pushing himself very far musically. These are all highly competent songs and performances, to be sure – there was no reason to expect anything less, given the man’s technical abilities and generally agreeable track record – but they feel more executed than fully loved. There are zero true risks and zero unexpected rewards, and the feel-good vibes never manage to feel quite as good as they have in the past. It’s just all very nice.
Of course, Keith Urban doing “nice” still means a lot of cool stuff is going on. Several of these songs boast wonderfully breezy hooks – “Standing Right in Front in You”, lead singles “Sweet Thing” and “Kiss a Girl”, to name just a few – and sometimes, as on vaguely tribal percussion of “If Ever I Could Love” or the somber atmospherics of “‘Till Summer Comes Around”, Urban’s willingness to stretch his palette of sounds imbues the album with some much-needed character (although, it should be noted, there are fewer distinguishable “country” elements here than ever).
Problem is, he never quite gets it totally right. Half of the time, the execution is just too bland to endow the songs with any personality, and the other half, the songs aren’t particularly interesting to begin with, usually as a result of bum lyrics.
Nowhere is the first problem better exemplified than on his cover of Radney Foster’s “I’m In.” It’s a charmer of a song, the kind of thing Urban should totally knock out of the park, but aside from an exploding guitar solo that breaks the monotony for a moment, his performance and Huff’s production do little more than add an unnatural muscle to Foster’s original version (the live rendition of which remains the song’s best incarnation to date). The opposite approach strikes on Urban’s direct ode to Kidman, “Thank You”, which would be one of the album’s best tracks if not for the life-draining drum-machine-and-keyboard combo (almost identical-sounding, incidentally, to the one employed on the last album’s “Got It Right This Time”, which was far more effective).
As for that second problem – that of song quality – it generally occurs here because Urban runs out of good rhymes or interesting ways to describe romantic feelings (or both at the same time: “If ever I could love / I think it could be with you / If ever I thought I’d / Found somebody so true.”). This issue emerges as early on as the chorus of “Kiss a Girl”, then carries on into essentially every song on the album that addresses love in a nondescriptly positive way, which is almost half of them.
And on those few occasions where Urban does mix up his theme a bit, the contrasting ideas don’t stand up strongly enough. “When Summer Comes Around”, in particular, has the skeleton to be a fantastic study of loneliness, but it stacks so much lyrical weight onto its “empty carnival” metaphor that it comes off sounding cheesy and melodramatic instead. Throw in “Why’s It Feel So Long” – which is too cute and fluffy for even Urban to sell – and all those nondescript love songs start to sound pretty good in comparison.
Altogether, Defying Gravity comes off sounding like a whole lot of polish without much soul, a first for Urban’s career as a superstar. The dilemma he seems to face from here on out is finding ways to create invigorating music without recycling his own templates and resorting to cliche. Perhaps the solution will require some homework – a new producer? A new, perhaps rootsier musical approach? – but whatever it is, one thing is certain: if he insists on living a personal life free of constant struggle now (the nerve!), he’s got to find some other way to bring his old urgency back to the game. It may mean taking on new kinds of challenges along the way, but it’s like they say: no pain, no gain.
Superstar, Keith Urban, is offering his much anticipated brand new album Defying Gravity for the bargain price of $3.99 on Amazon today. Reviews so far have been mixed, but here’s a chance for you to decide for yourself without breaking the bank. Grab it quick, because this deal won’t last forever.
Downloading Instructions:
Click on the big “Play” symbol to play the clips. When they start playing, a little box with information about the track will appear at the bottom of the box. Click where it says the album’s name (Defying Gravity) to reach the full album. Alternatively, you can click the yellow “Buy MP3″ button to go to the page of the individual song that’s playing, from which you can also reach the full album’s page.
In a just world, this throwaway co-write by the great Bobby Braddock (“He Stopped Loving Her Today”, “D-I-V-O-R-C-E”, “Time Marches On”) wouldn’t even have made it to the song-plugger. Instead, it’s the new single for a rising star who doesn’t have to do much to get anything he releases played by radio.
“People Are Crazy” is basically two minutes of flat barstool poetry, then there’s a quirky little twist in the bridge, then the song ends and you move on with your life. Billy Currington’s voice has warmth and character to spare, and he could be using it to create memorable records in the vein of “Good Directions.” This isn’t awful, but coming from a songwriter like Braddock and a singer like Currington, it could be so much better.
Kenny Chesney previews his second hits collection with a morning after anthem that is refreshingly devoid of confusion or regret. They didn’t have too much or too little fun, just enough to justify the lost sleep and diminished checking accounts.
The cast of characters that Chesney meets on his night out might not really exist anywhere in the real world in the same place and same time, but he’s made a career out of idealizing such experiences in his music. “Out Last Night” is more of a complement to the older hits on his upcoming collection than a preview of new things to come, though the production is a lot more Strait than Buffett this time around, and that’s not a bad thing.
The winners have been announced for three of the Top New Artist categories at this year’s ACM Awards:
Top New Male Vocalist: Jake Owen
Top New Female Vocalist: Julianne Hough
Top New Vocal Duo or Group: Zac Brown Band
Jake Owen’s victory is something of an upset, as he was nominated against James Otto and Jamey Johnson, two men who received multiple Grammy nominations. Johnson still has a shot at some ACM awards this year, as he’s nominated in three other categories: Single, Song and Album of the Year. Owen is nominated for Vocal Event for his part in Sugarland’s multi-artist “Life in a Northern Town.”
Julianne Hough was chosen over Sarah Buxton and Ashton Shepherd, while Zac Brown Band won over the Eli Young Band and the Lost Trailers.
Owen, Hough and Zac Brown Band will compete for the Top New Artist award during the three-hour telecast on Sunday, April 5. We’ll be live-blogging, of course. Look for our predictions and personal picks later this week.
Last Thursday, Bill and I celebrated our fifth wedding anniversary. It’s been a wonderful run so far. Of all the positive things that I can say, my favorite thing about our marriage is that we are best friends. In fact, before we ever started dating, we were best friends. So, it’s nice that the same is still true today and it would be devistating if it should ever change.
I’m certainly no marriage expert, but I think that being friends is central to a successful marriage. Not only does it make the days more bearable, it helps to insure that we will give to each other at least as much as we would to our friends.
With that said, I am fully aware that being friends in a marriage isn’t always as easy as we would all hope it would be. Like any friendship, it’s something that must be worked on and cannot be taken for granted.
As I listened to music today, “Friendless Marriage” from Bruce Robison’s Country Sunshine came on my iPod. Robison sings this heartbreakingly sad song with his wife, Kelly Willis. It’s always a treat when Willis joins her husband on a track, but this is an especially noteworthy collaboration. As is always the case when I hear”Friendless Marriage”, I was struck by their subdued performance of a song that never ceases to catch my attention and pierce my heart.
Robison and Willis sing from the perspective of a couple who can remember a time when they were full of passion for each other. However, the passion is gone now and they’ve discovered that they have nothing left to hold onto. They’ve reconciled themselves to the knowledge that they’re in a friendless marriage. Robison’s character admits that the only thing that is holding them together is the obligation to responsibility that has been instilled in him by the example of family history:
“She don’t seem to smile no more, or look me in the eye/I don’t say a thing at all or hold her when she cries/But we weren’t raised to run from our responsibilities/So I stay for my baby like my mama stayed for me.”
As his recent stint as an American Idol mentor proves, Randy Travis is one of the most widely recognized and respected traditional country artists of the past three decades. After selling millions of albums in the eighties, Travis remained a force on the country charts throughout the nineties. This decade, he has won several Grammy awards for his Christian albums, and even returned to the top of the country charts with “Three Wooden Crosses”, a selection from one of those albums.
A Starter Kit for an artist like Randy Travis can only skim the surface. Those looking to dig deeper should check out Leeann’s Favorite Songs by Favorite Artists: Randy Travis feature, along with his recent collaboration with Carrie Underwood on “I Told You So”, which resulted in his first-ever top ten pop hit, a full thirty years after he made his first appearance on the country charts with “She’s My Woman” under his real name, Randy Traywick.
“On the Other Hand” from the 1986 album Storms of Life
His first hit single was an instant classic about the consequences of infidelity.
“Diggin’ Up Bones” from the 1986 album Storms of Life
He’ll forever have coolness for scoring a #1 hit with “exhuming” in the chorus.
“Forever and Ever, Amen” from the 1987 album Always & Forever
This instant wedding classic powered his second album to quintuple platinum status.
“I Told You So” from the 1987 album Always & Forever
The original version is mandatory listening for fans of Carrie Underwood and contemporary country music.
“Hard Rock Bottom of Your Heart” from the 1989 album No Holdin’ Back
The production was startlingly innovative for the time, and Travis deserves kudos for convincing listeners that it’s the woman who was cheated on who is being unreasonable.
“Look Heart, No Hands” from the 1992 album Greatest Hits Volume Two
When Travis released two hits collections simultaneously, he scattered new tracks among both sets. This was the best among a strong crop of new material.
“Before You Kill Us All” from the 1994 album This is Me
Proof positive that Travis can be quite funny.
“Out of My Bones” from the 1998 album You and You Alone
His Dreamworks debut was his best single in years, with killer fiddle and one of his strongest vocals.
“Three Wooden Crosses” from the 2002 album Rise and Shine
Arguably his finest work since the classic hits of his first two albums, it returned him to #1 on the country charts for the first time in eight years.
“Dig Two Graves” from the 2008 album Around the Bend
A poignant bookend to “Forever and Ever, Amen”, where the promise has been kept but time is running short.
Albums you hate by artists you love. Okay, so those are some strong words. But, as recently evidenced by the comments given in response to Kevin’s review of Martina McBride’s new album, Shine, even our favorite artists put out occasional stinkers. Those so-called stinkers may be universally acknowledged as such or just a reflection of our personal tastes, but, regardless of how they got there, they are most notable for the dust they acquire on our back shelves or their unapologetic dumping from our iPods.
Here at Country Universe, we try to be honest about the material, even if the artist involved is one of our favorites. It is definitely more painful to write a bad review about an artist you love, but unearned praise is the worst kind.
Therefore, I have no compunction about stating that despite the praise George Strait’s recent album, Troubadour, has received, it’s no longer on my iPod. And while generally I’m a Toby Keith fan, I felt Honkytonk University was a waste of money. Similarly, although Bruce Springsteen is one of my favorite artists ever and has put out two of my favorite albums of all time (Nebraska and Live in Dublin, both of which give me permission to write about him on a country music blog), I’m not afraid to admit that his recent Working on a Dream is a complete stinker, and Magic not among his best.
Now it’s your turn.
What are some albums you hate by artists you love?
Stuck in my car stereo over the last couple of weeks has been a CD loaded with tunes from some of my favorite Texas-affiliated artists. I’m a big fan of the singer-songwriter, old school and raggedy rock styles of country music, and Texas excels at all three. So any time I need a break from the current “Nashville sound,” I like to check in with Texas and see what they’re up to. Invariably, it’s more colorful and interesting.
I can’ t call myself an expert on Texas country by any stretch of the imagination and my education is nowhere remotely near complete (hint: feel free to recommend), but I do sense that it’s a style of music, or perhaps a musical sensibility, that is extremely important to maintain. Texas artists exude a certain spirit of creativity and sense of individuality that is sorely lacking elsewhere in country music. And in my opinion, great music and great artists only flourish in settings where both of those are encouraged.
Here’s a sampling of the songs I’m currently listening to:
“Dallas,” Jimmie Dale Gilmore
“Snowin’ on Raton,” Townes Van Zandt
“West Texas Waltz,” Joe Ely
“Greenville,” Lucinda Williams
“Tortured Tangled Hearts,” Dixie Chicks
“Transcendental Blues (Live in Austin),” Steve Earle
“Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain,” Willie Nelson
“Treat Me Like a Saturday Night,” The Flatlanders
“Bourbon Legend,” Jason Boland & The Stragglers
“Jesus Was a Capricorn,” Kris Kristofferson
“Angry All The Time,” Bruce Robison & Kelly Willis
“What I Deserve,” Kelly Willis
“Old Five and Dimers,” Billie Joe Shaver
“Heartbreaker’s Hall of Fame,” Sunny Sweeney
“Only Daddy That’ll Walk the Line,” Waylon Jennings
What are some of your favorite Texas country tunes?
Joey + Rory’s latest single, “Play The Song,” is a mixed bag. On the one hand, it’s a fun statement song from the frustrated gut of a talented songwriter. On the other hand, it was likely released because it is an up-tempo number, despite not being one of the best songs on the album.
Focusing on the bright side, however, the song does encapsulate one of the most endearing qualities of Joey + Rory: their utter fearlessness and honesty. It’s the same quality that set “Cheater, Cheater” apart from typical radio fare (“Loser, loser hope you love her cuz your stuck with her now / Take your sorry butt, load up all your stuff, and get the hell out of my house / But I just wish you’d tell me this one thing before you go / Cheater, cheater where’d you meet that no good, white trash ho?” Classic.).
“Play The Song” continues that candid, from-the-gut streak. It entreats corporate radio to simply play the song and “let the people decide if the music is right or it’s wrong.” It pushes back against the mindset of corporate radio that only a certain “type” of songs sells and therefore should be distributed to the mainstream audience. It also pushes back against—in a cheer-worthy line—the agonizing P.C. of country radio: “and it’s too bad, if you ask me / Our song’s gotta be so darn P.C. /so DAMN P.C.”
To be personally honest, I find the contrast between the duo’s radio releases and their sweet, straight-laced, corn-fed image fascinating. I’d love to sit down and have a tall beer with both of them and discuss the ins and outs of the Nashville music scene. I don’t cast my political vote based on that criteria, but I’m not above choosing my songwriters in that fashion. And I have no doubt the conversation would be completely frank and entertaining, just like this duo.
Superstar, Keith Urban, is offering his much anticipated brand new album Defying Gravity for the bargain price of $3.99 on Amazon today. Reviews so far have been mixed, but here’s a chance for you to decide for yourself without breaking the bank. Grab it quick, because this deal won’t last forever.
In a just world, this throwaway co-write by the great Bobby Braddock (“He Stopped Loving Her Today”, “D-I-V-O-R-C-E”, “Time Marches On”) wouldn’t even have made it to the song-plugger. Instead, it’s the new single for a rising star who doesn’t have to do much to get anything he releases played by radio.
Kenny Chesney previews his second hits collection with a morning after anthem that is refreshingly devoid of confusion or regret. They didn’t have too much or too little fun, just enough to justify the lost sleep and diminished checking accounts.
The winners
Last Thursday, Bill and I celebrated our fifth wedding anniversary. It’s been a wonderful run so far. Of all the positive things that I can say, my favorite thing about our marriage is that we are best friends. In fact, before we ever started dating, we were best friends. So, it’s nice that the same is still true today and it would be devistating if it should ever change.
As his recent stint as an American Idol mentor proves, Randy Travis is one of the most widely recognized and respected traditional country artists of the past three decades. After selling millions of albums in the eighties, Travis remained a force on the country charts throughout the nineties. This decade, he has won several Grammy awards for his Christian albums, and even returned to the top of the country charts with “Three Wooden Crosses”, a selection from one of those albums.
Albums you hate by artists you love. Okay, so those are some strong words. But, as recently evidenced by the comments given in response to 
Stuck in my car stereo over the last couple of weeks has been a CD loaded with tunes from some of my favorite Texas-affiliated artists. I’m a big fan of the singer-songwriter, old school and raggedy rock styles of country music, and Texas excels at all three. So any time I need a break from the current “Nashville sound,” I like to check in with Texas and see what they’re up to. Invariably, it’s more colorful and interesting.
Joey + Rory’s latest single, “Play The Song,” is a mixed bag. On the one hand, it’s a fun statement song from the frustrated gut of a talented songwriter. On the other hand, it was likely released because it is an up-tempo number, despite not being one of the best songs on the album.
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