There's something for everybody on Luke Bryan's debut album. What impressed me most about this album is the fact that not only he can sing, but he can also write great songs. He can have humorous songs without being plain old silly, and when it comes to ballads, they aren't over-produced monstrosities that can ruin the overall feel.
The album's first single, "All My Friends Say," is all about one man's wild night and how it started when his ex showed up to a club with a new man. After a few calls to friends he realizes why he can't remember the night - he was too busy shooting doubles and acting like a fool. "You know I don't remember a thing, but they say I sure was raisin' some cane" is what Luke sings in the chorus. It's a fun sing-along song and I liked it from the first time I heard it on the radio.
At first listen you don't realize where the lyrics are going to take you in "The Car In Front Of Me," but boy does the ending leave you with tears in your eyes. The way the lyrics flow together is seamless as we go from a high school boy watching the love of his life ahead of him in the homecoming parade, to a young man following his wife as they drive home from church with the kids, and finally having to ride behind the hearse on his way to saying goodbye to his wife after her death.
It just so happens that two of my favorite songs from the album tell what kind of man Luke feels like he is. "I'll Stay Me," the title track, is about being proud of who you are. Though change can be a good thing, you can't take it to the extreme like some folks do. "Singers want to be Hollywood actors, millionaires want to ride old farm tractors" and Luke wants to make things easy by staying true to himself. The next song goes more into detail and lets us all know just how much of a "Country Man" he really is - with no apologies. The girl he's courting better make up her mind fast because he claims to be "in high demand."
Track List:
- Country Man
- Baby's On The Way
- The Car In Front Of Me
- Pray About Everything
- We Rode In Trucks
- I'll Stay Me
- First Love Song
- All My Friends Say
- Over The River
- You Make Me Want To
- Tackle Box
