Toby Keith Reloads
Bullets in the Gun best album from country star in a long while
By Heath McCoy, Mike Bell, Eric Volmers, Calgary Herald; Postmedia News October 5, 2010 Review
Toby Keith Bullets In The Gun
http://www.calgaryherald.com/enterta...675/story.html
½ out of five
Toby Keith has almost always been at his best when he's either tipping his hat to two-fisted outlaw country or playing the beer-drinking, skirt-chasing cowboy clown.
He's often overplayed both of those hands, coming across, by turns, as ham-fisted and Hee Haw hokey. But when he nails it, he's a lot better than his detractors -- usually put off by his outspoken libertarian politics and political incorrectness -- give him credit for being.
The burly Oklahoman's latest studio album, Bullets In The Gun -- which finds him stepping up with some of the strongest, most memorable tunes he's recorded in years -- is proof of that.
The album's title track offers an immediate highlight, playing up to Keith's outlaw yen with a tough, well-crafted country rocker which tells the story of a modern day Bonnie and Clyde (here, Bonnie's a stripper), in a standoff with the Mexican police. The roadhouse rocker Drive It On Home makes it in that vein, too, both tunes ideal for burning down the barn in concert.
Keith's always had a strong knack for a catchy, singalong chorus and he hits on one of his best ever with the tuneful Somewhere Else.
That same talent comes into play on the heartachy country ballad In A Couple of Days, which wouldn't be at all out of place on a George Strait album.
As ever, Keith gives vent to his lighthearted side, most notably on the first single, Trailerhood, a cute sounding, Roger Miller-like jingle that salutes the down-to-earth qualities of trailer park living.
The singer's ever present wiseass comes out, too, on Get Out Of My Car. This one may offend some, with the narrator's putout or get-lost ultimatum to his girlfriend, but it is worth noting that, in the end, the classless cad gets shot down. ( "I got out of my clothes/ She got outta my car.")
For those who purchase the deluxe edition of Bullets In The Gun there's also four live cover songs, three of which pinpoint exactly where Keith is coming from at this point in his career.
They include two tunes by the witty Roger Miller (Chug-A-Lug and I've Been A Long Time Leavin') and, another, a rough riding blues rocker originally recorded by outlaw country boy Johnny Paycheck (11 Months and 29 Days). These spotlight Keith's talented Easy Money Band nicely.
Unexpectedly, Keith also breaks out a fine cover of Gordon Lightfoot's dark horse hit Sundown, and while he doesn't quite capture the brooding menace of the original, he does the song justice just the same.
Bullets In The Gun would be an even better album if it was recorded with a bit more grit, minus those tiresome, too-slick Nashville production values, but, nevertheless, it's Keith's best work in a long while.
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