My Thoughts On Blake Shelton’s New Album Red River Blue!
The wait is over, Red River Blue is here! I have my copy and I couldn’t be happier! First off, congratulations to Mr. Blake Shelton for another album, his success as a judge on NBC’s The Voice, and most of all, being a newlywed!
The highly anticipated album hit stores yesterday, July 12th, where it flew off shelves! There were 20 songwriters total that worked on making 11 successful tracks. Well, they accomplished their goal! Not one song made me want to hit skip on my CD player. Here are my thoughts on the creation that is Red River Blue…
The first track, “Honey Bee“, was written by Ben Hayslip and Rhett Akins. This was the first single and it set the tone for things to come. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this song! I really could care less what others might say, it was written perfectly. Little Loretta and Conway Twitty…yep, that’s what I call country music gold! Number 2 was “Ready To Roll“, written by Chris Stapleton, Jim Beavers, and Jonathan Singleton. This one was upbeat with some creative play on words! It’s all about hanging out at home, having a couple drinks, and listening to some “laid-back country tunes on the radio”, sounds like a good night to me!
The first ballad is the third track, “God Gave Me You“, written by Dave Barnes. It is a sweet song about a man and his abundance of gratitude for the blessing in his life, his love. He repeatedly (in a good way) brings up how he couldn’t and wouldn’t be the man he is without her. Next was “Get Some“, written by Craig Wiseman, Chris Tompkins, and Zac Maloy. I don’t know about the rest of y’all, but I love a sing along! In a way, the flow of this song is reminiscent of Shelton’s previous hit “Some Beach”. I really enjoyed the piano, fiddle, and guitar strong points throughout! Number 5, “Drink On It“, written by Jon Randall, Jessi Alexander, and Rodney Clawson is possibly my favorite of the entire album. I love how, in my opinion, Shelton’s voice is showcased in the first few lines. “Hey girl, Hey where you goin’, Come back and sit back down. You look to good to be headin’ home so early now, You say you gotta work tomorrow gotta lot on your mind”. It was like cold butter on a hot baked potato, melted my heart! I also had a little chuckle to the lines, “We can talk rocket science, Jesus or politics. How your boyfriend cheated on you, man he sounds like such a prick.” It’s a great song, that’s very easy to listen to!
The next song, “Good Ole Boys“, was written by Dallas Davidson. This one asks the question, “Where did all the good ole boys go?” Well, I’d like to know that same thing! On another note, I couldn’t help but think Jamey Johnson every time I heard this one, which put a smile on my face! Martina McBride leant her voice to her good friend in “I’m Sorry“, written by Chris Stapleton, Chris Dubois, and Ashley Gorley. It has an unusual twist, you normally hear of the man cheating, but not in this case. The woman in the mini-story wants forgiveness, but the man doesn’t think sorry is enough. Once a cheater, always a cheater!
Number 8, “Sunny In Seattle“, was again written by Chris Stapleton and Chris Dubois, along with Jim Beavers. This song, as well as “Never Lovin’ You” from Blake’s album Startin’ Fires, not so simply says that the man in this particular relationship will always love his partner. “Over“, written by Paul Jenkins and David Elliott Johnson, is another of my favorites! Again, I think Shelton’s voice sounds amazing in this one (not that it ever sounds bad). A man doing whatever he can to prove his love shows a vulnerable side that is refreshing at best.
Number 10, “Hey“, is another upbeat, catchy, fun song written by Craig Wiseman, Chris Tompkins, and Clint Lagerberg, that you can’t help but tap your toes to. If Blake Shelton was an adjective, then this song would definitely be “Blake Shelton”! I can just imagine the country star rocking out all over the stage while performing this at one of his concerts. Title track, “Red River Blue“, features Shelton’s wife, Miranda Lambert. This one was written by Ray Stephenson and Buddy Owens and tells the sad story of a relationship that didn’t last. It is always great to hear these two working together!
So…that’s what I thought! If you haven’t yet, go get a copy of this awesome album!
