is the third album from soul-gospel singer-songwriter , and his second collaboration with producer and co-writer of . Between 2016's raw , 2017's wonderfully holistic , and the present, got national visibility when he was invited to compete on America's Got Talent. On , , producer , and their all-star studio cast pull out all the stops; they present this remarkable singer with an expansive yet rootsy musical palette. As the title suggests, offers autobiographical songs filled with gritty tales of hard luck, wrecked love, spirituality, empathy, and redemption. Opener "Souled Out on You" is a tragic love story. 's first notes are delivered in a remarkable falsetto, buoyed by upright piano, sloping horns, shuffling drums, and stinging guitar. His searing voice is framed in production that loosely recalls 's psychedelic soul approach at . 's ringing guitar breaks add a bluesy edge to the proceedings. Choogling swagger fuels "Make Me Feel Alright" which weds country-blues to soaring Southern soul and gritty barroom R&B as horns and drums underscore each line. Both "Country Child" and "Country Boy" are rooted in swampy blues and reflect the influence of 's work with . The former unwinds with a midtempo shuffle as a distorted riff meets snaky single-string guitar work as shifts between a growl, his falsetto, and a soul croon. The latter is a crawling swamp blues elevated by 's grainy falsetto as he reflects on the world's pain and turmoil. His delivery nods to 's signature phrasing as slide guitar and a simmering B-3 illuminate his words. The title track is introduced by a Wurlitzer piano before a popping bassline and snare shuffle introduce 's autobiographical testimony. He sounds like a backwoods gospel preacher supported by bleating baritone saxes as a wailing harmonica prods him on. "My Story" weds the aesthetics of and in a glorious meld of soul and gospel; 's vocal is rife with conviction. His singing on "I Can Feel Your Pain" channels , and his ballad style is less polished but no less adept at delivering uncommon emotional depth. "Better Than I Treat Myself" is a horn-drenched stroll through 's New Orleans R&B. Ringing, funky guitars slip atop snare breaks and rocking piano to frame 's joyous delivery. Closer "All My Hope" is a showcase for 's decades as a gospel singer, and its slow country guitar and Wurlitzer shuffle are elevated by a female chorus; draws on their strength as he soars above the accompaniment. The nearly symbiotic pairing of on is deep and resonant. 's singing radiates with hard-won experience and gratitude, and his producer succeeds in reflecting that spiritual power and emotional honesty without self-reference or artifice. ~ Thom Jurek