A few years ago, I was re-discovering Country Music, as I
purchased a book on Country Number One Hits. And one of the artists
that received top-charters was T. Graham Brown.
I’ve never heard of Brown, yet I was curious in hearing his
style of country. His 10-song
Super Hits, released in 1995, has today’s pop meeting
today’s country sound.
“I Tell It Like It Used To Be” is a number that sounds more pop
and blues than country. “I Wish That I Could Hurt That Way Again”
is a slow ballad, and has a slight resemblance to Lee Greenwood’s
“God Bless The USA”, both musically and vocals, despite the sad
song title.
“Hell And High Water” is another ballad, and is as touching to
listen to musically, as the previous ballad, “I Wish That I Could
Hurt That Way Again.”
“Don’t Go To Strangers” is down-right blues country. The
blues-driven guitar leads defines the the blues sound as it meets
country.
Another ballad, “The Power Of Love” is as pretty as the previous
ballads on this album. This one is similar to a ballad done by
Kenny Rogers and/or Alabama. “The Last Resort” is another ballad,
yet it has a pop touch. Also, “She Couldn’t Love Me Anymore” is
another pop ballad, and it reminds me of Ronnie Milsap’s “There
Ain’t No Gettin’ Over Me.”
“Brilliant Conversationalist” is a bouncy pop/country number,
and the lyrics are fun to listen to, as they explain how one’s
conversation is just “brilliant,” punctuations and all. “Come As
You Were” is a slow ballad in the area of blues, and reminds me of
a slow Mickey Gilley blues song.
And probably my favorite song on this set is the last song,
“Darlene.” It just has a grooving country-rock beat, where any rock
or country band may want to take a crack at it. This is one song I
wouldn’t mind having in our set, if I was in a band. It would be an
easy song to do; the bass controls the song, and the guitar
licks/leads are real cool.
T. Graham Brown’s music is enjoyable. His style of country is
more in the ballad style, yet his bouncy pop/country numbers are as
just good as the pretty ballads. Of the 10 songs on this album,
only 3 reached number one on the country charts: “Hell And High
Water,” “Don’t Go To Strangers” and “Darlene.”
He may not be a household name in Country Music, but his style
is just as entertaining as the late 80s-early 90s country
artists.
