Ben Foster

Single Review: James Otto, “Somewhere Tonight”

August 3, 2015 Ben Foster 6

“Somewhere Tonight” James Otto Written by Patrick Russell Davis, Corey Crowder and James Slater James Otto’s name and voice will likely be familiar to anyone who was listening to country radio in the latter half of

Single Review: Jennifer Nettles, “Sugar”

July 24, 2015 Ben Foster 18

“Sugar” Jennifer Nettles Written by Brandy Clark, Jessie Jo Dillon, and Jennifer Nettles A remarkable performance elevates an unremarkable song. If “Sugar” given a perfunctory performance by a lesser vocalist, I might not enjoy it at all.

Daily Top Five: Cover Songs You Like Better Than the Original

June 25, 2015 Ben Foster 23

Some cover songs pale in comparison to previous incarnations. Other attempts may come across as competent but disposable. But every now and then, a cover song comes along that just might rival or even replace

Daily Top Five: Kentucky Country

June 5, 2015 Ben Foster 11

This week in 1792, Kentucky became the fifteenth state to join the union. It’s also the state that two Country Universe writers – Jonathan Keefe and myself – call home. Kentucky is well known as the

Single Review: Maddie & Tae, “Fly”

March 4, 2015 Ben Foster 16

Maddie & Tae “Fly” Written by Taylor Dye, Maddie Marlow and Aaron Scherz Maddie & Tae made a big, bold, attention grabbing statement with their breakthrough hit “Girl in a Country Song”, which rocked and

Album Review: LeAnn Rimes, All-Time Greatest Hits

February 20, 2015 Ben Foster 6

LeAnn Rimes All-Time Greatest Hits In the eleven years since the release of LeAnn Rimes’ first Greatest Hits package, she’s certainly released enough material to fill out a second installment. But the song selections of her

Single Review: RaeLynn, “God Made Girls”

February 18, 2015 Ben Foster 9

“God Made Girls” RaeLynn Written by RaeLynn, Nicolle Galyon, Liz Rose and Lori McKenna In hearing this song, my mind is constantly asking one simple question: What were they thinking?

Single Review: The Band Perry, “Gentle On My Mind”

February 18, 2015 Ben Foster 5

“Gentle On My Mind The Band Perry Written by John Hartford The Band Perry’s Grammy-winning cover of Glen Campbell’s classic “Gentle On My Mind” (the trio’s contribution to the soundtrack of the recent I’ll Be

CU10 Flashback: Single Review/Shameless Rant: Miranda Lambert, “The House That Built Me”

December 29, 2014 Ben Foster 7

I discovered Country Universe in the spring of 2010 and quickly became a regular reader. At the time, Dan’s review of Miranda Lambert’s much-lauded release “The House That Built Me” was a recent post. Besides making

Single Review: Easton Corbin, “Baby Be My Love Song”

December 19, 2014 Ben Foster 9

“Baby Be My Love Song” Easton Corbin Written by Jim Collins and Brett James Easton Corbin was a refreshing arrival at country radio when he first hit airwaves a half-decade ago, toeing the line between what