Customer Reviews

Part II

5 star:		(54)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I laugh here in the Garden State....Folks want to know what has happened to Country Music, and I just reply, "Have you listened to Brad Paisley?" I truly hope they have, and if not, they are missing out. There is not a bad track on this CD....from the strains of the fiddle playing a reprise of "In The Garden" which ended his first CD to the close of his second CD and his great rendition of "The Old Rugged Cross" recorded live at the Grand Ole Opry on the night he was made a member. Standouts to me....The ode to Fishermen across this great land..."I'm Gonna Miss Her" ; the majestic "I'd Wish You Would Stay", complete with a great intro that sets the mood of the song; "Too Country" a nugget of a song written by Bill Anderson and Chuck Cannon, and features Brad, along with Whisperin' Bill, George Jones, and Buck Owens, and ends with the plaintive wail of the steel guitar...my favorite part of the CD. Last but not least, the first single, "Two People Fell In Love". A song for all...and is right...."You know, to me it's all so clear, Every one of us is here, All because two people fell in love." This is a CD that makes you laugh, makes you cry, and makes you think...I am already awaiting Part III.

Too Country?! Humph...no such thing! If you want to call Brad Paisley too much of anything, how 'bout TALENTED?! Thanks to Brad's infectious guitar grooves on "Two Feet of Topsoil", and soul-captivating lyrics and string arrangement in "I Wish You'd Stay", along with the sprinklings of honest humor in "I'm Gonna Miss Her", "Come on Over Tonight", and "All You Really Need is Love", not to mention the bone-haunting emotion of "You'll Never Leave Harlan Alive", oh and the proud and heartfelt traditional country anthem "Too Country", sung with legends Bill Anderson, Buck Owens, and George Jones, with last-but-not-least Opry-recorded gospel favorite "The Old Rugged Cross", I have now formed a union with my c.d. player! (And that still leaves 5 more outstanding cuts, including the current hit single and video, "Two People Fell in Love"!) WHEW...Brad has proven again that traditional country doesn't mean it belongs in the attic and doesn't relate to our stories and lives of today. Since when has honesty, truth, and being yourself gone out of style?! Glad to say I didn't realize it had, nor has Brad. Too Country?! I don't think so. Too Talented?! If anyone's guilty, it's Brad!

In the less than two years since he has burst onto the scene he has toured with George Strait, won a slew of awards and been inducted into the Grand Old Opry. I adore his debut CD and this one gives me more to love!

Once again the record company tried to confuse me by making "Two People Fell in Love" the first single, leading me to believe this would be a CD oozing with ballads. But, since I love that song and Brad's first CD, I bought Part II and do not regret it one bit! "Two Feet of Topsoil" really kick starts the CD! The instrumental "Munster Rag" and "The Old, Rugged Cross" are phenomenal and show how true Paisley is to the deep roots of country music, as does "Too Country" on which he gets a little help from some of his Opry friends.

Other standout songs include "Wrapped Around" and "All You Really Need is Love" seem to have the common thread of falling in love and getting married, they really compliment each other well. "Come on Over Tonight" is my favorite track though, it packs traditional twang with a contemporary bang!

Brad Paisley will be around for a long time to come and I look forward to hearing more from him!

With great writing skills and stellar guitar playing ability, Brad Paisley is that rare commodity in modern country music: a complete artist. His latest CD Part II continues in the same refreshing stone country vein as his 1999 debut Who Needs Pictures.

What impresses most about this traditionalist's sophomore effort is its varied musical styles. "Two Feet Of Topsoil" gets the set off to a blistering start with a flurry of fiddles and steel guitars, then the deadpan "I'm Gonna Miss Her" takes a humorous jab at one man's "confused" priorities (he picks fishing over his woman). The ballads "I Wish You'd Stay" and the title track provide some heart-tugging moments, while the haunting bluegrass cover "You'll Never Leave Harlan Alive" serves up some gritty mountain music. The only mis-step on the entire album is the event recording "Too Country," featuring George Jones, Buck Owens, and Bill Anderson.

Like country albums from years ago - but UNLIKE most of his current peers, Paisley includes an instrumental (the sizzling "Munster Rag") and concludes with a hymn ("The Old Rugged Cross" - recorded live at his Grand Ole Opry induction ceremony). It's appropriate that an inspirational performance would close such an inspired album.

His first album made me a Brad Paisley fan, and his second is just as good; there's not a bad song on it. I love his wry sense of humor, and it shines through in many of the tunes. I like his more traditional approach to his music, and the lyrics are actually worth listening to. A real winner.

I loved "Who Needs Pictures," and actually like it the smallest fraction more than Part II. But this is incredible! Tells you something about what we're dealing with here...

By the time I've gotten around to writing this, the second single has been released, and that's "Wrapped Around," as infectious, clever and charming as you might imagine with the hook line, "I think it's time to put a ring on the finger I'm wrapped around."

Thing is, it could have been any of the songs here, whether "Come On Over Tonight" (a hardcore bachelor's hilarious dinner of eating crow!) or "I Wish You'd Stay" (heartbreak personified) or "You Have That Effect On Me" (great lounge-y, loopy song of a guy head over heels). The diversity described above is just the beginning of what's great about this man and his very simpatico team. It is also very admirable that he and they (it is a very loyal team) haven't compromised the essential vision they embraced from the beginning...straight-ahead, modern but pure country. NOT country-pop fusion. Intelligent, clever, funny, heartfelt, tuneful, terrific country music.

By the way, these are virtuoso musicians all. Brad Paisley could make it just as a country guitar god if he wished, and I am not exaggerating about his skill, which is notorious. Me, I'm glad he also writes and sings! You'll be, too.

You go, guys. Brad, you and yours do yourselves proud.

Wow, I can't believe that he isn't number one on every chart out there. While Part II isn't quite as good as "Who Needs Pictures" (I gave his first one 100 stars, this one gets 99) it is the best new cd out there. I fell in love with the cd, even before I heard one word sung. The opening licks on "Two Feet Of Topsoil" were enough to know my socks off. And it just continued to get better. My three favorite songs on the cd are "Wrapped Around," "Two People Fell In Love," and "You'll Never Leave Harlan Alive." The only song on he whole cd that I'm not particularly crazy about is "You Have That Effect On Me," (Which is the same track number os the song that I wasn't crazy about on the first cd) but aside from that one song there all number one potential. I was a little bit dissapointed by "Munster Rag" because it was not quite as good as "Nervous Breakdown", but it was far better than Keith Urban's "Roller Coaster." The final track "The Old Rugged Cross" is the sentimental best because it shows someone who's not afraid to show where he came from. I hope Brad keeps up the good work, and he needs to come to Greenville so all his fans here can see him perform live.

I'm usually one to stick to the mantra that the difference between a good album and a great album is all in the production. While "Who Needs Pictures" nailed the musical aspects, "Part II" takes the same musical talent and wraps it up in absolutely amazing production that gives great depth to the album, and the end result is nicely cohesive. There's also something about his soulful sound that leaves me feeling like I know this guy, after a single listen through the cd, there's a definite sense that you've just shared a good part of his heart. The entire album's got great balance, a good level combination of the kind of song that showcases his irrististably dry wit and the kind of song that lets you sit back and get emotional right along with him. The orchestral introduction to "I Wish You'd Stay" is leaps and bounds beyond anything from "Who Need Pictures", the haunting undertones of "You'll Never Leave Harlan Alive" paint a great visual picture of a bleak mining town, Chely Wright's vocals in the background of the track "Part II" give it a gentle edge, all in all, it's a great effort, I enjoyed his debut album, but I'm enjoying "Part II" much more. This boy's on the climb, look forward to seeing him get the kudos he deserves for such a great sequal.

One of the most talented musicians and song writers in music today strikes again. Brad Paisley has surpassed his previous effort with his latest album, Part II. In typical style he blends fun, uptempo songs with some of the most touching ballads you will hear. From the title track, Part Two, to I Wish You'd Stay, you can hear the feeling in his music. But to show his depth of talent he has Two Feet of Topsoil that is just good old fashioned ten step country and You'll Never Leave Harlan Alive and The Old Rugged Cross showing loyalty to his roots. I highly recommend this to anyone who liked his first album or anyone who enjoys PURE country

You've already heard hits on the radio like "I'm Gonna Miss Her", "Wrapped Around" and "Two People Fell in Love", but there's more great songs than that. "You'll Never Leave Harlan Alive" is worth the price of the CD all by itself. And you probably won't hear the duet with George Jones, Bill Anderson and Buck Owens, "Too Country", on the the radio. Plus, how else can you truely appreciate the lyrics to "Two Feet of Topsoil" without listening to the song?

There's two feet of topsoil
A little bit of bedrock, limestone in between
A fossilized dinosaur
A little patch of crude oil
A thousand feet of granite underneath
Then there's me