There's a lot of truth to the title of
Mark Chesnutt
's tenth album, 2004's
Savin' the Honky Tonk
.
Chenutt
began his career as a new traditionalist
country
singer, indebted to
Merle
and
George
and singing straight-ahead
honky tonk
, but as his star rose and the decade rolled along, he moved further and further into
country-pop
, culminating in his 1999 crossover hit
"I Don't Want to Miss a Thing,"
a cover of
Aerosmith
's love theme to
Michael Bay
's absurd
Armageddon
. It might have been his biggest hit, peaking at 17 on the
pop
charts, but this wasn't a breakthrough to a new level of success. Shortly afterward, he lost not only that newfound
, but he had a hard time cracking the
Top 40 as well. He left
Decca
/
MCA Nashville
after 2000's
Lost in the Feeling
, releasing a formulaic eponymous album on
Columbia
in 2002, yet despite a modest hit in its first single,
"She Was,"
the album disappeared quickly and, with it, so did
Chesnutt
's contract with
. Left without a major,
signed with the indie
Vivaton
and decided to abandon the increasingly poppy, polished material that characterized his albums of the late '90s. So, he turned back to
as much to save himself as to save it, and the results are by and large pretty terrific. Singing hardcore
,
not only sounds comfortable and relaxed, he's re-energized, both by the straight-ahead setting and the freedom to pick songs without an eye on the airwaves. There are still a couple of
ballads
that are slightly treacly, but in this unadorned setting, the sentiment doesn't seem so saccharine. Plus, they're primarily used as a change of pace here, since the heart of this record is in twangy, rollicking
songs. Three songs mention drinking or beer in the title, two others mention honky tonks, one tune is about
"Mama's House,"
and a bunch of others are filled with bad behavior, heartache, and humor. While
's band is a bunch of Nashville pros, the music is none too polished -- it's clear that they're having a good time, and it's hard for listeners not to have a good time as well. Perhaps
will be just a one-off for
, and he'll return to poppier material after this return to his roots, but hopefully not. This album proves that he's at his best when he sticks to the hard stuff. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine