Country Universe

Single Review: Keith Urban, “Somewhere in My Car”

October 23, 2014 Kevin John Coyne 10

“Somewhere in My Car” Keith Urban Written by J.T. Harding and Keith Urban First off, let’s give Keith Urban a tremendous amount of credit for his sleight of hand song craft here. The core of

Single Review: Toby Keith, “Drunk Americans”

October 22, 2014 Kevin John Coyne 7

“Drunk Americans” Toby Keith Written by Brandy Clark, Bob DiPiero and Shane McAnally The most successful records Toby Keith has had lately have been about drinking or about being American. It’s easy to see the

Single Review: Kenny Chesney, “Til it’s Gone”

October 22, 2014 Kevin John Coyne 6

“‘Til it’s Gone” Kenny Chesney Written by Rodney Clawson, David Lee Murphy, and Jimmy Yeary There were a lot of great singer-songwriters that didn’t quite make it to stardom in the nineties, especially once the

Single Review: Trisha Yearwood, “Prize Fighter” (with Kelly Clarkson)

October 12, 2014 Kevin John Coyne 21

“Prize Fighter” (with Kelly Clarkson) Trisha Yearwood Written by Jessi Alexander, Sarah Buxton, and Ross Copperman Yes, it’s been more than seven years since Trisha Yearwood has released a proper single. Yes, it was worth

Album Review: Tim McGraw, Sundown Heaven Town

October 10, 2014 Kevin John Coyne 9

Tim McGraw Sundown Heaven Town Tim McGraw returning to form is the musical equivalent of reconnecting with an old friend, where spending a little time with them suddenly reminds you why you were such good

Single Review: Josh Turner, “Lay Low”

October 5, 2014 Leeann Ward 12

“Lay Low” Josh Turner Written by Ross Copperman, Tony Martin and Mark Nesler Good for Josh Turner for sticking with his neo-traditional country sound, even though he’s in the oft talked about minority nowadays. I

Single Review: Carrie Underwood, “Something in the Water”

September 29, 2014 Kevin John Coyne 46

“Something in the Water” Carrie Underwood Written by Chris DeStefano, Brett James, and Carrie Underwood If anybody’s going to sing a song about the power of the water to cleanse your soul, it should be

Single Review: Florida Georgia Line, “Anything Goes”

September 28, 2014 Kevin John Coyne 32

“Anything Goes” Florida Georgia Line Written by Felix McTeigue, Chris Tompkins, and Craig Wiseman A piece of trash so shamelessly awful that it is beyond parody. Beyond comprehension. Almost beyond comment. To observe that Florida

Single Review: Tim McGraw, “Shotgun Rider”

September 28, 2014 Kevin John Coyne 7

“Shotgun Rider” Tim McGraw Written by Marv Green, Hillary Lindsey, and Troy Verges Tim McGraw’s been getting his groove back lately. Much of his new album, Sundown Heaven Town, recalls the sound of his biggest

Single Review: Blake Shelton, “Neon Light”

September 28, 2014 Kevin John Coyne 6

“Neon Light” Blake Shelton Written by Andrew Dorff, Mark Irwin, and Josh Kear Brooks & Dunn made an entire career out of honky tonk puns and play on words. “Neon Light” is a throwback to