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Luke Flear
Description: Jonny Brick discusses country music in all its forms
Jake Owen seems like a lovely guy. So do the quintet Old Dominion, whom I met at Country2Country right as their career was taking off. Both are still making music – I typed ‘making money’ initially, so you can guess where this article is heading – in 2023 and both have done nothing at all of note aside from making pleasant pop-country tunes. They won’t get caught on video using a Word You Cannot Say. Nor will Chris Janson, whose new album came out the week before Jake’s album Loose Cannon and a new set from
It makes sense for both projects to come out in late June. Jake was always referred to as ‘King of the Beach’ on the Country Top 40 countdown, which I started listening to as Break Up With Him was crawling up the charts to become the first number one song on radio for Old Dominion. Jake, meanwhile, was putting out a greatest hits album which included his big smashes Barefoot Blue Jean Night, Beachin’, Anywhere With You and Alone With You.
That last track, as well as the three-chord jaunt Down To The Honkytonk, was written by Shane McAnally, who is to Old Dominion what George Martin was to The Beatles, an unofficial extra member who helps them find their sound. Three of the band – Matt Ramsey, Brad Tursi and Trevor Rosen – are songwriters for hire; indeed, they wrote Save It For A Rainy Day, a song Kenny Chesney took to number one.
HOME | Eddy Smith Music
Luke Flear