Alan Jackson — Music Reviews

As you would expect from the combination of Alan Jackson and long time producer Keith Steagall, Angels and Alcohol sounds wonderful. The production is precise and Jackson’s voice is both warm and pitch perfect and shows no signs of aging. The musicians are excellent, particularly Brent Mason and JT Corenflos on lead guitars, Bobby Terry on acoustic guitar and banjo, Paul Franklin on pedal steel and Hoot Hester and Larry Franklin on twin fiddles. There is a decidedly more acoustic flavour than in Jackson’s previous straight country albums, probably resulting from his recent acoustic bluegrass album.

Jackson has long been a traditionalist and this stance is reinforced by a 1989 mission statement quote which is printed on the back of the CD booklet. Indeed, there are no loops, rapping or bro country on Angels and Alcohol. What it features is not ‘retro’ music, it is straightforward country of a kind major artists in Nashville haven’t sung for years as they try to keep up with radio’s artificial demands.

The 10 songs, 7 by Jackson himself with 3 outside songs, one of which is from Jackson’s nephew and wife, songwriting team Adam and Shannon Wright, are straight ahead country. The album opener, You Can Always come Home, is a father’s bittersweet advice to a child leaving home, something Jackson knows well as his 3 daughters are that age. The second song, You never Know is a raver with amazing guitar playing from (I think) Brent Mason, gorgeous steel from Paul Franklin and great lyrics and story line – so good it might have been written by Chuck Berry. The title track is mid-tempo with downbeat cautionary lyrics and a rueful spoken piece at the end. I Leave a Light On is a wonderful classic country weeper, superbly done, while Mexico, Tequila and Me is fun, with a sly American Pie reference in the lyrics.

I’m a long time Alan Jackson fan and so am probably biased, but this is a really good album. There are drawbacks; for me the album sags a bit in the middle with 3 mid-tempo rather ordinary songs. The outside songs are not as strong as Jackson’s own writing and I couldn’t warm to Troy Jones and Greg Becker’s When God Paints which is very like Dolly Parton’s God’s Coloring Book, but not as good. However these are very small drawbacks to a great dose of real country.

The good news, and maybe also the bad news for some, is that little has changed with Alan Jackson's move from Arista to EMI and his own ACR imprint. There is none of the experimentation of his Alison Krauss produced album (Like Red On A Rose). Sticking with a formula has never effected George Strait's sales and the continuity will help the his fans to know they're safe in the familiar territory. His longtime producer Keith Stegall is again at the helm of a group of A-list session players who produce a solid county sound. Visually as well there was talk of the trademark 'tache going but it's still very much in evidence on the cover. So business as usual. The thirteen songs are a mix of 6 Jackson solo-written originals with some outside song choices written by Chris Stapleton, Guy Clark, Shawn Camp, Al Anderson and his nephew Adam Wright in various combinations with others or together. The opening song is the wishful Gonna Come Back As A Country Song, a mid-tempo novelty that opens the album with a sense of purpose and fun. That's followed by the wistful break-up song You Go Your Way. A theme that is repeated in others songs like So You Don't Have To Love Me Anymore - the strong vocal from Jackson reminds just how good a country singer he is. Everything But The Wings is a love song, a ballad with strong steel input. Talk Is Cheap is a motivational song about getting on and doing the things that are often just talked about. You get the picture, classic country fare, that is punctuated by diversions like the rockin' Dixie Highway which features Zac Brown and uses a subtle interpolation of Sweet Home Alabama. It features prominent piano and fiddle breaks. A twist on the opening song can be found in the self explanatory Her Life's A Song. The album closes with two strong performances on the twangy, lively Life Keeps Bringin' Me Down, the sound a contrast to the message in the title. The final song, When I Saw You Leaving, is a heart tugging emotion filled song that Jackson wrote in the wake of his wife's battle with cancer that will mean so much to many. A simple and personal reaction to events over which he has little control and on a par, if a more personal and inward looking song, with Where Were You (When The World Stopped Turning). In a world that keeps turning and where country music turns into pop (all too often) it is heartening to have someone who still believes and makes country music in the heart of Music Row.