Randy Houser – “My Kind Of Country”
Songwriters: Dallas Davidson and Randy Houser.
Randy Houser debuted as a balladeer of uncommon skill with the soulful “Anything Goes,” but it was the Adkinsesque rocker “Boots On” (in the vein of, but not quite as interesting as, “Honky Tonk Badonkadonk”) that very nearly took him to the top of the charts, blocked only by Jason Aldean’s tractor at the summit. Seemingly emboldened by that taste of success, Houser is back louder and prouder with “My Kind of Country,” a brash personal mission statement and unapologetic celebration of the singer’s own highly questionable musical inclinations.
In the lyrics, Houser describes his musical vision this way: “‘Round here got the laid back lowdown/Little bit of Waylon, whole lot of Motown/Might sound just a little bit funky/But hey y’all, that’s my kind of country.” Having established the terms of his performance, Houser lets loose with a slew of lyrical gems, including letting a monkey roll off his back, turning a bar into an all-out love shack (presumably minus gay B-52 overtones), flying like a bee to the honeys (see what he did there?), threatening to beat people up like Tonka trucks, and watching his ‘little’ girlfriend cooking up a chicken (with a side of condescension, please) while he enjoys the company of a bulldog.
Okay, I guess he’s right: that’s some pretty funky stuff.
Musically, this has more to do with latter-era Brooks & Dunn misfires like “Hillbilly Deluxe” and “Play Something Country” than it does with Waylon or Motown. Lyrically, it strains to reach even those unexalted heights
Houser’s voice dazzles when given room to sprawl out, which makes it all the more disappointing that he spends most of these three minutes shouting disposable lyrics over the din of a cluttered, cacophonous arrangement. It would be a massive understatement to say that Houser is capable of better; with “My Kind of Country,” one of the strongest up-and-coming vocalists in the format has delivered one of the very worst singles of 2009.
Listen on MySpace: Randy Houser – “My Kind of Country”
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18 Comments
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September 18, 2009 at 1:46 pm Permalink
I agree. He is starting to typecast himself.
More namedrops………..sigh.
September 18, 2009 at 2:29 pm Permalink
Next artist to record a song using the phrase “’round here” looses their record deal…
September 18, 2009 at 3:33 pm Permalink
I agree with you about the “shouting”. On the album “Anything Goes”, he sings full volume on most of his songs except for ‘Back to God’ and ‘I’ll Sleep’.
September 18, 2009 at 3:54 pm Permalink
haven’t really bought in to Mr. Houser yet and with reviews like this I probably won’t. He does have a really nice voice, but that doesn’t make up for screaming or picking bad songs.
September 18, 2009 at 3:55 pm Permalink
I won a copy of this album and was so impressed I traded it in at the used CD store for a couple of bucks credit without burning a copy of any of the songs. There were a couple of slower songs I liked but it was the loud, obnoxious tripe like this that motivated me to ditch the whole album.
Surprisingly its the same features of this song that earned it a thumbs down rating here which indicate it will likely do well at Top 40 AirHead Country Radio. This is a song geared for airheads and will likely score big with that audience…
September 18, 2009 at 4:37 pm Permalink
I wasn’t big on Randy till I found out that him and Jamey Johnson were buddies, so I went back and listened to the album. There are some bad songs on there, but “Anything Goes” is so good, it buys a lot of grace period with me. “Boots On” was another Aldean-type song that I didn’t think was as good as it’s chart success and I really think this is more of the same.
Need some better stuff RH!!
September 18, 2009 at 4:59 pm Permalink
I agree that his first album is good at best, but there is some great songs on there. I think his second album will be much better after hearing some of the songs off it…
Me..I LOVE THIS FREAKING SONG. I love the rockin’ feel to it. I am also a big Randy Houser fan. I think his voice can carry an average song, and I believe he has alot of potential.
September 18, 2009 at 6:21 pm Permalink
I checked–Buying Randy’s album won’t make Jamey hang out with me, so I will still pass.
September 18, 2009 at 8:23 pm Permalink
Hey now, Stormy ;) All’s I’m sayin’ is, if JJ likes the guy, there must be some similar ideas about music. Well played though… :)
September 18, 2009 at 9:34 pm Permalink
Randy Houser is another in a growing line of Nashville artists who vocally are extremely talented, but more often than not either choose or are pushed to sing material that doesnt even come close to matching their vocal abilities.
September 19, 2009 at 12:04 pm Permalink
I have to say that his songs are better Live than on album – you get to feel the emotion he’s trying to convey in the song live than on an album. There are some winners and then some head scratchers on that album. I’ve seen him perform a few times live in various environments. He has several songs live that he performs that are not on the record (Whistling Dixie is one of them). There is another song that is slow that he sang at the Ryman at the Traler Park Revival with Jamey and the boys but I cannot remember the name of it. The boy sure does have some powerful vocal chords!
In regards to My Kind of Country – it’s good to be thumping on the speakers in your pickup truck to go cruising. I had to crack up at Wilcox’s quote on “latter-era Brooks & Dunn”…9513 should do an article on the B&D influenced party songs out there. :)
September 19, 2009 at 1:51 pm Permalink
i’ll try again: kinda noisy!!!!!! and obviously somewhat distracting.
September 21, 2009 at 11:16 am Permalink
I love to listen to this song loud with the windows rolled down! It may not be the best song ever, but it is fun. Can’t listen to Jamey all the time…
September 22, 2009 at 12:20 pm Permalink
Good thing “My Kind of Country” isn’t his new single! Just hold your horses – RH IS one of the best vocalists in Nashville (and isn’t flat like Jamey). His sophomore album is sure to show his range and talent. Don’t blame him for the record label’s mistakes and just save your judgment for his next single which is sure to be excellent!
September 22, 2009 at 12:37 pm Permalink
If it’s not his next single, it was changed within the last week.
September 24, 2009 at 4:54 pm Permalink
^ It was, it just disappeared from MusicRow’s calendar so its to be assumed that they decided against it.
October 1, 2009 at 6:49 pm Permalink
What the hell, i was under the assumption this was a country site? Hmm.. maybe you should get some people who actually like country to review, good grief. I bet out of the 4 reviews i have read so far not one of the writers has even put a dip in their lip and probably never shot a deer. These are country songs, rightfully so in the country genre.
November 14, 2009 at 8:31 am Permalink
funny…all you all can do is sit behind your pretty little desks and trash someone. i agree with derrek. most of you probably haven’t had to experience the things that randy sings about. but for those of us who actually have to WORK for a living and can actually RELATE to what he sings about, he is very talented. mark my words, you will be eating what you have said in the long run. keep it up randy, these aren’t REAL country folk.
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