One thing that's always been a special about country music is the fact that it has, from time to time, had families perform together. These families always have a bond with their voices that allows for harmonies that naturally blend. Carter's Chord is one such band. Becky, Emily and Joanna Robertson come buy their musical talent naturally as they are the daughters of Barney and Carter Robertson, both of whom toured for years as part of Waylon Jennings' band. When they started having children the couple gave up the road to raise them. Years later, the trio learned to play instruments and sang with such strong harmonies that Toby Keith signed them to a deal and released their self-titled debut on Show Dog Records.
The album features an appealing mix of pop-based country and Judds-like blues-based country. The leading track "Boys Like You (Give Love A Bad Name)" is a song that would work on Taylor Swift or Carrie Underwood's records. "Young Love" has an immediate pop hook to it while "Summer Early 60's" would sound just as good on a Counting Crows record as it does here. All of the songs have something to them that lends to repeated listening. There's no doubting that Carter's Chord has created a good, complete album but there is a doubt about whether country radio will ever give the trio a true shot at success.
"Different Breed" was released as a single and it failed to spark much interest despite being one of the most instantly recognizable records on the radio. "Can't Seem To Get Over You" is probably the trio's last shot with this album at getting a radio hit. It it's catchy in a Wreckers kind of way but again the girls don't lose their own identity. So, while the album is good and packed with strong performances of truly talented artists, Carter's Chord really doesn't have anything that 'blends in' with what stuff on country radio the way, say Jessica Simpson's single does. And that's the sad fact of this record because songs like "Goodbye Song" are truly magical tracks that many people will never get to hear.
0 Comments