I
I
asked to review this CD because I don’t think Mr. Pat
Benny would
have given it a fair treatment. Mr. Benny has a fine
ear for music and, although he sometimes struggles with the
English language, he is a stolid crusader for the yet to be
discovered musicians he loves to fawn over. I don’t
fault him for this, for I agree that there are lots of
people out there that deserve to be heard. However,
Mr. Benny seems to have some kind of phobia when it comes to
the contemporary artists who are at the top of their
game. Perhaps this affliction is a result of his
community college education, I really don’t know.
I do know this: Tim
McGraw and the Dancehall Doctors
is a bitchin’
CD. Let’s face it: the cream always rises to the
top, and this is as creamy as it comes. Released on
the Curb label,
it is a well produced, well packaged with liner notes that
not only include the lyrics, but also contains an excellent
bio on every member of the band.
The album has an excellent mix of songs, from the
almost Celtic beginning of
Comfort Me,
to the despondent tale told on Tickin’
Away. Home
is a bluegrass
flavored portrait of Home Sweet Home.
Red
Ragtop, is a story of
young love written in the Bob Seger, John Mellencamp vein,
but sung with McGraw’s trademark style. That’s
Why God Made Mexico,
is a poignantly light hearted treatment of running away from
all your troubles to the paradise of Mexico.
Sing Me Home
is a song of personal retrospective which begins with a
sweet acoustic guitar and melds into a very heavy drum and
perfect backup vocals.
Space prevents me from commenting on every song on
the album, but I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the
final cut, Tiny Dancer.
Tim takes this Elton John classic and makes it his own,
giving the familiar words a sweet country flavor.
In closing, let me say that this is an excellent
recording. I would be thrilled to see him perform at
any future Super Bowl Halftime which, by the way, Mr. Benny,
I’ve had the pleasure of seeing three times. Hey
Benny! You ain’t lived until you’ve seen Michael
Jackson rock the Super Bowl!
Ray SynKane
Tim
McGraw and The Dancehall Doctors
