Carrie Underwood - Play On (Sony, 2009)
Aside from praising her astonishing singing voice critics have not had much time for Carrie Underwood but this has not stopped her from selling over 10 million records (and counting!). The previous two albums contained mostly light fare, countrified poptunes that didn't really say much about Carrie herself.
With seven co-writes on 'Play On', this is the CD where we finally get to find out a little about Carrie and I hoped this would have resulted in a strong, confident album. Sadly, it did not.
First single and disc opener 'Cowboy Casanova', which sprinted up the charts, is indicative of a lot of what seems to be wrong with this CD. Sure, it's fun and catchy but it's pop dressed as country and it is dangerously close to oversung. Other offenders include 'Undo It', 'Unapologize' and the title track.
Where the strength of this record lies is in the songs where the vocal acrobatics get dialed down and the message takes center stage. One stand-out is the personal and moving 'Temporary Home'. While I could never agree with treating the one life we have as something we're just merely passing through, it is a testament to Carrie's performance that I still relate to this song.
Other good tracks are 'Quitter', about a girl who is finally able to allow herself to be loved, the socially conscious 'Change', the sweet and pretty 'Look at Me' and the cheerful ray of sunshine 'This Time'.
While not totally overproduced, 'Play On' still has a little too much gloss and the constant reaching for the very big notes makes it a little demanding in places.
I hoped for a strong and confident album but maybe I was just one album too soon. If Carrie develops her writing skills and gets even more comfortable expressing herself, I think two years down the road she might surprise all her critics. 'Play On' is already a step up from 'Carnival Ride' and everything suggests Carrie will keep getting better.
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