Modern country hits – pop, twang and country-rock

Singles – whether 7” vinyl or MP3s – have had a tumultuous history. They were the standard bearer in the juke box and top-40 eras, they shared the spotlight with long-playing albums that were purpose-built as “artistic statements,” were revitalized as soundtracks to MTV videos, lost ground with the demise of rock radio, and were renewed by per-song download services. Throughout the roller coaster ride of rock singles, the country single retained both its marketing and artistic clout. Country radio continues to be a major force in conveying new music to the commercial mainstream, and country music videos still appear regularly on cable channels. To that end, RCA’s second compilation of modern country hits will be quite familiar to listeners who’ve tuned to country radio the past couple of years.

The generous twenty-track set focuses on hits from the last half of 2008 and first half of 2009, extending all the way to recent hits by Dierks Bentley (“Sideways”) and Lady Antebellum (“I Run to You”). Nearly half the tracks are well-known #1s, but the lower-charting hits offer substantial charms. Jamie Johnson’s “In Color” (which peaked at #9) is as good as any of the chart-toppers, Trade Adkins’ “Marry for Money” (#14) is a catchy honky-tonker, Josh Turner’s “Everything is Fine” (#20) digs deeply into his lazy low notes, Miranda Lambert’s “Gunpowder & Lead” (#7) is firey, Gary Allen’s “Learning How to Bend” (#13) is an emotional tour de force, and George Strait’s “Troubadour” (#7) remains a terrific statement about age, experience and principle.

The bulk of these productions lean to the polished country-pop end of Nashville’s output, but there are a few twangy tracks and some powerful country-rockers. Many of the songs are loaded with radio-ready melodic hooks and sing-along choruses. The instantly recognizable voices of Turner, Johnson, Adkins and Strait and Jennifer Nettles of Sugarland will remind you how thoroughly a country singer can stamp a song with the tone of their voice. Oddly, Carrie Underwood is featured singing her 2007 cover of Randy Travis’ “I Told You So” from her album Carnival Ride, rather than the recent hit duet with Travis himself. Perhaps there was a licensing problem, but this over-emotional rendition doesn’t measure up to the more recent remake.

Those who buy the physical CD gain web access to five recent tracks from young artists: David Nail’s “Turning Home,” Easton Corbin’s “A Little More Country That That,” Chris Young’s “Getting’ You Home,” Caitlin & Will’s “Address in the Stars,” and Emily West’s “Blue Sky.” That’s a nice bonus on top of the hit-packed disc and a clever way for the label group to expose new artists to modern country fans. Note that downloading the bonus tracks will require you to run a piece of Java code downloaded to your browser from Push Entertainment; this applet validates that the CD is present in your computer’s drive. [©2009 hyperbolium dot com]