Let me preface this review by saying I am not a country music fan. So I was slightly surprised to pop in a copy of Bo Bice's new CD, 3, and hear so many songs with a country twang to them. I won't lie, I never listened to a full Bo Bice album before. So giving this one a chance, and then finding out it wasn't quite what I was expecting threw me a bit. But after giving the album a listen, I was actually pleasantly surprised by it for the most part. Read on for my full review.
As I mentioned earlier, the album is heavily country. But Bo's voice seems to actually take to this type of music pretty well. Because of that, it's really not a bad move. There are of course some songs that lean more toward rock on the album, and I tended to prefer them just because of personal preference. My favorite track on the album is probably the hardest hitting number, "Get On and Ride." Bo seems at home riding a guitar groove and rocking out over some Southern sounding background singers. I have to admit I did expect a little more of a climax to the song. Also, the song left me wishing for a few more rock moments like that on the album, which are few and far between. Remember, I'm not a country fan.
So then let's get down to the country thing. On first listen, songs like "Different Shades of Blue" and "Good Hearted Woman" caught me off guard. I wasn't sure what to make of them. But then I found that a few of them were stuck in my head after listening to the CD a few times. And if you can get me to listen to a country CD, you've accomplished something. The songs have melodies that feel familiar, so they stick with you pretty easily. A song that really stands out is the ballad "Lonely, Broke and Wasted." It's ridiculously catchy, perhaps the catchiest song on the album and the electric guitar sounds great next to Bo's voice. I also have to mention that "Different Shades of Blue" definitely sounds like a country hit to me. Bo would be wise to really push that song to country radio.
That's not to say the CD is without its faults. Some of the songs really bordered on cliche to me, but maybe that's the whole country thing. Also, the songs tend to have very similar, unmemorable titles, so it was hard for me to remember "What's track #7 called again?" It's not easy to remember which song is "Coming Back Home" and which is "Long Road Back" even if they don't sound all that similar. I also couldn't get through "Wild Roses" without skipping the track just about every time, the song just irritated me for some reason. Singing "I want to get tangled, caught up in your thorns" made me laugh more than actually feel what the song wanted me to feel. Sorry, Bo. And while I did enjoy thr album opener "Keep On Rollin," it sounded like it missed the boat for Taylor Hicks' album and made it on Bo's by mistake. Take that however you wish.
So while Bo's 3rd CD did pleasantly surprise me, it did some across as a bit cliche at times. But I still say that if I can get a good majority of the songs on the CD stuck in my head and if I can leave this CD in my car for more than a few days without wanting to take it out, it really does transcend any specific genre or type of listener. I'm not claiming to know much about country music, but I'd say the CD probably deserves your $10 if you're into the whole southern rock, bluesy country thing. You may just need to refer back to the track listing to remember which songs are which because a few don't really make a strong impression.
If there are any country fans out there, I'd be interested to hear what you think.
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