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Monday, 05/09/05 The Wrights - Down This Road
ACR/RCA
3
stars
No wrongs with The Wrights' rootsy new album
Here's the scenario: A young married couple gets a record deal and
makes a rootsy country album full of subtle little pleasures.
Here's the catch: the fellow in this duo is Alan Jackson's nephew, and
the album is released on Alan's boutique label and co-produced by
Jackson's producer, Keith Stegall.
And here's the question: Is it still nepotism if it sounds good?
Like Jackson, Adam and Shannon Wright write and perform songs that are
full of plainspoken truths and understated humor. The humor is so
understated that sometimes it takes a few listens to sink in: You Got
The Thorns seems like just another sappy love song (''You got the
thorns, babe/ I got the rose'') until Shannon takes a chorus at the end
and sings ''I used to wonder/ But now I know/ I got the thorns, babe/ You
got the rose.'' In other words, she's agreeing with him.
Adam plays lead guitar throughout, and the two share the lead singing
duties and share some nice harmonies. Neither Wright is an overpowering
vocalist, but Shannon in particular sings with grace, ease and restraint.
She's the polar opposite of the shake-the-rafters vocalists who dominate
pop — and, to some extent, country — these days, and viva la
difference.
Down This Road is bombast-free, both in sound and sentiment. The
songs aren't intended as grand statements, and the reliance on simple,
hummable melodies and sly smiles may be out of order with most of
mainstream country radio. Like Bobby Pinson's upcoming debut album, this
one is country enough to be considered alt-country, or Americana or
something like that. Good for them. And, thanks, Uncle Alan.
— Peter Cooper, Staff Writer
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