Friday Night in Dixie

Rhett Akins

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 26, 2002)
• Original Release Date: March 26, 2002
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Audium Entertainment
• ASIN: B000060PB0
• Also Available in: Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #132,113 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Rhett Akins debuted in 1994, and with Reba McEntire's management firm behind him, exposure on tours with Reba, and a major-label recording contract, he had all the right fundamentals. Unfortunately, his debut reflected that day's generic, assembly-line Nashville fluff. Despite a Top 10 single and a 1996 No. 1 with "Don't Get Me Started," he wound up lost in a shuffle of sound-alike acts. Sadly, his first new album in four years reflects little improvement. Songs like "White Lies and Blue Eyes" are stale radio ringers laden with the same kinds of tired hooks, harmonies, and colloquialisms ("You play my heart just like a groovin' guitar") heard on dozens of chart singles over the past decade. It would have been a joy to hear him transcend his past with something more individual and edgy, instead of such exercises in triteness as "Right Back Atcha" and the predictable "I Wonder What You're Doing Tonight." Following trends didn't set Akins apart in the 1990s. Neither will this generic repeat performance. --Rich Kienzle

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A voice beyond comparison!, April 27, 2002

By	DanD - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

So maybe the songs on Rhett Akins's CD "Friday Night In Dixie" don't stand out from the songs you currently hear on the radio; this is the type of music he loves singing, and you can tell that when you listen to this album. The emotion he packs into his songs in equalled by few artists in the genre.

Akins not only has a terrific voice--one of the best in country--but he is also a terrific songwriter, penning most of the album's tracks. He has a way with words, and he knows it, writing--and singing--songs about love, life, and happiness.

A few songs stick out from the others on this CD. "That Girl" is about that moment we've all experienced--seeing someone you know you could learn to like (maybe even love) and not evening speaking to them. "She Was" has a pop-ish edge to it, and "In Your Love" is a hard-core ballad reminiscent of Lonestar's "Amazed."

"You Rock Me" compares love to rock 'n roll, and the title track is about teenagers having fun, and the sheriff trying to stop 'em (think Charlie Daniels, who co-wrote it with Akins). "Trouble With A Woman" is a humorous David Lee Murphey-penned tune, and "Livin' Not Lovin' You" has a haunting tone to it. "Must Be Livin' Right" expresses that extreme contentment we occasionally feel with the way our lives are going, and "Where the Blacktop Ends"--not the keith urban song--tells how the country is often better than the city. A final joy is kept at the end of the album--a "back porch acoustic version" of Akins's past hit "That Ain't My Truck." While not as good as the original, it does provide a new spin to the song, keeping it going with just bass, guitar, dobro, and other minor accessories. You can definitely see Akins and his friends on their porch belting this one out--and the neighbors gathering around to lisen.

I'm not a long-time Rhett Akins fan, but I am one now. "Friday Night In Dixie" features some great songs, an I seriously recomend you buy this CD. There's really no reason, except that you deserve to hear something this good!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Give credit where credit is due, July 11, 2002

By	"baywatch_extra" (Michigan USA) - See all my reviews

This is one of life's many mysteries that baffles me. How can Tim McGraw toss together an album at the last minute and have every song be a hit, but artists like Rhett Akins go virtually unnoticed? This album is filled with many great songs and, unlike McGraw's albums, some of them were actually written by the person singing them! Rhett Akins is a gifted songer sing writer (Bushism), and "Friday Night in Dixie" is one of his best examples.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Who's Complaining?, June 3, 2003

By A Customer

If you're a country music fan, there's no reason that you shouldn't like this CD. It has a great mix of soft and upbeat music that is arranged enjoyably.

Songs like "Friday Night in Dixie" (cowritten by Charlie Daniels) make this CD worth buying. Granted, some of the lyrics lack depth, but most lyrics do...people just fail to pay attention. The rhythm of every song is great. "Right Back Atcha" has a tendancy to run through my head often. "Must Be Livin' Right" and "Where the Blacktop Ends" are both songs that I like to listen to with my boyfriend. The back porch acoustic version of "That Ain't My Truck" was a perfect end to a great CD.

I gave the CD only 4 stars because "You Rock Me" just didn't rock me and "Livin' Not Lovin' You" didn't catch me either.