Sunday Morning Forum Roundup & Comment Corral, Issue #5

Here’s your Sunday morning afternoon edition of the Forum Roundup and Comment Corral for CMA Awards week, 2008.

In case you missed it, check out The9513.com’s CMA coverage:

• CMA Chevy Kickoff Show (Heidi Newfield, Eli Young Band, Kevin Costner, Rodney Atkins) by Pierce Greenberg
• CMA Awards Preview by Brady Vercher
• The 9513’s CMA Predictions (updated with winners)
• 2008 CMA Awards Live Blog
• The Malec Minute: Country’s Biggest Night Wasn’t Country

More below the fold.

Comment Corral: Choice nuggets from the peanut gallery…

Comments on the 42nd Annual CMA Awards:

“This may be kinda sad, but I am actually excited to see all of Carrie’s outfit changes. I feel a drinking game coming on.” — Gaby

“OMG, think the Surprise Guest might be Dale Watson?” — Chris N

“Taylor swift will likely do a strip tease this year. After all, she has to top the psycho shower scene monstrosity she did at the ACMS.” — Miranda Fan

“I heard John Rich and JTP (Joe the Plumber) are gonna be duetting on a funeral march style version of Raising McCain” — Steve Harvey

“Jack Ingram is being interviewed on CMT with his wife. If selling out and turning from a Texas rebel into a Nashville act nets you a hot wife, I’d probably sing “Lips of an Angel” too.” — Sam G

“I’m getting to the point that Julianne [Hough]’s voice makes ya want to punch babies or something…it is too annoying.” — Jessica

“Once again a music awards show that sounds like it’s being mixed by someone wearing earmuffs.” — Roger

“Since when was Kid Rock a country artist??? Acuff, Cash, Hank etc etc must be turning in their graves, god rest their souls. Though CMA Awards have always been dubious to say the least: Olivia Newton-John anyone?” — Yodeling Brit

“[Kellie Pickler's] outfit is a far cry from Red High Heels… woah, wait… she is singing? Oh, that’s right!” — Pierce

“If anyone is wondering who Pickler is wearing, I think it’s Goodyear.” — Brody

“Everyone is cheering only because Martina ended her song finally….” — Jessica

“At least Taylor didn’t win in that category, especially after that pee-my-pants-fantastic Carrie performance. Talk about throwing down the gauntlet.” — Tayers

“Will Taylor Swift’s vocal meltdown on the CMA Awards Show affect her album sales? Absolutely not because most of her pre-teen and teen girl fans see Taylor as a hero / role model and want to be her BFF!” — Rick

Comments on Taylor Swift’s iPod Music:

“I don’t know if came up for anyone else, but the first on the list of Related ad links under Taylor Swifts iPod read: Top 3 Colon Detox Cleanses Reviewed. I’m just saying…” — C. Eric Banister

“Taylor’s iPod makes Dale Watson cry.” — Hollerin’ Ben

Album Reviews:

Taylor Swift – Fearless:
There are times here when her gift for storytelling seemingly gets caught up in the world it’s exploring, too insular to be nuanced, too stuck in the moment to see a bigger emotional picture. And there are, of course, times when that’s not the case at all–when Swift proves, yet again, that she truly is something special. — review Jim Malec

“I can’t believe you liked this pop album and yet you slammed Carrie Underwood’s amazing album…I just lost all respect for you and this site…This is a POP ALBUM!…But instead–you worship this bubble gum pop star want to be, who has no vocal talent at all…and is not country at all. Wow. I am so angry.” — Miranda Fan

“This is not a bad album. I’ve only gone through it once, so I won’t back this up yet with any lyrics, but some of these songs have some real raw emotion and fine writing in them.” — Mike Parker

“I had a hard time finding a legitimate top ten hit on this album. It all sounded way to poppy.” — SW

“So, I just listened to this album all the way through. And I gotta say, it wasn’t nearly as painful as I thought it would be.” — J.R. Journey

“I can’t, and probably will never be able to, relate to Swift’s songs. But, I have the sneaky suspicion that I would have LOVED this back in junior high, when I was experiencing the same stuff she’s going through now. Sorting through complex adolescent emotions (which sometimes conflict) is tricky business and she does a great job.” — Lynn

“As somewhat of a defender of Taylor in the past, I’m not liking this album so far. I prefer her first one to this one. I actually thought it was more organic.” — Leeann Ward

“I really enjoyed this review and am even more eager to hear the album now. I’m especially glad you make the point that Taylor’s songs aren’t necessarily “fluffy” simply because they’re about teens. Frankly, I think her songwriting skills put some older Music Row scribes to shame.” — Katie

Randy Owen – One on One:
It’s not much of a gamble to say the album will appeal to fans of Owen, but as far as winning over that younger audience Owen spoke of–much less those in between–One On One, doesn’t have a lot to offer. — review by Brady Vercher

“Ten bucks says John Rich is the one who came up with the “Ice you down like a queen” line.” — Brody Vercher

“A song that mentions “GNC”? uh, yeah, thats a bit too literal (and boring) of a slice of life for me…I am all for plain-spoken lyrics, but just listing off proprietors from the nearest mini-mall is lame…” — Kelly

“I love his voice, period. I just bought the album at wal-mart a few minutes ago and im just now listening to “I Confess”. I love the feel of the song, particularly in the verses…but is it just me, or is this maybe 21st century “Love In The First Degree”?” — Idlewildsouth

Amber Digby – Passion, Pride, and What Might Have Been
Its overall excellence and musical focus, and the compelling pathos of Digby’s performance of these songs, make Amber Digby’s Passion, Pride, and What Might Have Been a must-have for country music fans. — review by Ben Cisneros

“I have recommended Amber for several years now. She is the best young female country singer out there, bar none. Compared to her, Taylor Swift is Kermit the Frog as a singer.” — Paul W. Dennis

Single Reviews

George Ducas – “Walk Through This World”
The first single off his upcoming album Twang Thang (an apparent pitch to today’s popular hick-hop references like “Hollerback” and “Honky Tonk Badonkadonk”), “Walk Through This Word” is just the type of song that could fare well on popular country radio–which is good for Ducas and his label, though not so much for fans of his original sound. — review by Karlie Justus

“Good write up! I agree with your review, but I still found myself liking the song, which is probably due to my wanting to like it as much as “Lipstick Promises”…I miss mid-nineties country radio” — Kelly

Emerson Drive – “Belongs to You”:
Emerson Drive is an act that will ultimately be defined not by its talent but by its catalog. Fair or not, the band’s success will remain directly tied to its ability to identify and secure not good but outstanding material. And they just haven’t consistently done that yet. “Belongs To You” is a step in the wrong direction. — review by Jim Malec

“This song is just flat out boring. I would have expected something with much more energy as a lead single for a new album and because of that I feel personally let down by these guys.” — Frank

“Ho Hum, another Nashville committee song from “major songwriters”. Is it any wonder so many of the Top 40 mainstream style singles sound alike when the same extended group of proven songwriters are behind so many of the songs? Trying to listen to this single had me reaching for my Joey + Rory CD half the way through….” — Rick

“The guy with the cowboy hat (plays the fiddle I think) looks a little out of place in that photo. the rest of them look like rejects from “The Apprentice.” — Mayor Jobob

Kenny Chesney & Mac McAnally – “Down The Road”:
It is not simply a divide which separates the songwriting of Mac McAnally from the majority of contemporary songwriters—it is a vast canyon. The sole songwriter of Sawyer Brown’s “All These Years” and “Café on The Corner,” two of the most honest and poignant songs in modern country music history, McAnally’s narrative voice is so compelling and so free from pretense or pandering that it puts the current mainstream country format to shame, exposing that format’s shallowness through the example set by his own masterful storytelling. — review by Jim Malec

“I think you could have just left Chesney out and the song would have been better…IMO!” — Margie

“This was a very wise single choice. It’ll do well for him because he’s Kenny Chesney, of course, but it’s such a fine song and performance that it would do well for him even if he weren’t Kenny Chesney. I can’t say the same thing about most of his other singles in recent years.” — CMW

“I agree with the comments about re-discovering McAnally. I’m gonna have to listen to more of his music. I also hope that this song will help bring Chesney’s image from the far pop side of country back toward the middle. This more traditional sound from him is refreshing and may broaden his fan base.” — Tayers

Hank Williams III – “Six Pack of Beer”:
But when it comes to substance, there isn’t any. And while there is some truth to the idea that country music has traditionally served as a “white man’s blues,” Williams’ obsession with all the bad things in life is often so over the top and so all-consuming that the song in question begins to feel like a parody of what it’s supposed to be. That’s definitely the case with “Six Pack of Beer,” which is every single bit as mindless as the contemporary, Nashville-establishment country that III is supposedly rebelling against. — review by Jim Malec

“That is how I feel about most of Hank III’s stuff. I honestly didn’t even make it as far as this track on his new album. I loved the feel and instrumentation of a lot of what I heard, but all of the lyrics are too over the top. Hank III’s music is more of a parody of, than a tribute to, his grandfather’s music.” — Mike Parker

“I actually agree with everything you said here, even though I came to a different conclusion. I don’t think the song is really meant to be taken for its substance (or lack thereof), and I’m fine with that; some of my favorite traditional country was similarly frivolous.” — Dan Milliken

“Rather than the (unfairly) stereotypical county song about how “my wife left, my truck broke down, my dog died”, the character in this song is clear that his frustrations come from being a low wage worker who is frustrated with his inability to ever get ahead and who therefore has chosen to embrace self-destructive fatalism by accepting a six pack of beer as sufficient consolation in life. I’ll admit he tends towards overly simple turns of phrase, but the idea of the song is clear, worthwhile, and substantive.” — Hollerin’ Ben

Jason Michael Carroll – “Where I’m From”:
Listening to the song the way it was likely written–from chorus to chorus–it’s tuneful, uninspired, unfailingly safe radio fare. Listening to it with any expectation of wholeness or coherence, it’s worse. — review by CM Wilcox

“HAHAHAHA!! You guys rock as critiquers! You’re brutally honest and that’s why I love coming here. If any of you were “players” in the music business, the writers of the songs you critique would pack up, go home, and never darken Nashville’s door again. Can ya’ll start your own label? ;-)” — Dr. No.

“Titles still up for grabs: “The Region from Which I Hail”; “The Area of My Upbringing”; “The Locale in Which I Spent My Formative Years”; “The Crappy Little Nowheresville That I Abandoned for the City of Nashville at the First Opportunity.” — Chris N

“I love this song. If you haven’t heard it live, you haven’t heard anything. The “amazing grace” at the end gives me goose bumps every time, (they do more of it when it’s live), and I’ve heard it live a ton. No matter how similar the title is to other songs, Jason has his own style and makes the song his own.” — Rachel

Toby Keith – “God Love Her”:
“God Love Her” is well executed, and here Keith once again proves that he has a unique talent for conveying a sense of urgency in his songs. When he sings, “Now she holds tight to me and the bible/On the back seat of my motorcycle,” he does so with a gripping dependence, as if the only thing keeping these two people moving down the road is the fact that they’re doing so together. — review by Jim Malec

“The music sounds like a Bryan Adams song that wasn’t good enough for one of Adams’ albums. And if you didn’t know the title, you’d swear Toby was singing “Gotta Love her” instead of “God Love Her”. blah.” — Frozenphan

“Contrast Keith’s recent output regarding the fairer sex with his earlier work, and it’s a great divide. One of his first chart singles, “Upstairs Downtown,” revolves around the story of a young woman attempting to leave town, find a job and otherwise be independent. … Now, Keith relies on songs where these young women are hotties and lovestruck ladies, part wild child and part good girl. Although I agree that Keith’s made a distinct definition of females on recent releases, I’m disappointed this is the picture he chooses to paint.” — Blake Boldt

Jessica Andrews – “Everything”:
In reality, this is a full-on pop record. And while the formula for making a pop record may have here been satisfactorily executed, the the most disappointing thing about “Everything” is that it’s not even a particularly good pop record. After all, it’s just about time to retire “You’re my everything” as a hook, isn’t it? — review by Jim Malec

“I almost wanna smother the next person who uses “I can’t breathe” in a song, just so they can know what it’s like to be unable to breathe.” — Bobby

“While I’m not a huge fan of the lyrical content of this song, I still can’t help but hope it does well. I’ve always liked Jessica and thought her “Now” CD was severely underrated. It’s also hard to root against a female who is undeniably talented and has a chance at being played on contemporary radio.” — Joseph

“This song exemplifies the worst aspect of pop-try. Its not just that it is bad pop, it is dated bad pop.” — Stormy

Keith Urban – “Sweet Thing”:
Urban is so damn good that he’s just doing his own thing at this point. And who’s going to stop him? It’s not really country. It’s not really pop. It’s not even really what we’d define as country-pop. But this guy sweats musical talent–rather, he would sweat musical talent if he wasn’t so cool. — review by Jim Malec

““A weird cross between Billy Currington, Richard Marx and Savage Garden” is an amusingly spot on description. Is that hybrid a little scary? You betcha…but any post that sites “chicka cherry cola” in it gets my vote.” — Glads Gal

“Who in the heck is Savage Garden? Being a traditional country loving curmudgeon I don’t much care for Keith’s music these days but do recognize the quality of his work for those fans who do. Its just nice to have a top level artist active in mainstream country who blazes his own path and doesn’t care what anyone else is doing. I don’t expect Keith to ever head back to “The Ranch” musically speaking, but at least he started out sorta country.” — Rick

Sarah Buxton – “Space”:
Sarah Buxton’s voice, starting off as little more than a whisper, is so intimate and close on “Space” that you can almost feel her breath on your skin through the microphone. It is, however, a soft vocal kiss that spins into a galactic kiss-off as she grants the object of her affection exactly what he’s asking for. — review by Jim Malec

“The song itself really doesn’t work for me, and I don’t think I could give it a thumbs-up even despite the vocal, which I agree is brilliant.” — Dan Milliken

“I love Sarah Buxton and hope that radio and her record company will really give her a proper shot. She has a unique voice and is a very good writer. I have the record that was never released (fully) and there are some good songs but nothing that would have launched her career properly. I hope they get it right.” — Smokey Joe

Forum Roundup: Don’t Fence Me In

• JR Journey wants to know what nickname you’d give your favorite country singers:
  

  “…Give them a nick-name that tells us something about them. The handle can allude to their vocal style, song choices, their look, whatever you want. And they can be serious or in jest. I chose Reba, and I am titling her the ‘Mistress of Melancholy’ because I think when Reba nails a ballad, particularly a heartbreak number, she is without peer.”

• YodelingBrit is thanking God for Patty Loveless.
• Join the discussion on Sugarland’s next single.
• If the rousing comments on my review of Fearless don’t provide enough discussion on the TaylorNation for you, Clemson Brad is extending the Swift dialogue on the forums:
  

  “Overall, I am a little disappointed with the album. If you were not a Taylor Swift fan before, this album will definitely not convert you.”

• And just how bad is Taylor’s live show?
  

  “…Her live performances are borderline abysmal.” — Drew

• Who is the best songwriter in country music?
  

  “Cindy Walker is definitely my favourite female songwriter, absolutely love ‘Distant Drums’, ‘When my Blue Moon…’ and ‘Blue Canadian Rockies’.” — YodelingBrit

• Razor X asks the question: What are some of your favorite controversial songs? Some titles that have popped up include Loretta Lynn’s “The Pill,” the Dixie Chicks “Goodbye Earl,” and Tanya Tucker’s “Would You Lay With Me (In a Field of Stone).” Also check out Matt B’s thread about political songs.
• Mission: Put together your ultimate country supergroup. Courtesy of Amber.

Givaways

You still have a few hours (until 11:59 PM EST) to enter this week’s giveaways:
• Joey + Rory – The Life of a Song (Autographed Copy)
• Kevin Costner & Modern West – Untold Truths
• Randy Travis – Christmas on the Pecos (DVD)

Free Download: Joey + Rory’s Debut Single, “Cheater Cheater,” courtesy of Sugar Hill Records.

• “Cheater Cheater” (Download — 3.5 MB)

Free MP3 Downloads from Rattlin’ Bones:

• “Rattlin’ Bones” (Download — 3.1 MB)
• “Once in a While” (Download — 4.4 MB)

Other Features :

• Forgotten Artists – Cal Smith by Paul W. Dennis
• Interview with Honeyhoney by Jim Malec
• Randy Travis Answers Questions at the Country Music Hall of Fame by Pierce Greenberg

Podcast — Episode 2: Diamonds and Beer

If you haven’t checked our the latest episode in our Podcast series, you’re missing out on a ton of country music goodness.

Episode Features

1. Introduction
2. Interview with Sarah Borges (MySpace)
3. Studio version of Dolly Parton’s “False Eyelashes” by Sarah Borges and the Broken Singles
4. Interview with Trent Willmon (MySpace)
5. Acoustic performance of “Cold Beer and a Fishin’ Pole” by Trent Willmon