Country Universe

Dierks Bentley, “Trying to Stop Your Leaving”

January 25, 2008 Kevin John Coyne 17

I’m a sucker for a train song that uses steel guitar to make that lonesome whistle sound. So before Bentley’s vocals even kicked in, I was hooked. I love the rise and fall in intensity,

Taylor Swift, “Picture to Burn”

January 25, 2008 Kevin John Coyne 20

I think this is going to be a crystallizing record for Taylor Swift. It’s been selling briskly as a download long before it was ever released as a single, and it speaks more directly to

Cascada Covers Rascal Flatts

January 21, 2008 Kevin John Coyne 26

After they desecrated “Revolution”, Rascal Flatts doesn’t have the right to complain about people covering their songs, though I imagine this quickly rising pop hit will not go over well with their die-hard fans: There

Trace Adkins, “You’re Gonna Miss This”

January 21, 2008 Kevin John Coyne 26

I suppose that the heart is properly placed here, with the older generation warning a young woman to appreciate each stage of her life as she’s experiencing it, rather than pining for what’s still to

Randy Owen, “Braid My Hair”

January 21, 2008 Kevin John Coyne 21

I wasn’t aware that Randy Owen was planning on doing any solo recordings, especially since Alabama is still putting out new studio albums. That band’s long-standing association with St. Jude’s Children Hospital makes the subject

Phil Stacey, “If You Didn’t Love Me”

January 21, 2008 Kevin John Coyne 30

Even as an American Idol junkie, I found the sixth season completely underwhelming. Phil Stacey making it as far as he did was more of a reflection of the field’s weakness than anything distinctive or

Lady Antebellum, “Love Don’t Live Here”

January 21, 2008 Kevin John Coyne 13

Who doesn’t enjoy a calmly collected kiss-off number? Sure, it doesn’t have the emotional intensity of a tortured Dwight Yoakam record, but there’s something to be said for showing someone the door in a

Jason Michael Carroll, “I Can Sleep When I’m Dead”

January 21, 2008 Kevin John Coyne 5

Is it just me, or is this very, very loud? I had to turn the volume down to give it a fair listen. I may already be too old (or too mild-mannered) to be the

Joe Nichols, “It Ain’t No Crime”

January 21, 2008 Kevin John Coyne 7

I would’ve like a bit more edge to this, to bring more of the defiance in the lyric to the surface. That said, Nichols does well enough delivering this country boy’s slacker anthem. More people

James Otto, “Just Got Started Lovin’ You”

January 21, 2008 Kevin John Coyne 8

Equal parts Travis Tritt and Conway Twitty, Otto’s latest single is a smooth but not sappy romantic ballad. It’s a sound that Josh Turner had a heck of a lot of success with when he