This year Substack introduced its Notes feature. I haven't used it much. However, on occasion I scribble down a thought or two. I thought it might be fun to look back and engage with past myself.
Frankie Ballard was, along with a few others, bro country done right. 2014's Sunshine and Whiskey was demonstrative of his great sense of cheerful charisma mixed with thoughtfulness. It was clear that this Keith Urban inspired, banjo and drum kit lade sound was a label pushed identity, but Ballard made the best of it. His follow up album gambled that doubling down on the rock sound would be exactly what audiences expected for a follow up. It was bold, brash but still charismatic and thoughtful.
Unfortunately, the timing was misaligned. 2016-2017 was precisely when bro and all that rock influence started to wane and was replaced with a more metropolitan pop sound. His album struggled and we have not had new music since. In the meantime, Frankie has found Jesus, domestic bliss, and fatherhood. We are very happy for him, but miss his music.
This one is self explanatory once you hear the song. It took guts to push a song like this to the mainstream. These days, all the "hard hitting" music comes from independent artists. It's nice that they speak their mind, but with their siloed off audience bubbles, there isn't risk to be had. Conversely, this.
Nothing further to contribute to this pretty fleshed out thought except further evidence from Larry Fleet and other Big Loud artists.
I think I did crack. This is an absolutely bizarre song.
This is a pretty anodyne opinion that is shared by many. I wrote up a massive piece early on in the blogs history about Keith's drop-off and used his magnum opus record, Golden Road, to analyze and speculate why the drop-off took place.
Honestly this deserves a fleshed out piece. Maybe I'll do one on this new medium sometime this year. Who would have thought that Luke Bryan pandering to farmers would be so thought provoking?!
Noah Kahan pop-folk maybe is the new addition? Certainly many have seen this coming since Mumford and Sons blew up. It's arguable if that is a genuinely new addition to the tent. Many forms of rock are already in this category.
And considering that Brooks and Dunn's debut album is their best album, via the transitive property one can come to the reasonable conclusion that Cool Drink Of Water is their best song. That is all.
Hope you enjoyed this lighter post. It's not a quite a Hot Takes post, but maybe I'll do something like that if feedback on this is positive. I'll be back later this month with something more hefty. Also, as music starts getting released, reviews will slowly be folded back in to the rotation.
Deadline for Letters to the Editor is fast approaching. Send your letters to todayiheardblog@gmail.com by February 15th if you want them to be featured.
Lastly, RIP Toby Keith. An integral figure in the story and history of country music. I'm unsure if I want to write something about his passing. Others were more familiar with his work than I. Country Universe for example, has been writing about the country music scene for nearly 20 years now and has covered Keith extensively. As a memorial, the comments section on their site created this playlist to celebrate the iconic career of Toy Keith. Some great songs you may never have heard before are there, along with classics and favorites. Give it a listen.
Thanks,
Joe