While browsing SputnikMuisc last night, I noticed something. It was a LACK of reviews. No, don't start worrying. It was a lack of reviews for a certain, commonly overlooked genre - one normally shunned by many, liked by few. This genre is country music.
Tim McGraw is one of country's prized artists. With Garth Brooks' steady decline in the mid-Nineties, Tim McGraw inherited country music's throne and has gone on to sell tens of millions of records since first hitting the scene in 1993. With about a dozen singles under his belt since his self-titled debut album, he's gone on to become one of the biggest, most powerful artists in the genre.
McGraw's 2004 release "Live Like You Were Dying" showcases Tim and his backing band, The Dancehall Doctors running the musical gamut - from heartfelt dedications (the disc's title track and first single, "Live Like You Were Dying") to the blues rock of "How Bad Do You Want It".
Most of the disc does, though, stick to Tim's softer side. He deals with subjects like suicide (the aptly titled "Kill Myself"), drugs (the second single, "Drugs or Jesus"), death ("Live Like You Were Dying", dedicated to his dad who died of brain cancer in early 2004), and of course the old country favorite, lost love ("Something's Broken"). There's no doubt that this is Tim's most emotional release yet.
Don't get him wrong, though. McGraw is no emo kid. Tunes like "How Bad Do You Want It", the conservative retrospect of "Back When", and "Everybody Hates Me" are combinations of country, blues, and rock.
For this disc, Tim McGraw has found balance. One minute he's doing the soulful crooning found in older songs of his, like "Don't Take the Girl", and the next he's doing straightforward good-times rock. He proves here that neither him nor his band are musically limited, which can be good or bad. It's most definitely good, because his approach allows him more fans, as he covers a variety of musical stylings. However, the downside is that some of his more traditionalist fans would call it selling out. Lads and lasses, Tim McGraw has NOT sold out...except maybe in the CD aisle at your local K-Mart. Even if you're not much of a country fan, there's something for everyone to love here. Give this disc a try!
Track Highlights:
Live Like You Were Dying
Back When
Kill Myself
How Bad Do You Want It
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