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Radio Gaga

Radio Gaga

Filed under: Radio Gaga

toby keith.jpg
With the far right in a bit of a slump, the time is ripe for pacifist country fans to make peace with superpatriot Toby Keith, an occasionally great singles artist with whom I for one continue to disagree on matters of foreign policy and beard length. The string of singles from Keith's excellent Honkytonk U started inauspiciously with the title track, a cocky autobiographical statement-of-purpose performed very much in the style of Waylon Jennings. Cocky autobiographical statements-of-purpose generally shouldn't owe an obvious debt to someone else for the same reason that heartfelt love letters shouldn't be ghostwritten. The follow-up singles, though, have been his best since 9/11. "As Good As I Once Was," a tuneful late-August-of-my-years romp performed very much in the style of the Mavericks, has Keith falling into barroom scuffles with rotund motorcycle enthusiasts and threesomes with cowboy-loving sisters. "I'm not as good as I once was," he tells the gals (twins, naturally), "But I'm as good--once--as I ever was." Nasty country hits really turn me on, as do Fender guitars, also heard here. Keith's new single, "Big Blue Note," is a rather blue-note-free toe tapper about getting caught unawares by a Dear John letter. The happy/sad juxtaposition is clever, though by the end the singer's mood is clearly in line with the tune's elfin melody and giggling rhythm. Nice recovery, Tob!

Posted by Dylan Hicks at October 21, 2005 12:41 PM | Comments (0)

 

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