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Retro Single Review: Shania Twain, “When”

January 2, 2012 Kevin John Coyne 2

1998 | Peak: #14 (Canada); #18 (U.K.)

The closest thing in Twain’s catalog to a lost hit, “When” was released as the follow up to “You’re Still the One” in the United Kingdom. Twain even shot a video for the song, which consists mostly of her playing in traffic while dressed like an angel.

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Retro Single Review: Tim McGraw, “Just to See You Smile”

January 2, 2012 Kevin John Coyne 3

1997 | Peak: #1

Smarter and more incisive than nearly everything else in heavy rotation back in the day.

McGraw plays his cards to close to his chest that upon first listen, you may only pick up on his unconditional love and selflessness toward the girl who’s been stringing him along for all these years.

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Retro Single Review: Tim McGraw, “Everywhere”

January 1, 2012 Kevin John Coyne 3

1997 | Peak: #1

The moment where Tim McGraw discovers subtlety and finds it suits him quite well.

“Everywhere” is the title track from the album that established McGraw as a credible artist, and its release was demanded by radio, which gave it considerably heavy airplay as an album cut.

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Top Twenty Albums of 2011, Part Two: #10-#1

December 31, 2011 Kevin John Coyne 4

Our annual list concludes with a look at our ten favorite albums of 2011.

Check out Part One to see #11-#20, and look for our countdown of the year’s best singles tomorrow.

Top Twenty Albums of 2011, Part One: #10-#1

#10
Lady & Gentlemen
LeAnn Rimes

On the surface, Lady & Gentleman is a concept album, flying in the face of a genre whose gender bias sometimes feels like the elephant in the room. But as with the best concept albums, it’s not the concept that carries it. With her most thoughtful, vocally mature performances to date, Rimes herself is the heartbeat of the set, deftly navigating the songs with a blend of reverence and fearlessness.

And she has plenty of room to shine: rather than trying to rebirth a collection of classics, Rimes and her team tastefully reinvigorate the songs with production risks (“Swingin’”), lyrical twists (“Good Hearted Women”) and the occasional overhaul (“When I Call Your Name”). The result is an album that stands neither as a tribute nor as a statement, but as a unique body of work that earns its merits all on its own. – Tara Seetharam

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Top Twenty Albums of 2011, Part One: #20-#11

December 29, 2011 Kevin John Coyne 7

The country music umbrella stretched wider than ever this year, regardless of the fact that radio playlists seem shorter than ever.

Of course, it’s not just the Americana acts that can’t get radio play these days. Even top-selling albums by Scotty McCreery and Alison Krauss & Union Station weren’t embraced.

Country Universe editors and contributors each submitted a list of their ten favorite albums of 2011. 31 different albums were included on our lists, and over the next two days, we’ll share with you our collective top twenty.

Top Twenty Albums of 2011, Part One: #20-#11

#20
Beat the Devil and Carry a Rail
Noam Pikelny

His tenure with the Punch Brothers and his winning of the first annual “Steve Martin Prize for Excellence in Banjo and Bluegrass” in 2010 both earned Noam Pikelny the clout to release Beat the Devil and Carry a Rail, his second solo album and first since 2004. Joined by an all-star roster of fellow pickers, Pikelny’s mostly instrumental set is a showcase both for its lead artist’s extraordinary technical skills and for the banjo’s wide-ranging potential. – Jonathan Keefe

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Single Review: Tim McGraw, "Better Than I Used to Be"

December 23, 2011 Kevin John Coyne 10

Flipping through an old country magazine, I read a review of Tim McGraw’s then-new album, Everywhere.

The journalist noted his surprise at the title track, which demonstrated more subtlety and gravitas than he’d previously thought McGraw was capable of.

That was so many years ago that it’s hard to remember that McGraw was something of a novelty singer back in the day, a step or two above Billy Ray Cyrus but not quite up there with Joe Diffie.

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2012 Grammy Nominations

December 1, 2011 Kevin John Coyne 31

The nominations for the upcoming Grammy awards have been announced.

For the first time in many years, there isn’t a contender in the Record, Song, or Album category that has any connection to country music. Couple that with the reduced number of country categories, and there isn’t too much to write about this year.

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