Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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32 of 36 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The old Kenny is back!!!, November 9, 2005
Kenny Chesney started out as a great country artist but over the last 3 albums he seemed to take a detour through Margaritaville leaving his country fans to hope that he was still on his way to his next country show. After hearing his latest release 'The Road and the Radio' it looks like the old Kenny is back. There are a couple songs that talk about sand and/or sun but they don't have the island feel that his last 3 albums have had. Personally I'm not a Jimmy Buffett fan so music that resembles it hasn't been my cup of tea. I thoroughly enjoy Kenny's latest work. If you're like me and you missed the old country Kenny you'll enjoy this cd. If you became a fan of Kenny's from his last 3 releases or you liked them better, I still think you'll like this release as while the sound may be more country, the feel is still laid back. Overall 5 stars and I feel an album all of his fans will enjoy.
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Road and the Radio + Bonus Tracks, November 9, 2005
(Sidenote: If the bonus tracks are better than a lot of the songs on the actual CD, why are they not just included as normal tracks? I'm disappointed that not everyone will hear these bonus tracks, because they are AWESOME. I don't get why record companies won't just let you have 15 tracks on an album. They have to cut it off at 11 or 12. There are 15 really good songs here, but most of you will only hear 11 of them, and the 4 bonus tracks will thus never go to radio or have a chance to be heard nationally. That's sad. If you can get a bonus track version of this album, do it. It is well worth it).
As some of the reviews above have posted, this is definitely not your typical Kenny Chesney album. And for that, I'm somewhat disappointed, but don't think that means it's a bad album. This reminds me more of a Tim McGraw cd. There aren't any poppy songs that seem to be made for the radio; Kenny Chesney used to pack his CD's full of those, and I never minded it. If you look back at all his old records, especially Greatist Hits and NSNSNP, they're a really good split of slow mellow songs, and upbeat, fast paced, loving life type of songs. Well, there's not a single up-beat song on this album, save one, "Living in Fast Forward." The rest of the songs just seem like he's taking his music too seriously, and every song is out there trying to make a statement. Seems like the serious stuff heavily outweighs the fun stuff on this album. This album is great for a long drive when your alone, but it's terrible for a long drive with people. There's hardly anything to smile about, hardly anything to sing and have fun with on this. Everything's serious. But, like I said, that doesn't make this a bad CD. There are plenty of good songs on this CD, and I'd say it's well worth the buy. Just, be prepared, it's not gonna make you wanna hop up and start singing. Here's the breakdown. Also, unlike "When The Sun Goes Down," this album gets better as it goes along. WTSGD hit you over the head with all it's hits in the first 3 songs, then threw in a couple more at tracks 6 & 7, and the rest were all good, but fillers. This song, spreads the singles out, the album songs are better, they flow together more, and seem to have a real purpose to making the album complete. With this one, you won't feel like you've heard all there is to hear after the first 20 minutes or so, you'll want to listen to it beginning to end to get the full effects of the album.
1. The Road and the Radio (9/10)
A good start to the CD, safe money this will be released as a single at some point. Seems like he's trying to be very introspective with this song, which isn't surprising since he co-wrote it. Great song.
2. Living in Fast Forward (3.5/10)
The less I talk about this song, the better. It's rock and roll, fast paced, and catchy. But, I can't say why, I just don't like it. It's catchy, but it's not good. It sounds like a Toby Keith song, and you should get that vibe right around 13 seconds into the song. But Kenny Chesney can't sing a Toby Keith song. I don't know why he tried. I get the feeling this will be released to radio, and be very popular, and I'll be angry because I hate this song and I'd rather see him release any of the much better songs on this CD.
3. Who You'd Be Today (9/10)
A real good song, obviously a really serious song, but everyone already has an opinion on this since it was released pre-album.
4. You Save Me (9/10)
And the serious songs just keep going, so far we're at a 3:1 ratio out of the first 4 songs. I enjoy this song very much, I really love the chorus. Love the chorus. Now this song, I'll sing along to. It's just, you know, it's not any fun. But it's definitely a great song. One of the best on the album.
5. Summertime (9.5/10)
Finally. FINALLY! A fun song. Not only is it a fun song, but it's a very good song. It's upbeat, it's catchy, I enjoy the chord progression and overall flow of the song very much. Expect this one to be released as a single sometime around late April, early May. And expect it to go to number 1. This is definitely one of the best songs on this CD, and when it's all said and done, will probably be the most popular song on the CD.
6. In a Small Town (8/10)
Ok, Summertime was a quick break, it's time to go back to the slow stuff. But don't think this is a serious song, it's not. There is a word that perfectly describes it though: Mellow. It's definitely enjoyable, and a quality album song. It will never be put on the radio, but it's one of those songs that makes this not just a "CD" but rather an "Album." Hopefully you know what I mean. This is probably the first song on this album that an 18 year old with an acoustic guitar and a taste for good music will want to learn. Quality.
7. Beer in Mexico (9/10)
Ok, something coming in to pick up the pace a little bit. This song you'll sing to, guaranteed. It's well written, it's a much needed break in pace, and it's fun. The more I listen to this song, the more I like it. I don't know if it'll ever be a single, but hopefully he'll put this on his concert tour, because this is too good of a song to never push.
8. Freedom (6.5/5)
Heaven forbid that we can string together a couple of fun songs. Here Chesney is trying to sing about how Freedom can be different to different people. He sings through the eyes of a father, a soldier, etc, and how they all want "freedom." I enjoy this song, but not too much. It's one of those songs that, well here's how I'd describe it: It's serious, and yes it does happen to touch on soldiers and war and how they fight for our freedom. So, you feel obligated to like it, because of what the song focuses on. But to be honest, I just don't like this song too much. When I put this in my CD player, I won't be skipping tracks to hear this song first, that's all I'll say about it.
9. Tequila Loves Me (7.5/10)
A real melow song about a guy (or a gal, i guess it isn't really sex specific) who loves someone else but isn't loved back. So of course, Tequila loves me, even if you don't. Brilliant. A really chill song, but not anything to write home about. I enjoy it though.
10. Somebody Take Me Home (10/10)
Ok. You've been waiting for me to say what is the best song on the album? Here it is. By far. This one is just an amazing song. It is not country. It is closer to rock. But to be honest, it's genreless, because Chesney can't sing rock. The song is written like a really great rock song, but Chesney of course sings it with all the twang you'd want out of country. It's brilliant, it's well done. It's well written. Everything about this song is spectacular. One of my favorite Chesney songs. You'll hear it on the radio, you'll hear it on his tour. This one is worth the price of the album in itself. He was saving the best for last on this album apparently. I like it.
11. Like Me (8.5/10)
A real good song. I thouraghly enjoy it. Like most everything else here, it's slow paced, it's well written, and it's very good. It's just, not addicting. But it's still very good.
Review of Normal CD: 9/10
and to make my point further ...
Number of Slow Songs: 7
Number of Upbeat Songs: 4
That's not necessarily a bad thing, but it's just not what I expected/hoped for.
Bonus Tracks:
12. Brandy, You're A Fine Girl (9/10)
This song is awesome. It's not Chesney sounding at all, but it's an amazing song. I love the flow of this song, the way it's sung, just, you have to find a way to hear this song. It really grows on you in a big way. This would never make radio or anything, but it's the best "album" song on this entire CD. It's amazing catchy, it's just got a great positive flow to it, and it really makes you wanna just sing along to it. I just can't believe this is a bonus track, everytime it comes on I just get incredibly happy.
13. In This Boat Alone (9.5/10)
This is my favorite slow song on this whole album. It's a song about not wanting to end up alone. The song has a great beat to it, it's really chill, I love this song. How it's a bonus, I'll never understand ...
14. Flip Flop Summer (9/10)
I wish this would replace Living in Fast Forward on the regular tracks. It's much much better. The beat is addicting. The song is catchy. You'll wanna have this playing when you're driving off in the summer. Awesome song, this one could even make radio in the summertime. Again, in disbelief this isn't a regular track.
15. Old Bird Dog (9.5/10)
I love this song. It talks about how things can go bad and you can have a bad day, but then don't get too mad, because life is great, and it's worth living and loving. A really great song. This is one of the best on the album, it's a shame nobody will hear it.
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Between Buffett and Mellencamp, March 27, 2006
I came to Kenny Chesney through his Be As You Are album of Jimmy Buffett-like songs (in subject matter anyway) that he wrote while on his boat in the Caribbean. I'm a huge Buffett fan and loved that album which came out in January of 2005. This album is the follow-up that came out in November of the same year. It still has plenty of "fun in the sun" subject matter with songs like Summertime, Beer In Mexico, and Tequila Loves Me (another song about Mexico), but if anything, this album has everything that the "rock music", and I use that term losely, of today is missing: great song writting, great playing, rocking guitar solos, and SOUL. I call it a mix of Jimmy Buffett and John Mellencamp. Yes, Kenny Chesney is supposed to be Country, but this albulm is as much Rock, in classic Southern style, as it Country.
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