Saturday, July 7, 2007

Nathan's Country Mix 2

Not long after finishing my first country mix, which was in turn based on Jen's country mix - both playlists were posted earlier on this blog - I started (and just recently finished) my second country mix. As before, this includes some of the newest hits in country music as well as some of the classics.

1. Chattahoochee (Alan Jackson)
I loved this song back when I swore up and down that I didn't like country, back in the 90s. This was the exception, and to this day it remains a favorite. The beat is hot, and the lyrics - it's country's answer to Jack & Diane (John Mellencamp's coming-of-age hit).

2. Brand New Girlfriend (Steve Holy)
A good and fun fast-paced country song, fairly new.

3. Nothin' to Lose (Josh Gracin)
One of the better driving songs, possibly the fastest-paced song on the album, although tracks 1, 2, 4, and 9 give it a good run. After my brother got me into Garth Brooks, this was one of my first favorites from just listening to country radio.

4. Life is a Highway (Rascal Flatts)
If you've seen Disney and Pixar's Cars - or better yet, if your kid has it - you've heard this song and it's probably grown on you some. Unlike the previous mix, this album doesn't have a rock song to show how similar some country is to rock, but this is the closest, being something of a crossover song.

5. Good Directions (Billy Currington)
A current hit. The song itself is nothing spectacular, but it is good, and I always chuckle at the end.

6. Lucky Man (Montgomery Gentry)
The duo's latest, and a current hit. Good to sing along to.

7. I'm Gonna Miss Her (Brad Paisley)
It's not Ticks (his current single) but it is pretty witty. I'm not even into fishing and I dig this track.

8. Honky Tonk Badonkadonk (Trace Adkins)
This is country's answer to Sir Mix-a-Lot's Baby Got Back. I never thought I'd hear a country song about a girl with a nice bottom, but here it is. The Nintendo reference got me listening to it (She's got it going on, like Donkey Kong) but the humor kept me playing it over again.

9. Tennessee River Run (Darryl Worley)
A blatant ripoff of Chattahoochee (track 1) but I don't see that as a bad thing. I love the hell outta this song, and the way I see it, it's two great songs along the same lines.

10. Lifestyles of the Not So Rich and Famous (Tracy Byrd)
Jen suggested this one. It's OK, kind of funny. Not a favorite, but I don't skip it either.

11. Get Drunk and Be Somebody (Toby Keith)
A great drinking anthem, pretty fun.

12. Strawberry Wine (Deanna Carter)
My sister-in-law and her boyfriend claim this as their song together, but I dig it because I don't find many female-sung country songs to my liking. This is an exception, and it's very good.

13. No News (Lonestar)
Didn't like this at first, but it's pretty funny.

14. Austin (Blake Shelton)
This song tries to be more epic than it has any right being, and I don't get why he calls his girlfriend (ex?) Austin just because she talked about going there. It would have worked better had he used an actual name. Also the one I have seems to cut off after the last line, but it might be like that intentionally. Good song.

15. Love, Me (Collin Raye)
This one is even more emotional than the Collin Raye pick on the last mix (One Boy, One Girl). Very nice song.

16. Tough (Craig Morgan)
A touching song about a man admiring his wife's strength while dealing with cancer, with a little fun thrown in.

17. Startin' With Me (Jake Owen)
This is almost hard to listen to, makes you wanna hate the guy. Another current single. I have mixed feelings about it, but I think I dig it, in an odd way.

18. Wrapped (George Strait)
The last one added, Strait's latest and current single is the one I've heard the least, but I like what I've heard.

19. Find Out Who Your Friends Are (Tracy Lawrence)
Yet another current single. I love this song because it reminds me of myself. About five years ago I had a friend for whom I'd drive four hours round trip twice a weekend to help him spend time with his kid. Back to the song, the only thing I have a problem with - and it's more of a laughing point - is how he pronounces one word in the chorus. It's like, "run out and crank up Their car" as if Their is the start of a new line. You'd have to hear it.

20. Live Like You Were Dying (Tim McGraw)
About a guy who finds out he only has so long to live and makes the most of it. Real inspiring and fun song. A movie was made on the idea (not that it was McGraw's to start with, necessarily) called "Last Holiday" starring Queen Latifah. Seems like it's the same thing anyway.

21. Drive (Alan Jackson)
My new favorite Alan Jackson song, barely edging past Chattahoochee, which is still the most fun one, but as far as sentimental value... Well, my father taught me how to drive (when I had my permit though, not when I was a kid) and he passed away 5 years ago... and it's been a dream of mine to teach my own (future and hypothetical) kids how to drive. I just love this song. I don't like to put two songs by the same artist on a mix. It's not the first time, though, and here it's very appropriate.

Note: Due to a (hopefully, temporary) error in the Blogger software, I am unable to title this entry - so the title is at the top of the post in bold. It's the best I could do with what I was given.

Second note: They fixed it, so I changed it.

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