Review Summary: The artistic and commercial pinnacle of country music's greatest vocal group.
Rascal Flatts' third studio album
Feels Like Today, released on this day (September 28, as I'm writing this) in 2004, is special for so many reasons. For the acclaimed country trio, it was their first album to debut at #1 on the all-genre
Billboard 200. It was also their best-selling record, having moved more than five million lifetime units in the last two decades and change. For me personally, it was the album I ever owned on a CD. On the eve of Easter 2007, I was on the cusp of turning ten, and my grandma bought me the album as a gift. At this time, it had been almost a year since I had discovered the band, thanks to the high-octane rendition of "Life Is a Highway" they notably recorded for the classic Disney/Pixar film
Cars. "Highway"'s success led to it being featured as a bonus track on CD presses of the band's then-most-recent album
Me and My Gang, which was what I'd been asking for. So when my grandma handed me a copy of
Feels Like Today, I struggled to hide my disappointment. In hindsight, my grandma should have returned the disc and put my ungrateful ass in a timeout. My chagrin quickly gave way to excitement, however, since I now had a fresh batch of tunes from my favorite band to listen to. Over time, my appreciation for
Feels Like Today has grown well beyond the nostalgic ties that come from listening to it so fiercely throughout my childhood. So much of the band's greatest material lives on this record. I consider it their best album, as perfect a distillation and representation of their sound across an entire album as they've ever achieved.
As mentioned, the album sold like hotcakes when it hit store shelves in the fall of '04, coming at a time when Rascal Flatts had firmly established themselves as perhaps
the premier act in all of country music. Throughout the roughly half-decade that had passed since the group's formation, they'd already racked up a slew of hits at country radio, and weathered a few mild controversies. From being unfavorably compared to the boy bands of the era, to having a music video
banned from cable television after guitarist Joe Don Rooney dropped trou on camera, the trio's presence in the country landscape was one that was immediately felt, even if it didn't always generate them positive press.
Feels Like Today marked the moment that Rascal Flatts, in my estimation, officially arrived, crystallizing themselves as a serious act indelibly woven into the fabric of country music's story. It signified once and for all that the group was a force to be reckoned with, and they weren't going anywhere.
Feels Like Today embodies everything that Rascal Flatts does so well, and does so more strongly and consistently than, perhaps, any other record in their discography. The last of three albums to be co-produced by the trio alongside Mark Bright and Marty Williams, it's a synthesis of the pop-country formula they'd almost perfected on arrival with their self-titled album and
Melt. While it employs ostensible pop and rock flourishes throughout its twelve tracks, it lacks the loudness and relentless production found on the majority of the material the band would churn out with Dann Huff manning the grid. The stories in the lyrics are authentic, the performances are sincere and heartfelt and there seems to be a genuine thematic through-line that's present. The Flatts are definitely a singles band (at least to anyone not named Shamus), but
Feels Like Today maintains a consistent set of themes across its forty-three minute runtime, which gives it a level of cohesion that only bolsters an already phenomenal album.
"Where You Are" gets us going with a generous helping of vintage Rascal Flatts, weaving a tale of love on fire that only these guys can. The imagery is as vibrant ("I'm the frozen ground/You're the warm sunlight/Shining down on me/Baby, just in time") as Gary LeVox's vocals are glowing and earnest. Rooney's electric guitar shimmers, Jay DeMarcus' bass thumps, and subtle steel guitars round out such a pleasant and ebullient opening stanza. From there, we promptly reach one of the band's signature songs, and my grandma's personal favorite of theirs: "Bless the Broken Road." Originally written in 1994 by Marcus Hummon, Bobby Boyd and Jeff Hanna, the latter of whom was the first to record it alongside the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, "Bless the Broken Road" is a supreme statement of love and gratitude for the impact the narrator’s lover has had on his life, and how God guided the two together. But with that initial recording, and even with that of subsequent artists’ attempts, it just never achieved the success it deserved, at least not until Rascal Flatts sent out their definitive rendition. It became their biggest hit to date, logging five consecutive weeks atop the
Billboard country chart, winning a Grammy, and finally becoming the country classic and wedding hall staple it was always destined to be. Some songs take a while to find their true home, but Rascal Flatts gave "Broken Road" just that. For them, it further solidified that the group had their finger firmly on the pulse of American popular music, resonating with fans and listeners all across the landscape.
"Then I Did" is one of my personal favorite Rascal Flatts tunes, and the first we come to that really hones in on the album's broader encouraging nature. This one invokes so much nostalgia; I can vividly remember listening to it for the first time. Using the backdrop of an old relationship waiting to be rekindled, LeVox imparts some sage advice onto the listener about living life to the fullest and not being afraid to take chances as they arise. The visual that the lyric describes is colorful and the presentation is quaint and subdued, with LeVox warmly reminiscing about "how we'd call in sick on days like this, and turn the music, and roll the windows down and just drive." The lyric immediately following is especially emblematic of what my relationship with Rascal Flatts' music has been over the last twenty years:
You talked me out of giving up on myself so many times.
The group's music has never failed to put a smile on my face, to comfort me when I needed a shoulder, or inspire me when I needed a push, and "Then I Did" does all of these as well as any song in the band's catalog. A few more songs we'll talk about along the way do the same. Accordingly, they also rank among my most favorite Flatts songs.
The title track "Feels Like Today" might be the trio's finest moment on record. If not for "Life Is a Highway," I would have to grant it that title. It's got
all of the hallmarks of a signature Rascal Flatts song: powerful vocals and harmonies from LeVox and company, shimmering guitars from Rooney, moving lyrics, poignant imagery, and top-notch production. And it has so much more to boot: crooning steel guitar fills, earwormy mandolins and string arrangements rounding out the proceedings. In the same vein as "Then I Did," "Feels Like Today" is an invitation to the listener to savor life and take advantage of the opportunities it presents us, because adventure is something you seek out. This mantra is perhaps best put to word in the second verse:
You treat life like a picture
But it's not a moment that's frozen in time
It's not gonna wait 'til you make up your mind at all/
Never has a Rascal Flatts song embodied all of their very best attributes in one composition. "Feels Like Today" is another one of my absolute favorite songs, not just from the group, but from any artist. Suffice to say, I'll cherish it forever. Next, we reach the first pointedly
fun offering, coming in the form of the #1 radio hit "Fast Cars and Freedom." Another one of the band's bigger singles, the electric guitars are driving, and fiddles swelling, as this foot-stomping romp gets going. Bright symbolism lays the foundation, with the band dialing up a classic singalong chorus accompanied by lyrics that make love sound easy in their characteristically unique way. "When The Sand Runs Out" is yet another highlight that's become a favorite of mine. This time, we find LeVox at a cemetery, leaving behind flowers for an old friend. While he remembers the companion fondly, he seems to subtly lament that the man went to his grave never appreciating the things in life that really matter. Eager to not have to say the same for himself when his own time to pass arrives, he resolves to "go out on a ledge, without any net, that's what I'm gonna be about. Yeah, I wanna be running when the sand runs out." The bridge of the song is especially gripping, with LeVox sensing that he hears "the voice of my old friend whisper in my ear." I can almost hear the voices of my beloved, late grandparents doing the same for me, buoying me to take on the world with my chin held high, unafraid of the unknown. When I need such a reminder, this song is it.
Co-written by DeMarcus, "Here's To You" is an up-tempo love-letter to the group's fans, with their high-energy live show (I would know, I've seen three!) being adapted to record here. Stylistically, it is a bit of precursor to the big, bombastic soundscapes the band would explore later in their career, but Bright and Williams' understated production keeps it all in check and helps it maintain a mostly grounded affair. Nevertheless, Rooney's rollicking guitar riffs are an absolute treat. The band frequently plays this song live to this day, often as the opener. If you want an idea of what their stage production sounds like, this is as good as it gets. "The Day Before You" takes its cues from "Broken Road," serving up another lyric where LeVox's protagonist expresses thankfulness for his partner for changing his life for the better. The group's harmonies are particularly radiant on the door-busting "Break Away." I recently jammed this one the morning I left for Ocean City, Maryland on vacation with a friend and this is the perfect song to play when you're ready to roll down the windows and crank up the volume.
"Holes" is the most somber and reflective moment on this album, as LeVox addresses an former flame and spares no expense to make known his regret and acknowledgment that the courtship's demise was by his own hand. The harmonies are again at the forefront, with Rooney in particular providing the higher octave fills, as well as purposeful guitars on the protracted outro, resulting in a palpable act of contrition. We oscillate back into feel-good vibes, and a country-as-cornbread instrumental, on the irresistible "Oklahoma-Texas Line." Written exclusively by the band, this track demands to be sung loudly, and try to keep up or you might lag behind and miss all the fun! "Skin", also titled "Sarabeth" after the young woman portrayed in the lyric, closes us out with what was originally a hidden track you couldn't find unless you let your
Feels Like Today disc spin to conclusion. "Skin" tells the story of the aforementioned young girl, who is diagnosed with cancer and is stricken with anxiety surrounding the stresses of carrying, and combating, the disease. Most notably, she’s afraid of losing her hair, especially because she believes her crush will no longer want to accompany her to prom. She does lose her hair after chemotherapy, but the boy shaves his head in a display of love and acceptance of her. "And they go dancing," the band sings in this tasteful and restrained ballad which brings our journey to an end on a decidedly crestfallen note, though not nearly enough to forget all the fun we've had and the important lessons we've learned.
Feels Like Today is the artistic and commercial pinnacle of country music's greatest vocal group, exemplifying everything that made them one of the top-selling musical acts of the 21st century. Of course, I'm biased and I adore just about everything the band has released to date, and I even have my own soft spot for more pop-oriented efforts like
Unstoppable and
Nothing Like This. But
Feels Like Today is Rascal Flatts at their definitive best, releasing at a time when they were in the midst of taking over the world. It couldn't have happened to a more talented and genuine trio of musicians.
Feels Like Today is not only the best album in their catalog in my book, I also wouldn't hesitate to wager that it's my personal favorite album of all time. Fitting, since it was the first one I ever owned. Thanks, Grandma. Sorry I didn't fully appreciate it, or your kindness, the first time you put it in my hands. If any album from the band has the most optimal chance to win over undecided fans, it's this one. If you listen, I hope it does a fraction for you that it's done for me. I can only speak for myself, of course, but I think
Feels Like Today is a stone-cold
classic.
