Clint Black Album: “Killin' Time”

History will record 1989 as the year that the Berlin wall came down but country music fans know that it was also the year that American country radio stations abandoned most of the established stars (with a few exceptions) and started playing the music of a younger generation, led by Clint Black but also including Garth Brooks, Alan Jackson and others. Garth and Alan started more slowly but ultimately overtook Clint, though he has still had a lot of success in the intervening years. With this debut yielding five number one country hits, Clint's career got off to an unbelievably successful start.

Clint sounds very like Merle Haggard but it clearly didn't do him any harm. Actually, the emergence of Clint coincided with the end of Merle as a major contender in the country charts. This album contains ten outstanding original songs. Clint wrote some on his own and others with the help of one or two of his musicians. There is a mix of up-tempo songs and ballads. The five big hits were the title track, A better man, Nobody's home, Walking away and Nothing's news. You could get these hits via the two volumes of Greatest hits (the first volume contains two of them with the other three on the second volume) but the other five songs here are not available elsewhere and they are definitely worth hearing.

The five non-hits are Straight from the factory (a song using a lock and key as a metaphor for a relationship), You're gonna leave me again (about an unfaithful woman), I'll be gone (about a relationship on the verge of breakdown), Winding down (about people drinking after work) and Live and learn (a philosophical song).

Clint's overall record doesn't match Merle's and I doubt if it ever will, but this particular album is as good as any of Merle's original albums. If you enjoy Merle's music, buy this album.

i hadn't heard this record (and i do have the actual record ((vinyl)) for many years until i picked up a beat-up CD for a buck in a used store for the car -- Clint Black (and you can call Clint one of the most sensitive male songwriters of our generation---Clint also is and excellent harp player) that still sticks to trad roots. --- this is my absolute favorite album from that magical late 80's country trad revvialist period , my other is Randy Travis's Storms of Life which is superb -- you have to take into account though , that Clint wrote EVERY SONG ON THIS ALBUM and also on his second album "Put Yourself in My Shoes" which is also teriffic, i believe Randy Travis wrote or co-wrote only one song on his Storms of Life. --- I'm sure when Lisa Hartman heard this record, she was convinced that this was a special man and went after him and got him --- i highly recommend Storm's of Life and Alan Jackson's 1st album "Livng in the Real World' from this period

1989 was one of the best times for country music and with great artists popping out of the dust you get great ones like Clint Black. This is a very strong album for a first time artist Killin Time is a true classic to own. You'll love Nobody's Home and Killin Time and many others and Clint Black does something that many artists don't usually do he wrote all of the songs on the album that is remarkable. This was when country music was little more in a quieter shell and not all of this pop sound was trying to get into it.

This is solid an album possible. No filler. Every song on the album could have easily been a top 5 hit (all five singles went straight to number one!) This is the album all "Country Albums" should be compared to. Too bad Clint started going more commerical after his The Hard Way album.

Nothing fancy, just a solid country album that is loads better than much of what passes for country today.