 Montgomery Gentry: Back When I Knew It All
Reviewed by C. Eric Banister
Countrystandardtime.com
Original Release Date: June 10, 2008
Label: Sony
When Montgomery Gentry entered the scene stomping their hillbilly shoes, their southern rock influences and "couldn't-give-a-damn" attitude shone proudly. After a few years and a few hits, their sound and song choices began to lean heavily toward the radio friendly. With "Back When I Knew It All" the duo promised to get back to the raucous sounds that brought them to the dance. And they almost made it, but not quite.
There are three recurrent themes that pop up: spirituality ("Big Revival," "Roll With Me" and "God Know Who I Am"), the wisdom in aging ("Back When I Knew It All," "Look Some More" and the back to back advice from the older generation songs of "One Trip" and "It Ain't About Easy") and partying ("Now You're Talkin'," "One In Every Crowd" and "I Pick My Parties" with Toby Keith).
The best song is also the one that comes closest to the original MG sound. Dipping into the catalog of Texas artist Kevin Fowler, MG turn in a great version of "Long Line of Losers."
With musicians David Grissom and Chuck Leavell that can certainly bring back the duos rough edges, Montgomery Gentry never quite make it back to the southern rock tone, but stay closer to songs that reach for radio airplay.
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 Jewel: Perfectly Clear
Producer(s): Jewel, John Rich
Genre: COUNTRY
Label: Valory Music
Jewel has been a pop chart fixture since 1995, but ever organically rooted to make her move to country a convincing transition, and the format has already embraced top 15 single "Stronger Woman." Her seventh album and first full-length country project, "Perfectly Clear," is not only persuasive, but down-home, old-school country. It's not just the addition of steel guitar that sells Jewel's passage, but the whole of her delivery and lyrical themes. Potential hits abound: Best are the searching, chug-along "I Do"; remorseful ballad "Everything Reminds Me of You"; the uptempo, playful "Rosey and Mick," about a long-term imperfect relationship; and the mannered "Anyone but You," which sounds like a Tammy Wynette classic. Jewel continues to surprise and inspire, and "Clear" is an ideal transition for the 34-year-old Texas dweller. —Chuck Taylor
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 Lady Antebellum – 2008
Lady Antebellum
Review From: countrystandardtime.com
(Capitol Nashville)
The early info on Lady Antebellum's debut promised a blend of classic country harmonies, R&B soul, and '70s singer-songwriter sincerity. Those elements are thin, and they're held firmly in check by the unabashedly contemporary production. It's an album that could very easily have been totally generic.
The division of vocal duties between Hillary Scott and Charles Kelley - third band member Dave Haywood is the instrumentalist - raises it out of mediocrity. Just as they trade leads and harmonies, they trade stories and perspectives. It's a youthful approach to age-old subjects like loving and leaving. Finding strength is a secondary theme throughout until the last song, "One Day You
Will," where it takes center stage in a track that manages to be both realistic and optimistic about the state of mind of younger generations. The vocal styles are different enough - Kelley relies on his distinctive voice, while Scott emphasizes unusual phrasings - to keep the album interesting through all 11 tracks, even where the music itself sounds kind of indistinguishable. Occasionally, those differences lead to some clunky harmonies, especially on the otherwise charming "Lookin' For a Good Time," but the blend is successful more often than not.
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