Kenny Chesney, “Never Wanted Nothing More”

Kenny Chesney, “Never Wanted Nothing More”

Chesney previews his upcoming studio album with a surprisingly twangy single, all plucky banjos and the like. At first it seems it’s going to be another one of his nostalgia singles, but instead it develops into a life story of a man who never wants for more than what he has, whether it’s a rusty pickup as a teenager, the woman he marries for life or in the final verse, a life devoted to God.

I’m disappointed that “The Road and the Radio” never got its shot as a single, but I can’t complain after hearing “Never Wanted Nothing More.” It’s a promising first look at what will certainly be one of the year’s biggest albums.

Grade: B+

Listen: Never Wanted Nothing More

Buy: Never Wanted Nothing More

34 Comments

  1. Awesome song, hes back to telliing stories about love and life. I love his voice on this song. Thank god he didnt follow the route of his good friend mcgraw and make a 100% pure pop song for the first single of his new cd. Kenny just keeps the hits comming.

    Dont miss him on tour this summer. The best show

  2. I DOn’t think the next album of Kenny will be the biggest of the year because the BIGGEST album of the year was done by Tim McGraw this March!! the Greatset album of the Year!

  3. Aeroyacine Im gonna hafta agree with Anonymous I struggled to find 4-5 songs on Tims cd i actually liked. Kenny Will rule 07 and will continue his reign as entertainer of the year! He doesnt recycle the same concert year after year (soul2soul)

    DAN!

  4. Kenny always manages to deliver and this song only proves it. He is one of the best artists out there and it looks like he will continue to be.

  5. This is deffinatly my new favorite song. I LOVE it. It’s something everyone can relate to on some level and Kenny Chesney is basically amazing.

  6. Man, I love this song….I can’t wait for the new CD… I have to agree with what’s been said above-Tim’s CD was a disappointment, but as for Kenny his concert rocked and so do his songs!

  7. this is a rea lgood song I LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!! What can I say I love all of kenny’s songs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  8. I love this song! I’m sure this cd will be a big hit this year..seeing that he hasn’t released any new music in two years until last Monday. I love Kenny’s music. I can’t wait til his new cd! =]

  9. By the way, his tour is the best this year! I’m sure he’s sold out almost everywhere. I know he sold out the place where I saw him in Columbia, SC. You don’t wanna sit down the whole time and he’s a great crowd pleaser! Singing old songs like “I’d Just Love to Lay You Down” by Conway Twitty was a great hit with the crowd there. Kenny was great! Surprisingly, Pat Green was pretty good. Sugarland was awesome and they are great in concert too!

  10. Kenny’s new song is one of his best songs ever. I agree, I wish he would have released “The road and The radio” too. You can always expect the best from Kenny, thats why he is the top selling artist in country music today. I can’t wait to hear more from Kenny’s new album. YOU ROCK Kenny!! All I got to say about Tim’s album is that he needs to get a new sound. People do get tired of hearing the same type of music over and over.

  11. Another great song by Kenny. Can’t wait for the new album. I have to agree with most and say that Tim’s last CD was a big letdown. It’s nice for him to have his kids singing on his current single but that doesn’t need to be on the radio. I hate the ending of that song.

  12. I am astonished by the positive comments this song is earning from just about everyone.
    How many times can country artists release the same song, phrased a little differently? Do people really forget that quickly?
    Formula:

    1st verse) Take a girl “down” to the river/lake/levy/airport drive where you can watch the planes take off

    2nd verse) Marry the girl, even though times are tough OR go your separate ways, knowing that you’ll always cherish the memories.

    3rd verse) Have a life-changing moment, in which you realize exactly the kind of person you/your father/Jesus wants you to be.

    There you have it! Get to writing!

    Seriously though…
    How can anyone say this is “better”
    than:
    – “The Good Stuff”
    – “That’s Why I’m Here”
    – “A Chance”
    – “A Lot Of Things Different”
    Hell, I’ll even throw “Old Blue Chair” in this mix.
    Those are some damn good songs.
    This? Do you know how many times I’ve heard this song at open mic night?

  13. Hmm. Jim, you make an interesting point. It made me think of Roger Ebert’s rule for determining a good movie: “It’s not what a movie is about, but how it is about it.”

    Themes and ideas are bound to repeat themselves in song. The human experience simply isn’t varied enough for that to be avoided. Sure, I’ve heard this type of song before, but then again, I can say the same about every other Kenny Chesney song you listed:

    “The Good Stuff” = “Chiseled in Stone”
    “That’s Why I’m Here” – “Little Rock” (Collin Raye, not Reba McEntire)
    “A Chance” – “You Don’t Know Me”
    “A Lot of Things Different” – “Top of the World”

    Does that take away the value of any of those Chesney songs for me? Absolutely not. As for his new single, it wasn’t what was described in the song (“what it is about”) so much as how the events are dealt with (“how it is about it”) that made me enjoy it right away. I don’t think this song is about the events in the man’s life, but rather his way of accepting and embracing those events. He doesn’t want for more than what he has, but shows gratitude for what comes along. That’s been done before also, by everybody from Porter Wagoner (“A Satisfied Mind”) to Martina McBride (“Blessed”).

    It’s been done before, but it happens to be done very well this time around, to my ears.
    I think that has to be the standard for judging a song, since aside from songs that are about specific events in a specific period of time (i. e. “Not Ready to Make Nice”, “Where Were You When The World Stopped Turning”), pretty much every song is repeating something that’s been done before.

  14. Interesting discussion. I’ve discovered within the last couple of years that the more music I listen to, the less music I like. This is largely due to the problem that you both acknowledge: there are only so many things that you can write a song about and only so many chord changes that you can use to set those words to music. I agree with Kevin in that this realization has given me greater appreciation for artists and writers who are able to approach uniquely familiar subject.

    However, as far as this song is concerned, I’m closer to Jim’s point of view. It seems like Kenny has been the king of bland retreads lately. In one case (“You Save Me”) this worked very well, as Kenny took a very familiar theme (salvation by a good woman) and, instead of expressing it in narrative form, simply came right out and said it (kind of like what “I Will Always Love You” did for love songs). Conversely, “Beer in Mexico” was a well-crafted song about carefree freedom. But “Summertime” and “Living in Fast Forward?” Crap. “Never Wanted Nothing More” is intermediate.

  15. I LOVE this song!!!..Kenny you are the best singer there is..dont ever change!!!
    as soon as it goes out imma going to go buy it!!!

  16. ABSOLUTELY AWESOME (as usual)! It touched my heart, touched my soul and brought a tear to my eye! Hell Yeah!

  17. I must say that I loved the song as soon as I heard it. It is one of the best songs on radio right now. I love Kenny but I was getting a little tired of the total beach theme all the time. Don’t get me wrong, I love those too, but there is something to be said about a song that touches the heart rather than the beach bum in us all. Way to go Kenny!

  18. LOVE THE SONG!!!! Of course I’ve always loved Kenny. But even though I have bought them, I haven’t enjoyed the last couple of cd’s as much as the earlier ones. I’ve about wore them out. But after hearing Never wanted Nothing More, I will definately be adding this new cd to my Kenny Library of music!!!

  19. even though i think kenny chensey’s songs all sound exactly the same, and this one isn’t an exception, i like this one a lot. the lyrics are about more than sitting on the beach drinking. this is up there with the good stuff for me

  20. Well boys and girls, like the song or not, it just hit #1!
    I am not a huge Kenny fan, but must admit this is a great song; much better than beer drinkin and sun tannin. This has more substance.
    Glory Hallelujah, Good God Amighty!

  21. Ahem…I’m sorry, he’s singing about me! haha, just kidding! However, I do LOVE this song and I can’t wait to see Kenny in concert next month just in time to celebrate my 30th Birthday! Yes, many of his songs are about beaches and beer and living the good life…maybe that is what draws us to them…each song is a little escape. And well, I don’t know about ya’ll, but I love beachin’ and drinkin’ a few cold ones whenever I can!

  22. I’ll agree that there’s themes that repeat themselves in songs, but that’s part of what makes them enjoyable… people love them because they can relate. Personally, that’s why Never Wanted Nothing More is currently my favorite song; I became a Christian earlier this year and I’m also recently engaged.

  23. Probably a contender for the worst song of 2007. I don’t understand why people listen to this guy. Although I will say I like a few of his songs; especially his recent one, Don’t Blink.

  24. Not being a big Kenny fan, I was pleasantly surprised about this song. I love it. I hoped that it was a taste of his new CD, but it turns out that it’s not. Oh well. I wanted to like him again. I liked him back when he sang That’s Why I’m Here and Don’t It Make You Fall In Love.

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