George Strait Album: “The Road Less Traveled”

Let's face it. Country music today sounds more like pop than honky tonk. So when someone comes along & professes themselves to be a traditionalist in country music, we rejoice at the fact that someone has come along with the God-given right to wear a cowboy hat. Ever since he debuted 20 years ago, George Strait has had that right & shows no signs of giving it up.

But being a traditionalist in country music can have its drawbacks. Some country music singers find themselves turning out albums at the rate of one a year with clockwork precision. After a while, those albums start to sound the same with almost no change from one to the other. George Strait suffered from that syndrome...at least until now. With THE ROAD LESS TRAVELED, he shows that even a hardcore traditionalist can be taught new tricks.

Probably the song that has gotten the most press is George's version of Rodney Crowell's "Stars On The Water". The song features the almost unthinkable: an electronically-treated vocal from George. People compare it to Cher's "Believe", but let's not get carried away. Just because he features a little bit of it on one song doesn't mean George is heading for rave territory. In fact, the new sound comes off quite well & certainly more subtle than the club remixes of Shania Twain's music from COME ON OVER.

Another song that has gotten some rather mixed attention is the album's first single "Run". Some say it is George's idea of a power ballad from the 1980s, especially with the synthesizer arrangement (how scandalous!) that comes with it. But again, such a departure isn't all that drastic for the song could still go over well with country fans, while also converting some skeptics who think country music is all about cheating & drinking.

But those who are wondering if one of country music's most traditional artists has finally gone popular will find that most of THE ROAD LESS TRAVELED sticks to the old sound. "She'll Leave You With A Smile", "Don't Tell Me You're Not In Love" & "Living & Living Well" could easily have come from George back in the early days. However, their intention at proving that George still has his feet on the ground is a successful one. Even more so, his covers of Del Reeves' "Good Time Charley's" & Merle Haggard's "My Life's Been Grand" (Merle is said to have been deeply moved at hearing George's version) show that George still knows where he came from; he just maybe realized it's time to loosen up a little.

George Strait has been a country music superstar for over 20 years & sold more than 57 million albums. He certainly has lived a charmed life in the eyes of country music. He's had hits galore & is probably guaranteed a considerable royalty rate on each record he sells for the rest of his life. So maybe George can now afford to break a few rules with his music. THE ROAD LESS TRAVELED will no doubt have some of his biggest fans wondering if George has gone modern on them & that's understandable. But once they listen to the album, they'll discover that the changes George is making are more subtle than you think & they work better than anticipated. With all this, is there a chance of a George Strait & Tim McGraw collaboration in the future? Nah! George isn't that desperate for a hit.

Have you ever really wondered how George Strait maintains his success in country music? Well, you really don't have to look very far to see and hear why. "The Road Less Traveled" captures I feel, a more sincere side of George, as he sings songs that as always come from his heart. The title track for this album takes into perspective just how some of us actually live our lives in this world today, and captures it in a way that you may never know, unless you take that road less traveled. Other tracks such as "Run" and "Living and Living Well", really make this album more complete, as they capture the true essence of how George sings and uses his voice to capture us and make us understand what he is trying to say. Finally, this album is a must have for Strait fans, and takes everything into perspective with how we live our lives today.

I became a fan of George Strait after seeing him in the movie "Pure Country" and buying the soundtrack album to that movie. For much of the '90s George's music sounded great, but since '96, when George put out Blue Clear Sky, he's released only one record, Always Never The Same, that I thought was great all around. Don't get me wrong--I like The Road Less Traveled, George's latest record, and I think it is a strong album. However, I think it falls just short of being great.

First, let's start out with what I like about this record--and I found a lot to like about it. "Run", the romantic song that's getting played a lot as the debut single, isn't typical George because he used a synthesizer in his arrangement of the song. However, it has strong lyrics("Run, cut a path across the blue skies/Straight in a straight line you can't get here fast enough"), as do the majority of songs on the record. "Living And Living Well" and "Don't Tell Me You're Not In Love" are also well-written romantic ballads, each about going all out in order to have a strong relationship. "The Road Less Traveled", the title song, is about life's lessons and taking risks("The road less traveled ain't for the faint of heart...Me I want to live my life and one day leave my mark"). "The Middle Of Nowhere" is a variation by George on the lost-love theme, this time about a man's being abandoned by his lover and sitting on a mountain top trying to figure things out--literally, "in the middle of nowhere". "She'll Leave You With A Smile", basically, is from the point of view of a guy trying to tell his friend about what happens when he(the friend) gets involved with a woman. It will be great at first, as the speaker says to his friend, but when she decides to end things, the man had better watch out, because "she'll leave you with a smile". Merle Haggard's "My Life's Been Grand", the concluding song("My life's been grand, I've been a hand at living it up all the way"), could sum up George's career, in my opinion. Not only is he a successful recording artist, but he has gotten a lot of enjoyment out of having a family and doing things at home.

The Road Less Traveled isn't just a slow-dancing record. George has three uptempo songs on here. He gets two out of three right, in my opinion. Rodney Crowell's "Stars On The Water" is a strong tune about what it's like to live in towns and perform in music clubs "on the shoreline"(the Louisiana bayou, Beaumont, Biloxi, and so on), feel the sea breeze, and get "stars on the water when it rains". Rodney has hit it big with hit songs he's written for other artists--for instance, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Waylon Jennings, Rosanne Cash, and Tim McGraw. He has another winner here, in my opinion. If George decides to release "Stars On The Water" as a single, I think it will become a #1 hit, like practically every other song George has released. It's a great tune. So is "The Real Thing", Chip Taylor's rockabilly anthem. I think "The Real Thing" sums up George's approach to music. No matter what tempo he uses, he doesn't go for overproduced "country-pop" tunes, but instead has stuck with authentic songs that express honest feelings("the real thing"). The loser in this trio of upbeat songs is the honky-tonk barroom song "Good Time Charley's". "Good Time Charley's" could be a great song, but it's spoiled by "hokey" background barroom noise that I think is contrived. When George had upbeat hits earlier in his career(for instance, "Heartland", "The Big One" and "Blue Clear Sky"), he never added to them by putting any kind of noise in the background. The songs stood on their own. In comparison to the other uptempo songs I've mentioned, including the ones I previously talked about from The Road Less Traveled, "Good Time Charley's" doesn't sound real to me because of its background noise. It sounds like a "filler" song that George put on a record just so the record would have 10 songs on it. However, one "unreal" song doesn't detract from the record itself, which I think is very good overall. The Road Less Traveled is well-done, and it's an example of how George has managed to be a hitmaker for over 20 years. He has stayed successful by making good songs and records. The Road Less Traveled is a strong George Strait album.

A friend at work (I'll call her Eileen) let me listen to this CD, introducing this reviewer to the sounds of country music. "Eileen" described George Strait's sound as more "traditional" country, unlike the "new" country performed by folks like Tim McGraw and the abundantly gifted Billy Gilman. It is my belief that good music knows no boundaries, and although country is not a genre I usually go for, this album is very enjoyable. I'm typing this review to it right now.

My favorite songs on the album are "Run" (a misty ballad that kind of reminds me of "Sailing" by Christopher Cross), "Stars On The Water" (just an all-around enjoyably warm tune about rain -- beautiful metaphor), the title track, and "My Life's Been Grand", a remake from what I've been told. But there isn't really a bad song on here.

My experience with country music is limited, but I think I might prefer "traditional" country to "new" country. In my household, Kenny Rogers got a lot of spins on the turntable while I grew up, and the first song I requested on a radio station (that actually got played!!!) was "Lady". In the early 90s, I found myself enjoying Reba McEntire, and of course..."The Dance" by Garth Brooks is a great song. Anyhow, just wanted to express my opinion...and thanks for lending me that CD, "Eileen".

Thanks for reading!

C.H.R.

I never used to like arguing with other reviewers, but I find that it is becoming increasingly necessary to do so. Some people will write reviews without know fully what they are talking about. Someone has previously commented on how Mr. Strait doesnt write any songs. A-hem! George Strait is a Cowboy. He runs a ranch. He raises a family. He rides and Ropes. He Rodeos. He does it all. If you think you can live the life that King George does, and still write music for an album every single year (except '95), then be my guest. Id love to see anyone do it. No way pal. Wont Happen. This is a real Cowboy here. Not just a singer with a cowboy hat on.

Now as far as the music on this disc goes... The title says it all. This is somewhat of a departure from the classic country sound we are used to from GS, but that doesnt take anything away from the music at all. A couple of tracks on here use a little bit of drum programming, and one uses a computer fed voice track. Thats pretty much it as far a non-traditional country goes. In fact, one of those songs with the programming is one of the best songs George has recorded in a while, and that's the title track itself. The mood is just breathtaking on this one. There are a couple hits on this one that we heard on the radio... "Run," and "Livin and livin well." Both great songs, and both very representive of the rest of the album. The tone is set off right from the start with "Run," and that carries the album. Its still real country, its still George Strait. This is one of those CDs that goes perfect with the artist. If you like George at all, you cant not like this CD. And for the price it is now, you cant go wrong. Give it a try, if you dont like it, sell it. You wont need to do the latter though. It is a wonderful representation of the living legend that is George Strait, and an all around great COUNTRY album.