Country Universe

Say What? – John Rich, Part III

May 7, 2008 Kevin John Coyne 10

Via The 9513, I learned that John Rich has some problems with American Idol: “The reason their ratings are going into the toilet right now is because the American public cannot stand when it comes

100 Greatest Women, #60: k.d. lang

May 6, 2008 Kevin John Coyne 8

100 Greatest Women #60 k.d. lang One of the most unconventional female country stars in history, right down to the all-lowercase name. lang was drawn to country music during college, primarily due to her infatuation

100 Greatest Women, #61: Carlene Carter

May 5, 2008 Kevin John Coyne 6

100 Greatest Women #61 Carlene Carter A woman born into country music royalty who struggled with her legacy before finally embracing it and finding commercial and critical success. That’s a line that refers to more

Six Pack: Mindy McCready

May 5, 2008 Kevin John Coyne 9

Early last week, I saw the traffic for this blog skyrocket. I was puzzled when I saw that this was due to more than 10,000 views in one day of an old Kellie Pickler single

100 Greatest Women, #62: Lacy J. Dalton

May 4, 2008 Kevin John Coyne 6

100 Greatest Women #62 Lacy J. Dalton A full-throated voice for the working class. Lacy J. Dalton sang once about “Hard Times,” and during her early years, she certainly lived through some of them. But

100 Greatest Women, #63: Rhonda Vincent

May 3, 2008 Kevin John Coyne 15

100 Greatest Women #63 Rhonda Vincent We talk a lot about country artists who cross over to pop, only to find that the crossover audience isn’t as friendly as the one they left behind. When

100 Greatest Women, #64: Billie Jo Spears

May 2, 2008 Kevin John Coyne 3

100 Greatest Women #64 Billie Jo Spears Her star may not have shone as bright as some of her contemporaries in the seventies, but Billie Jo Spears earned a dedicated following both in the United

100 Greatest Women, #65: Suzy Bogguss

May 1, 2008 Kevin John Coyne 8

100 Greatest Women #65 Suzy Bogguss In the liner notes of her debut album, the legendary Chet Atkins wrote that “her voice sparkles like crystal water.” An apt description of Suzy Bogguss indeed. Her pure

Chris Cagle, “No Love Songs”

May 1, 2008 Leeann Ward 1

Overall, Chris Cagle’s latest single, “No Love Songs”, is a fun song that has an amusing chorus. Moreover, Cagle seems as though he is enjoying himself. It cannot, however, be overlooked that this song has

Jason Aldean, “Relentless”

May 1, 2008 Leeann Ward 3

Jason Aldean follows up “Laughed Until We Cried” with the mid-tempo title track from his latest album, Relentless. What I can surmise from the somewhat murky lyrics is that the man in this song is