CD: Clancy's Tavern
Artist: Toby Keith
Release: 10/24/11
Label: Showdog Universal
When you hear the name Toby Keith, what comes to most minds is probably his "kiss my ass, here's my thoughts on that" style of country music. You think drunken bar room fights, a boot in someone's ass, and one of the best concerts of the summer concert season. What people don't seem to remember about Toby, is that there is his "really not such a bad ass" side, his "Cryin' for Me" side. Don't worry, "Clancy's Tavern", the long awaited new release, has plenty of both and will give those on each side of the Toby Keith fence something to love. There is just something about Toby Keith that make you just know that each cd he releases is gonna be better than the one before and with "Clancy's Tavern", I think he's proven that once again. This cd is reminiscent of the Toby Keith I first heard on WQDR 94.7 FM in Raleigh, NC back in 1993 when I'd be riding in my Chevrolet Cavalier, windows down and screaming along to "Should've Been a Cowboy". There's just something old school Toby-ish about this cd and I am almost giddy about it and hey Toby, I'm personally glad you didn't just learn to rope and ride.
His first single, "Made in America", is pure Toby, an American pride oozing, makes me wanna buy American and stand up for my country kind of song. Toby is definitely made in America, there's no disputing that and his fans are eating it up as proven with how fast this song has taken over the charts, radio and television video countdowns. It's everywhere. Speaking of being made in America, his next single pays "serious" homage to the "Red Solo Cup", a mandatory accessory that no party should be or has been without. Thank God someone realized a tribute was way overdue.This song is destined to be sung at bars and parties everywhere, people hoisting their red plastic best friends in the air while swaying back and forth, the various alcoholic contents sloshing over the sides and splashing on the bar. Now that's what I'm talkin' about! We love you Red Solo Cup, thank you Toby for making us realize just how important "old red" has been over the years and how we depend on 'em.
The cd has so many other great songs, "I Need to Hear a Country Song", which is exactly what country fans want to hear and takes you back to old school Toby. He always delivers nothing but 100% pure to the hillbilly bone country. The title track, "Clancy's Tavern" is a lyrical tribute to a favorite haunt, a bar his grandmother owned in Arkansas. With his clarity in every detail and the use of a slower tempo that stirs the emotion, he will have you loving "Clancy's Tavern" and the people who made it such a great memory of days gone by. There are also other really good ones like "Tryin' to Fall in Love", "Just Another Sundown" which is probably my favorite "pour a glass of wine, kick back and just enjoy the solitude" songs on the cd along with "I'll Never Let You Down". This is just Toby at his finest, at his deepest and at his absolute best. If there had to be one thing I didn't care for in the cd, I would have to go with "Chill-axin", because Craig Campbell already released one recently with the same name and honestly, it just seems out of place among all of the great songs on the cd. It's not bad, it's just a misfit.
"Clancy's Tavern" will officially be open for business on October 24 so get ready to grab your copy. This one's a good one - well written, well performed and just well crafted. Toby's back and he means business with this cd. I can give it my official seal of "gotta go get it-ness". I hoist my Red Solo Cup to you, Toby. Thank you for yet another great cd, the best cd yet.
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