Comments on: Tim McGraw And Friday Night Lights Team Up Again

By: Leeann

Leeann — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 02:33:23 +0000

Not to stray from this always riveting RF discussion, I just want to comment that I too love “Friday Night Lights.” An underrated show indeed.

By: Kelly

Kelly — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 21:06:12 +0000

…well, i am just not sure if RF has the Eye of the Tiger?!?!?!?

By: Peter Kohan

Peter Kohan — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 20:50:58 +0000

Baron – I’d list Neal Schon as a much superior guitarist to Gary Richrath – my personal opinion.

It wasn’t a perfect analogy, but REO did help really bring the power ballad to the fore in rock and roll. I like REO – even saw them live back in the day.

I guess I always have trouble when people listen to songs like “Still Feels Good” by RF and think “Oh man! This song ROCKS!”

Maybe a better rock band analogy might be… Survivor.

By: Lucas

Lucas — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 19:00:39 +0000

There’s nothing wrong with putting on an “arena rock” style show. But they’re still not country.

Taylor is.

By: Kelly

Kelly — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 18:30:27 +0000

Jim: My bad, I got my RF songs confused. I was thinking of the “mayberry” song, whatever it may be called. Having said that, their sound may have been “countrier” in the past, but I still think even their earlier cuts are sadly formulaic from every perspective.

By: Baron Lane

Baron Lane — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 18:19:57 +0000

Peter said – “As someone who grew up on arena rock – RF is no arena rocker. If they are, then maybe their arena rock equivalent might be REO Speedwagon.”

As someone who also grew up on arena rock AND saw REO Speedwagon (Nine Lives tour), I would not make that comparison. REO has some pretty heavy sounds and that guitarist was pretty impressive.

No, I think RF would be more akin to to Journey, again sans great guitarist.

By: Kelly

Kelly — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 16:52:28 +0000

Jim- You MAY have a point, however, that song in particular showcases their amazingly generic taste in lyircs. You call it a “very, very good song”, yet I think it foreshadows the generic path they would later hot-rod down as they become more popular. Sunday Church, front porches, fond small town memories, we have heard that a time or two before, havent we??

By: ccf

ccf — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 16:42:22 +0000

The only time I listen to “country radio” is if I’m in someone car who has it on. My mp3 player hooks up to my radio and it also has a cd player. So I have avoided radio for the last few years.

By: Jim Malec

Jim Malec — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 16:13:58 +0000

I would play Devil’s Advocate here–some of RF’s earlier stuff is solidly contemporary country. “These Days” is a very, very good song, for example. Yeah, it’s a little poppy, but I think we’re doing them a dis-service to write off their entire catalog with one stroke of the quill.

By: Lynn

Lynn — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 15:47:54 +0000

Taylor Swift is a cutie, but she can’t sing live worth beans. However, I was much less offended by her doing Eminem than Sugarland doing Beyonce. Go figure (especially since Beyonce is coming out with a country album. lol. I wonder if Eminem would give it a try? Actually, I’d love to hear Eminem’s take on current country radio. It wouldn’t be “vanilla.” ;)

My favorite quotes from the NY Times about RF’s performance: (1) “Rascal Flatts is fearlessly contented and relentlessly inoffensive;” and (2) “Sometimes the reassurance is interrupted by a heartbreak, which gives Mr. LeVox a chance to make his high, quavery voice extra tearful;” (3) “Settled heartland Americans certainly deserve songs that address their lives. The question is whether those songs have to be so cloying.” Sums it up for me.