For some reason, country music seems to have a fascination with the beach. I don't know what it is, but it seems like every song these days seems to point toward white sand, crystal blue water, and palm trees as the ideal way to get away from the humdrum redundancy of everyday life. With the Budweiser a-flowin' and the speakers blasting any of the assorted go-to acts, it's supposed to be perfection personified.
I'm personally not the biggest beach guy, but apparently Billy Currington is, as evidenced by his recent release Enjoy Yourself. After his random-yet-enjoyable Little Bit of Everything produced two #1 singles, Currington seems to have fallen in love with the escapism of island life, taking the trend that Kenny Chesney started in the early 2000s and running with it in search of a way to present himself. Unfortunately, that's not exactly the best way to showcase his deceptive talent.
Love Done Gone may be the furthest away from country that Billy Currington has traveled in his short career, but the first blast of the quirky ad libs and bright horn section were enough to make me raise my eyebrows. It's not exactly an experimental song for Currington, as his good ol' boy-ness brings the country out of any arrangement, but it's nice to hear him venturing out of his comfort zone. It doesn't hurt that this is by far the catchiest and most melodically conscious song on the album, a bit of pretty decent songwriting that is elevated by Currington's smooth delivery and how feel good a listen it actually is. Lil' Ol' Lonesome Dixie Town is one of the few songs to differentiate itself on the record, as it's not of the smoldering loverboy ilk. It's nothing too lyrically different from, say, Pretty Good at Drinkin' Beer, but it's at least a different enough to gain some attention instead of fading into the background. Currington's never been known as much of a rocker or a rowdy type of performer, so this is a good change of pace, especially since it sounds much more fleshed out than a good portion of the record. I mean, come on, there's actual electric guitars and percussion in a Billy Currington song. It may put me in mind of early Dierks Bentley, but Currington does enough with his vocal (he lets loose a bit when he's typically restrained) to make it his own and hint at another weapon to utilize for his next album. Current single Let Me Down Easy plays on Currington's lothario image and in turn becomes one of the better songs on the record, if not the best. Aesthetically, it's pretty stunning, as he knows how to infuse a little soul into his music without it being too clunky. On this wounded bit of balladry, Currington gets to show off a fairly good ability to interpret a song, playing the vulnerable romeo with a sensitive touch and a whole lot of sincerity. He may not be the type of vocalist that, say, Gary Allan is, but he works well with what he's got and he knows himself, so songs like this are retro class and readymade for prom season 2011.
Like My Dog and Bad Day of Fishin' are products of the current era of the country manchild. You know, the guy who hasn't yet gotten over not being in his early 20s anymore and has hung onto that frat boy sense of humor/imagery that he gained in some of his more formative years. Both take extremely simplistic viewpoints and reduce a rather captivating performer to a one-note bumbling fool. The former is actually an interesting composition, leaning heavily on Currington's aw shucks personality and generally laidback demeanor more than typical. It has some slight blues elements to it (the jangly piano, especially) but is decidedly country (the first 30 seconds are a little hokey but they fit the vibe perfectly), which is all a shame because the song sounds like it was written in 5 minutes tops. Currington has charm oozing out of his pores, so songs like Fishin' aren't as inherently offensive to your senses as they would be coming from someone else, but it's sad to listen to that golden vocal spout out such inane, faceless mumbo jumbo. The second is a brief laundry list of things that his dog has over the women that he's dealt with in his life, i.e. the dog doesn't feud with his sister, the dog doesn't care if he leaves the seat up, the dog likes his friends, etc. Again, like Fishin', it doesn't produce a guttural response or any type of vehement hate; it's mostly just disappointment and a sense of "really?" because of how corny and obvious the jokes are. I know that he couldn't really do a lot of complex humor, considering the commercial expectations that he has, but to recycle a concept that Carrie Underwood utilized only a couple of years ago is beyond lazy. By the time you get to the faux dog howl at the end, it's quite obvious that this should have just been a fun studio gag or a store-specific bonus track, as it's honestly just really ridiculous. If there's one major positive of the album, it's that it knows what it is and doesn't pretend to have any other agenda. Enjoy Yourself encapsulates the entire record in less than three minutes. You have a quasi-tropical ode to the simple pleasures in life with slick production, general images of merriment, and a pretty relaxed performance. It's if Jimmy Buffett, Kenny Chesney, and David Wooderson got together, had a baby (enjoy that image), and it decided to pick up a guitar one day; that's probably my main fault with the record. Aside from a few moments, it's very been there done that; I know there's not really been an original idea in music/pop culture in many moons, but to have the type of neutered, middle of the road confections that Currington has served up this time around is almost insulting. Enjoy is pleasant background music, but you'll forget it the second it goes off.
If it weren't for Billy Currington's abundance of charm and his soft southern drawl, this would have been a bit of a musical train wreck. While I do appreciate him taking steps toward establishing a musical identity, I just wish that it was a different identity. Musically, the album is soulful and relaxed, though a little redundant (he joins James Otto in the Country Dudes Who Are R&B Influenced pantheon), but lyrically is where it falters. Currington and his co-writers sling a bunch of clichés (women don't understand men! Dogs are man's best friend!) and tired imagery that even Kenny Chesney found too square, only occasionally bringing about something romantic, thoughtful, or interesting. One joke-y song is almost to be expected these days, but Currington never lets down his guard and it makes the record ring hollow. Though he may have leading man looks and a penchant for collecting number one singles, Billy Currington still needs to bring a little more artistry to the table, otherwise I won't be enjoying myself for too much longer.
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