Dan Milliken

Inside Johnny Cash’s America: A Conversation with Morgan Neville

October 23, 2008 Dan Milliken 7

There are artists, and then there are people who use their particular craft to speak directly to the core of the human condition, who buck what is familiar and comfortable in pursuit of what is

Single/Video Review: Toby Keith, “God Love Her”

October 20, 2008 Dan Milliken 24

What’s going on, Toby? Seriously, now: when one of the genre’s finest mainstream voices is stooping to tired numbers like this one, something is seriously up. “God Love Her” is an uptempo, Mellencampish toss-off about

Zac Brown Band, “Chicken Fried”

October 16, 2008 Dan Milliken 10

In my earlier review of the single “Chicken Fried,” I criticized co-writers Zac Brown and Wyatt Durrette for penning what struck me as an uncreative, thoughtless appeal to Southern pride. It frankly wasn’t my favorite

Randy Rogers Band, Randy Rogers Band

October 11, 2008 Dan Milliken 2

Randy Rogers Band Randy Rogers Band Call it a case of high expectations. You’ve got a beloved Texas act, trusted Texas producer (Radney Foster), major-label resources, and that all-important decision to “self-title” (especially enigmatic considering

The Jealous Heart

October 7, 2008 Dan Milliken 11

Relationships are tricky business. I’ve got to think country music knows that better than any other art form. Here in the real world, we tend to talk about our relationships with others in simple terms:

Hayes Carll, “She Left Me For Jesus”

October 4, 2008 Dan Milliken 6

Here’s my disclaimer: if you found the song “She Left Me for Jesus” uncomfortably irreverent, the video is almost certainly not for you. Objectively speaking, this thing is downright blasphemous; where the humor of the

Randy Houser, “Anything Goes”

October 4, 2008 Dan Milliken 4

Clearly, it wasn’t enough for Randy Houser to produce one of the year’s finest debut singles; he also had to make one of its finest music videos. Excepting the bikini model who’s supposed to be

Miranda Lambert, “More Like Her”

October 3, 2008 Dan Milliken 6

“More Like Her” is perhaps the most intimate, clearly personal single of Miranda Lambert’s career thus far, so it’s no surprise to see the music video for the song follow suit. Taking a cue from

Review: Waylon Jennings & the .357’s, “Lonesome, On’ry and Mean”

September 30, 2008 Dan Milliken 11

Not gonna lie: “Lonesome, On’ry and Mean” has never been one of my favorite Waylon hits. Call me what you will, but I’ve always thought the flat production employed in that studio recording just doesn’t

Self-Indulgent Discussion: Second Edition

September 28, 2008 Dan Milliken 45

Back in early August, Kevin posed the following question to readers: What features would you like to see more of at Country Universe? Are there things we could be doing better? How can we make