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Single Review: Keith Urban, “Cop Car”

January 16, 2014 Kevin John Coyne 14

Keith Urban Cop CarOne hallmark of a great singer is the ability to suspend the listener’s disbelief.

The storyline of “Cop Car” is very far-fetched, one of those Nashville compositions that takes fantastical lengths to try and tell the story of a young couple falling in love. In this case, they’re doing so right after being arrested for trespassing, while in handcuffs in the back seat of a police car.

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Single Review: David Nail, “Whatever She’s Got”

January 15, 2014 Kevin John Coyne 5

David Nail Whatever She's GotIs “Whatever She’s Got” really just David Nail doing whatever he’s got to do to stay in the game?

Nail is one of the most distinctive and substantive new voices to emerge in recent years, especially among the crop of younger male artists. He’s had more false starts than most, going through two labels in eleven years and having moderate to major hits, but not building up enough momentum to string a few together.

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Single Review: Jason Aldean, “When She Says Baby”

January 15, 2014 Kevin John Coyne 6

Jason Aldean When She Says BabyWhen Jason Aldean wraps his voice around compelling material, the results are magical.

But more often than not, Aldean is delivering mediocre material. “When She Says Baby” is a great example of how he can take a pedestrian, paint-by-numbers song and make it a little more interesting.

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Single Review: Brad Paisley, “The Mona Lisa”

January 14, 2014 Kevin John Coyne 11

Brad Paisley The Mona LisaNow this is how you write a love song!

Brad Paisley’s had a lot of hit love songs over the years, many of which I’ve found irritating because they are either blithely condescending (“To the world, you’re nothing, but to me, you’re the world!”) or downright insulting (“I love the little moments where you do something stupid!”)

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Single Review: Eric Paslay, “Friday Night”

January 14, 2014 Kevin John Coyne 7

Eric Paslay Friday NightA breakthrough single that’s as notable for what it isn’t as for what it is.

“Friday Night” is nothing special in terms of lyrical content, and while Paslay is a competent singer, there’s nothing on the track that indicates he’s the next Keith Urban, or even the next Blake Shelton. But he’s learned a few lessons along the way about what not to do. The arrangement is simple, the musicianship clean and crisp, and the banjo drives the hook, rather than loud electric guitars or cumbersome percussion.

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Single Review: Jamie Lynn Spears, “How Could I Want More”

January 7, 2014 Ben Foster 6

Jamie-Lynn-Spears-How-Could-I-Want-MoreSo… this is coming from pop idol Britney Spears’ 22-year-old younger sister who starred in a teen sitcom on Nickelodeon, and who became a tabloid favorite thanks to a controversial teen pregnancy. By all immediate expectations, her debut country single should be a disaster, and I should be making a stale pun out of the song’s title, right?

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Single Review: Florida Georgia Line, “Stay”

December 8, 2013 Kevin John Coyne 18

Florida Georgia Line StayWhile I waiting for the YouTube video to load, they played a 30-second commercial for the Duck Dynasty Christmas album, which apparently has the reality show stars singing Christmas standards while ducks quack along with them. It sounded better than “Stay.”

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Single Review: Chase Rice, “Ready Set Roll”

December 2, 2013 Jonathan Keefe 8

He may have been the runner-up on one of the weakest seasons of Survivor (finishing second to
this strategic powerhouse), but Chase Rice has beaten tough competition from the likes of Jason Aldean’s “1994,” Parmalee’s “Carolina,” Ashton Shepherd’s “This is America,” Blake Shelton’s “Boys Round Here,” Krystal Keith’s “Daddy Dance with Me,” and Luke Bryan’s “That’s My Kind of Night” for the title of 2013’s worst country single.

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Single Review: Brett Eldredge, “Beat of the Music”

November 26, 2013 Ben Foster 12

Brett Eldredge Beat of the MusicBrett Eldredge caught the critics’ attention with 2010’s heartstring-tugging ballad “Raymond,” and caught radio’s and fans’ attention with his gold-selling number-one single “Don’t Ya,” while a coveted opening slot on Taylor Swift’s Red Tour certainly didn’t hurt. He aims to pull off a successful one-two punch with his latest radio bid, “Beat of the Music,” currently in the Top 40 and climbing.

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