Tuesday, November 04, 2008

Come out and Play!

Yesterday I previewed Brad Paisley's new CD, Play, which dropped today. As you might have guessed, I did manage to procure a copy, but it took me stops at two stores to get the job done. Wal-Mart had not yet received their shipment when I stopped in, so I headed to Target. The first thing I saw was a stack of rain checks, and my heart immediately sank. Then I took another look and saw at least a dozen copies of the CD sitting next to the rain checks. Hmmmm...


Anyway, I made my purchase and put it in my MP3 player to give it a listen. I have to say that this particular CD is even better than I expected. As someone who has all of the previous releases by Brad, I realize that he has a formula that he sticks to, and this CD is the first to really depart from that formula. Yes, it is still full of a great mix of fun songs and ballads, as well as his take on a classic hymn, but that's pretty much where it stops. Usually Brad's CDs contain one beautiful instrumental, but this one is a majority of instrumentals and it is absolutely wonderful.

Brad Paisley has to be one of the best guitar pickers ever, and his talent shines brightly on every selection. His comments on the liner notes begin with the words: "This album is my love affair with the guitar." That pretty much sums it up. For someone who is so passionate about his music, this album must have been an absolute delight to put together.

There are duets with Keith Urban, Steve Wariner, B.B. King and Buck Owens as well as a toe-tapping jam with some of the other greatest guitar players in history called Cluster Pluck. (You gotta love Brad's sense of humor when it comes to lyrics and titles!)

From his dedication to his wife on Kim and tribute to his son, Huckleberry Jam Brad strums it up on such delights as Departure, Turf's Up, Playing with Fire, Les is More (A tribute to guitar king Les Paul, I'm guessing) and my personal favorite, Cliffs of Rock City. The acoustic version of What a Friend We Have in Jesus is the most moving rendition I've ever heard.

There's not a clinker on this disc, so if you love music, especially guitar music, pick up Play. On sale now at Target for $11.98.

A Note About Liner Notes:

Yesterday I mentioned my interest in liner notes and I just have to say that it was lot easier to read them before my eyes got old and they shrunk the notes from album size to the size of a CD jewel case!

If you buy this CD, take time to read the liner notes. There are great comments in there about how the whole duet with the late Buck Owens came about, which unlikely character does the intro to one of the songs, and much more touching and ineresting stuff.

Enjoy!

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