CD Review – Craig Campbell – Craig Campbell

13 years ago Liv Carter 2


Craig Campbell – Craig Campbell (Bigger Picture, 2011)

Last year, Craig Campbell was introduced to country music fans by way of debut single ‘Family Man.’ The traditional tune proved to be the perfect point of departure for Craig and was the title track of his 2010 EP. With his first full CD Craig is sure to build his ever-expanding fan base; it is a wonderful piece of work.

Laying the foundation for a mostly upbeat record, opener ‘I Bought It’ is the heartbreak song with a twist. ‘Family Man’ and companion song ‘My Little Cowboy’ beautifully and endearingly explore the family theme, and the moving ‘That’s Music to Me’ reminds us there is music to be found in pretty much everything if only we listen for it. Tackling the serious subject of debt with humor takes some doing but the defiant na-na-na-nas in ‘When I Get It’ get the job done.

Cementing his laid-back country nature, three songs play on the idea of just enjoying life. ‘Chillaxin” and ‘All Night to Get There’ both have us taking it easy, but stand-out among these is ‘Makes You Wanna Sang’ with it’s unusual chorus consisting of nothing but mmm-mm-mm-mm. It works perfectly and you are guaranteed to find yourself humming this one for days.

Already a hit during live shows, ‘Fish,’ the second single, is a hilarious and lovely piece of writing that tries to trick you. Co-written with Arlos Smith and Ashe Underwood the song rhymes ‘I found a girl who likes to fish’ with the words truck and luck. You get the idea.

Following the surge in ‘I am so country’ lyrics in recent years, Craig and co-writers Keith Stegall and Michael White hit back with ‘You Probably Ain’t.’ The writers cleverly brought in an outside character, the old man in a bar, to point out that ‘if you gotta tell me how country you are, you probably ain’t’. Amen!

There are no real weak links here, though ‘That Going Away Look (About Her)’ feels slightly out of place. This is, however, more a testament to how strong the rest of the material is.

Keith Stegall oversaw the production and managed to seemingly bring out every nuance in every song in this collection. As with Alan Jackson, the Campbell/Stegall partnership will hopefully stand the test of time. It is arguably one of the best things to happen to country music in quite a while.

Craig Campbell has delivered a lighthearted yet accomplished debut album filled with straight-up country tunes.

‘Craig Campbell’ will be in stores tomorrow, April 5.

Disclosure of material connection for this review.

 

Liv Carter

Liv Carter

Liv is a career coach for creatives, and the people who work with them.
She holds several certificates from Berklee College of Music, and a certificate in Positive Psychology from UC Berkeley.
Her main influences are coffee, cats, and Alexander Hamilton.
Liv Carter

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