"Shotgun Rider" in a word? Infectious. I bought this song on iTunes a week or so ago and for whatever reason hadn't listened to it until now and I kind of love it. Neal McCoy is another of those artists seem to be just outside of that radar I keep talking about. I wonder why that happens; I'm sure it happens to everyone. I think there's a lesson to be learned here about not being so into your favorite artists that you don't listen to other people. Obviously, your favorites are your favorites for a reason and of course you're going to listen to them, but I encourage everyone to not develop musical tunnel vision as I'll call it. Don't be afraid to branch out some, listen to someone different whether they're new to the music scene or whether they've been around for a while. You might just come across someone else to like or if nothing else, discover some great songs you didn't know existed. I'm going to pose a challenge to everyone reading this: go to iTunes or wherever and buy a song by an artist you never listen to. I don't care who it is, look them up, listen to some snippets of songs and buy one. And if you actually go and do this, please let me know who and what you picked. I'm going to do this too, though I'm not sure who to go with. Suggestions are more than welcome and conversely, if you want a suggestion, let me know and I'll give you one.
To get back to the main subject at hand, you already know what my basic opinion of song is already so if that's enough for you, awesome. But if you want to look a little deeper, well, come on in.
This was written by Rhett Akins, Dallas Davidson, Keith Anderson and Ben Hayslip, someone that totally didn't surprise me when I found out. This song is kind of a classic Peach Pickers or Keith Anderson song; if you follow any of them, I'm sure you'll know what I mean. This song is almost ridiculously catchy to me which never hurts. I expect this to be one of those songs that can get stuck in your head and stay there for a while. It's lighthearted and upbeat and fun to sing along with. I want to say it almost reminds me of another song, but dang if I can think of which one. Whatever the song may be, I'd say the link between the two is pretty faint simply because nothing jumps out at me. Which is a musical pet peeve of mine - when you listen to a new song and instantly think of another one, title and all. Familiar is fine; a copy is not. But in this case, I'm gonna say it leans more to the vaguely familiar. My favorite lines are in the chorus, "Come on, baby, be my shotgun rider/ Cruise through the country, maybe pull an all-nighter/ Every little Bonnie needs a Clyde beside her/ Come on, baby, be my shotgun rider". Particularly the third line.
Musically, this one has a bit of swing to it that makes me happy. The key word here is fun. "Shotgun Rider" couldn't be more fun if it tried. I like how the bass and drums drive the song along from start to finish, providing such a solid heartbeat for the other instruments. Music like this requires energy while playing; otherwise it'd fall and feel flat. Which is why I appreciate the energy in here, there's a great bounce to this that never falters. My guess is that the musicians were all in a good place while they were recording this, though, I bet this is fun to play. See, I told you the key word here was fun. Solid playing; nicely produced.
Vocally speaking, it's pretty good. I don't say this to be unkind, but Neal McCoy isn't one of country music's greatest voices. He has a nice voice, no denying that, but his strength is more in his delivery. It really sounds like he's enjoying himself here which goes a long way in selling it. To go back to the importance of energy, he sings with a lot of it. Helps keep it light. "Shotgun Rider" is going to be a great song as we slowly head towards summer. It's a great driving song, one where you're just going to want to roll the windows down and turn the music up. Maybe engaging in a little car dancing while you're at which may lead to getting a few funny looks from other drivers and/or passengers, but it's all good. It's just that kind of song. I like it. So buy it, enjoy it, have fun with it.
Thanks for reading!
To get back to the main subject at hand, you already know what my basic opinion of song is already so if that's enough for you, awesome. But if you want to look a little deeper, well, come on in.
This was written by Rhett Akins, Dallas Davidson, Keith Anderson and Ben Hayslip, someone that totally didn't surprise me when I found out. This song is kind of a classic Peach Pickers or Keith Anderson song; if you follow any of them, I'm sure you'll know what I mean. This song is almost ridiculously catchy to me which never hurts. I expect this to be one of those songs that can get stuck in your head and stay there for a while. It's lighthearted and upbeat and fun to sing along with. I want to say it almost reminds me of another song, but dang if I can think of which one. Whatever the song may be, I'd say the link between the two is pretty faint simply because nothing jumps out at me. Which is a musical pet peeve of mine - when you listen to a new song and instantly think of another one, title and all. Familiar is fine; a copy is not. But in this case, I'm gonna say it leans more to the vaguely familiar. My favorite lines are in the chorus, "Come on, baby, be my shotgun rider/ Cruise through the country, maybe pull an all-nighter/ Every little Bonnie needs a Clyde beside her/ Come on, baby, be my shotgun rider". Particularly the third line.
Musically, this one has a bit of swing to it that makes me happy. The key word here is fun. "Shotgun Rider" couldn't be more fun if it tried. I like how the bass and drums drive the song along from start to finish, providing such a solid heartbeat for the other instruments. Music like this requires energy while playing; otherwise it'd fall and feel flat. Which is why I appreciate the energy in here, there's a great bounce to this that never falters. My guess is that the musicians were all in a good place while they were recording this, though, I bet this is fun to play. See, I told you the key word here was fun. Solid playing; nicely produced.
Vocally speaking, it's pretty good. I don't say this to be unkind, but Neal McCoy isn't one of country music's greatest voices. He has a nice voice, no denying that, but his strength is more in his delivery. It really sounds like he's enjoying himself here which goes a long way in selling it. To go back to the importance of energy, he sings with a lot of it. Helps keep it light. "Shotgun Rider" is going to be a great song as we slowly head towards summer. It's a great driving song, one where you're just going to want to roll the windows down and turn the music up. Maybe engaging in a little car dancing while you're at which may lead to getting a few funny looks from other drivers and/or passengers, but it's all good. It's just that kind of song. I like it. So buy it, enjoy it, have fun with it.
Thanks for reading!
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