Gracin’ isn’t ‘Crazy’

Album review I wrote for the paper:

American Idol alum and up and coming country super star Josh Gracin released his new album on Tuesday, April 1. His first album, “Josh Gracin,” which was released in 2004, went gold, selling over 500,000 copies. He is one of three male country artist in the past few years to receive a gold album debut album and have three Top 5 songs come from that album, including the Number One hit, “Nothin’ To Lose.”

The new album, “We Weren’t Crazy,” which has been three years in the making, already has a few radio released songs such as the ballad, “I Keep Coming Back,” and the Top 5 single “Favorite State of Mind,” a fast-paced mid-tempo song where he names almost every state in the Chorus, expressing his love for “Georgia peaches” and “Florida beaches.”

Gracin’s latest single and title track of the album, “We Weren’t Crazy,” is already blazing up the charts but the song is more personal to the singer than any other song that he’s recorded. Co-written by Gracin, Bobby Pinson, and Tony Lopacinski, the song tells of Gracin’s personal story of marrying his high school sweetheart, moving to California after joining the Marines and having children of his own.

Also on the album is a remake of a song, “Telluride,” that appeared on Tim McGraw’s “Set This Circus Down” album but wasn’t released as a single. “Sweet September,” a sweet ballad, tells of ones memory of first love while “I Don’t Want To Live” is a more powerful ballad, showcasing his vocal range.

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Throttle Wide Open: Concert Preview

Dierks Bentley might still have ‘a lot of leavin’ to do’, but not until he hits the stage Saturday night at Wild Adventures.

Bentley, who has performed at Wild Adventures twice before, is making Valdosta the third stop on his “Throttle Wide Open” tour.

Bentley, a native of Phoenix, AZ, jumped on the country charts in 2003 with his breakthrough single, “What Was I Thinkin’,” a song about a girl in a “little white tank top.” With the release of his second album in 2005, Bentley became a major star in country music with his hits like the sexy ballad “Come a Little Closer” and a song from his third album, “Every Mile a Memory.”

Opening for Bentley on his 2008 tour is American Idol alum Bucky Covington and South Georgia’s very own Luke Bryan. (more…)

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