Kristy Lee Cook, “Fifteen Minutes of Shame”

I’m going to come right out and say it at the beginning: I like the single.  Yes, Kristy Lee Cook was an instant punchline this season on American Idol, but she really impressed me when she sang Martina McBride’s “Anyway” on inspirational night.  There’s a certain style of country song that she could easily build a good career around, and she’s found one of them in “Fifteen Minutes of Shame.”

Here we have a boyfriend who has failed to meet expectations, but not to the point where he needs his car keyed or a dose of gunpowder and lead.    “Before He Cheats” and “Gunpowder & Lead” both work because they’re matched so well to the personalities and vocal styles of Carrie Underwood and Miranda Lambert, respectively.  “Fifteen Minutes” works perfectly for Kristy Lee Cook, who operates on a more modest scale, as does the lyric that promises revenge through a song on the radio.

It’s the kind of song that Lorrie Morgan could’ve made a big hit back in her heyday, and quite frankly, we could use another understated vocalist like that.   I look forward to hearing more from her soon.

Grade: B+

Listen: Fifteen Minutes of Shame

14 Comments

  1. i don’t like the song… i mean, i am tired of this subject… Miranda,Carrie,Sara,Kellie and Taylor sang this kind of song and much better.
    she lacks personality, i think she is a good singer but i don’t know if she will do well.

  2. I thought one of the “catches” with being on American Idol is that you can’t release anything until the winner releases their debut?
    Am I missing something? (which is VERY likely)

  3. don’t know… Arista signed her, they have a lot of $$$$ so i am not surprised that she has her single already released…

  4. Well, shoot; I guess we just have very similar taste in picture-picking when it comes to posts like these. Great minds and all that. Or maybe you’re homaging me but are too shy to come out and say it…either explanation works fine for me! Although I remember how hard it was to find any pictures of Kristy Lee in which she looked she was having any sort of fun (I guess being a national punchline takes a toll on one’s spirit, unless you’re Sanjaya), so the coincidence is not that uncanny this time.

    I like the single as well, though I still don’t get why she doesn’t just say what the dude did. But it is solid, and the vocal is better than I expected.

  5. Her vocal is a lot better than I expected as well. I wasn’t really familiar with her, since I never caught an AI show, except for Dolly Night. Not bad.

  6. Pleasantly surprised! I picked up on some of her country voice on AI but since she kept getting drilled for having it she tried to keep it out. Which pretty much messed her up. Nice to hear her singing the way she should. Bet it’s a big relief for her too.

    Yep! a very pleasant surprise!

  7. I tried to like it…its not horrible but I thought it was kinda stupid, she doesn’t seem to be angry or hurt or anything she just kinda sings it…i guess thats the understatedness you are talking about.
    I really wanna know what he did though…i think thats what bugged me the most, what did he do? What is she telling people?

    The shame, shame, shame, blame, blame, blame part i could do without as well

    Oh well, I’m sure I’ll end up singing along to it in the car at some point.

  8. Kevin,

    Kristy Lee Cook’s CD is scheduled for an October release at this point so it may just beat David Cook’s record. Maybe they’re allowing her to release it earlier because they’re both on big labels. David’s record is scheduled to be released in November.

  9. first, it was beer for the horses, now it’s chicks for the horse – anyone else out there that wants to be a horse in the next live?

  10. What happened to originality? Not just the subject matter (sounds like a slightly older Taylor Swift song), but anyone catch all the “You’re So Vain” (Carly Simon) references? The first line, the underlying melody? This drives me nuts and I feel like it’s everywhere these days.

    Kristy sounds like a mish mash of Miley Cyrus and Avril Lavigne. Two excellent country singers.

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