ARTIST: Alan Jackson
TITLE: Like Red On A Rose
LABEL: Arista Nashville
GENRE: Country
BITRATE: 194kbps avg
PLAYTIME: 0h 49min total
RELEASE DATE: 2006-09-26
RIP DATE: 2006-09-22
Track List
----------
01. Anywhere On Earth You Are 4:14
02. Good Imitation Of The Blues 3:24
03. Like Red On A Rose 3:33
04. Nobody Said That It Would Be 3:44
Easy
05. Don't Change On Me 3:26
06. The Firefly's Song 3:57
07. Wait A Minute 4:22
08. Had It Not Been You 4:01
09. A Woman's Love 4:13
10. Don't Ask Why 3:01
11. As Lovely As You 4:06
12. Where Do I Go From Here (A 4:04
Trucker's Song)
13. Bluebird 3:25
Release Notes:
The idea of twang king Alan Jackson pairing up with Alison Krauss
for an album of love songs might seem heretical to some, especially
if they heard only the first cut, the adult-contemporary ballad
"Anywhere on Earth You Are." But producer Krauss, whom Jackson
approached to make a traditional bluegrass record, always knew
there was a sensuous heart beating beneath his aw-shucks demeanor,
one that would fit perfectly with the intimate repertoire,
genre-bending musical framework, and virtuoso players she'd always
chosen for herself. (Robert Lee Castleman, one of Krauss's favorite
writers, weighs in with four tunes, and Ron Block, Jerry Douglas,
and Dan Tyminski, Krauss's Union Station cohorts, anchor the band.)
Jackson, it turns out, also wanted a chance to reflect on the ups
and downs of his long marriage, apart from 1998's daring,
spoken-word hit "I'll Go On Loving You," a far lustier admission
than anything included here. If there's a downside to this
brilliant, if unlikely pairing, it's that Krauss's somber program
could benefit from something a tad more libidinous or uptempo. But
what is here is so beautifully chosen and performed (with spare,
affecting harmony vocals by Lee Ann Womack, Cheryl White, Sidney
and Suzanne Cox, and Krauss herself) that it's hard to quibble.
Throughout, and especially on the ballad "Wait a Minute" and his
own dusted-off "A Woman's Love" (1998), Jackson, who explores his
rich, lower register more frequently than in the past, comes across
like Don Williams in his prime. He's a middle-aged man taking stock
of what and who matters most to him in life, and speaking his heart
without artifice. In the title track, a song so bone-marrow deep it
might bring you to your knees, Jackson declares, "I love you like
all little children love pennies." That line that may sound odd and
superficial by itself, but in Jackson's nuanced reading, it takes
on a nearly spiritual yearning. This album, like the gospel
Precious Memories before it, proves that while Jackson--the most
nominated performer in CMA history--may be nearing 50, he's not
ready to quit challenging himself as an artist.