Ever since Brett Eldredge's first single, Don't Ya, became a hit, I've been a fan of his music. His first album, Bring You Back was fantastic. Sadly, his two albums after that have not been nearly as good. Though I've found a lot of enjoyment in his discography, I felt that a lot of Eldredge's more recent music was trend-chasing. His sophomore album, Illinois, is the biggest offender. His most recent, self-titled album was a solid step in the right direction that still had its flaws. With the release of Gabrielle, Where the Heart Is, and Crowd My Mind, I was in love with the production. I'm happy to report that the production is consistent throughout the LP. It's simply gorgeous. I was truly not ready for Sunday Drive to be this good. It's beautiful. It's so much different than anything he's released so far, and extremely different than the filler that's being played on country radio.
1. Where the Heart Is
The opening track is a solid start to the album. The song is carried by a simple acoustic guitar throughout most of the song. I think the song itself sets the tone of the album well, but I find that other tracks shine above it. I like the sentiment of the song. It deals with wanting a real relationship. My favorite lyric has to be "We weren't thinking we were flying. We were alive." It's a beautiful lyric that anyone can relate to. Everyone wants someone who will let them be themselves and feel alive.
2. The One You Need
I loved the early inclusion of an organ for the intro before it turned over to an acoustic guitar picking over the remainder of the song. I absolutely love his voice on this track. It might be his best vocal performance on the album. While the lyrics are nice, they fall into the "checklist" song territory. The production is great throughout the song like the rest of the album. I don't have too much to say about this track, I think it's one of the more generic songs on the album.
3. Magnolia
Magnolia is easily one of my favorite tracks on the album. It's simply a jam. Gabriel and this song is easily the most country tracks on the album. The inclusion of the mandolin throughout the song was great. Having a small mandolin solo was even better. Magnolia was the perfect song to add it to, being that it's such a breezy song. I can see this being a big hit on the radio, but I typically am always proven incorrect when picking single choices.
4. Crowd My Mind
Crowd My Mind is another piano-heavy track that sounds gorgeous. I love the choice of using the piano extensively on this entire album. The result sounds great and so different. It's rare to hear a completely piano-dominated song that's not a ballad on country radio anymore. I love the phrase "crowd my mind". It's a subversion of the concept of thinking about your ex. The chorus has some great imagery (empty streets/whistlin' pines).
5. Good Day
Good Day definitely falls to the bottom of the album for me. I think it's one of the more forgettable songs lyrically. It's just a feel-good song that doesn't do anything too special lyrically or musically. This track feels like it would suit an Old Dominion album better. There's some interesting details/imagery (Starting the day with Sinatra/forty-two cold, and rainy), but at the end of the day, Good Day fades to the background of this outstanding album.
6. Fall For Me
Fall For Me is easily the most forgettable song on the album to me. I wouldn't say it's bad at all, but it's just simply boring. The production is drum-heavy, sounding the most pop-like out of the twelve songs in the album. The slight tempo change in the bridge is interesting sonically, but overall I find myself skipping this song and the previous one, Good Day, the most.
7. Sunday Drive
Sunday Drive is simply gorgeous. It's the lyrical standout on the album by far. I absolutely love the sentiment of the song itself. I was surprised to find out that this is the only song not co-written by Eldredge. It doesn't subtract from this song's beauty. Sunday Drive appreciates the small things in life, while showing the humanity of relationships with your parents. I love the sparseness of the production. A piano drives the entire song. Violins can also be heard throughout. This track was produced brilliantly, as is the album itself.
Eldredge's vocal performance is also the standout on this track. I adore this song. It's easily one of my favorite songs he's ever released.
8. When I Die
Despite the title, When I Die is an upbeat, jazz-influenced track. I like the drum-heavy production. I'm thankful that there's an actual drum present instead of a drum loop or a God-forsaken snap track. This song shines most musically. I like some aspects of the lyrics, mostly the sentiment of being thankful for the life you lived when you're life is over. The chill, optimistic lyrics are complimented well with the great instrumentation present. Though I like the track as a whole, I'd end up putting it towards the middle in terms of quality on this album.
9. Gabrielle
The single that started the Sunday Drive's promotion is lovely. Like most of this album, it's different than the majority of what's on country radio now. I hope this has great success as a single and reaches #1; it deserves it. Gabrielle is a perfectly executed song. The lyrics are solid, the melody is incredibly catchy, and the instruments sound great. Like a majority of this album, I love the heavy inclusion of a piano on this. The acoustic, rhythm guitar also sounds great when present. This is easily one of my favorite tracks on the album.
10. Fix A Heart
Fix A Heart is one the most jazzy tracks on the albums. It has some great instrumentation, including a heavy use of brass instruments that sound gorgeous. The piano is also used quite a bit, a musical theme in Sunday Drive. The lyrics are solid. I like the subversion used. In most songs in country, especially bro-country these days, man lyrics will talk about needing a meaningless hook up/one-night stand to fix a heart. Instead, Eldredge sings about how a good woman and relationship with her will fix a broken heart. His vocal performance is top notch here, channeling his inner Sinatra.
11. Then You Do
This track has grown on me so much over my repeated listens through Sunday Drive. Though it has the most modern/pop-like production, I like the overall sound. The lyrics are the best part of Then You Do, however. I thought this song was going to end with a happily-ever-after ending based on the second verse. The bridge has an M. Night Shyamalan-esque plot twist. I loved it.
12. Paris Illinois
I like the decision to end the album on Paris Illinois. This is another sparsely produced song with only a piano and violin present throughout a majority of the song. This song is so different, but it fits the mood and message of the album. Nearly half of the 3:00 is a horned-instrument solo that sounds lovely. I think ending the album on that note is bold and is expectation-subverting. It feels as if Eldredge finally figured out how to blend his best country songs with his Sinatra-esque vocals present on his Christmas album. I could not be happier with the way it turned out.
Sunday Drive was an unexpectedly brilliant album. Much in the vain of Randy Houser's Magnolia last year, Eldredge really produced a self-reinventing gem. I love how different this album sounds compared to the rest of his discography as well as country radio. While not all of the album sounds traditionally "country", I quite frankly don't care given the quality of the songs both lyrically and musically. Sunday Drive feels so personal. This is definitely the most personal music I've heard from Eldredge. The storytelling on this album is some of the best I've heard in mainstream country outside of Ashley McBryde's Never Will, Eric Church's Mr. Misunderstood and Desperate Man, and the aforementioned Magnolia. I loved the consistency in regards to the co-writes. Eldredge co-wrote 11/12 of the songs on the LP. The writing stayed consistent throughout. This is caused by a consistent writers room. A majority of the songs on the album were written by Eldredge, Ian Fitchuk, and Daniel Tashian. Eldredge and Scooter Carusoe also co-wrote quite a few tracks together. I'm a full believer that consistency in writers produces good songs. Songs lose their personal-touch when too many people are in the writing room.
The Good: Magnolia, Sunday Drive, Gabrielle, Then You Do
The Bad(ish): Fall For Me
9/10
Comments