It Matters to Me
Artist: Faith Hill
Community Score: 8.00

On her second album, Faith Hill confirmed that Take Me as I Am was no fluke. Like her debut album, It Matters to Me is an ambitious, diverse set of contemporary country that proves Hill can tackle virtually every subgenre of country, singing rockers, ballads, socially-aware stories, and love songs with an equal amount of grace. The singles... Read More

Permanently
Artist: Mark Wills
Community Score: 10.00

With a reputation for music and songs that speak to people's hearts, Mark Wills' Permanently doesn't disappoint. With songs like "In My Arms" about being a dad to a brand-new baby daughter (a tribute to his little girl) and "Rich Man" about being rich in love, Wills' has a penchant for appealing to fans' sensitive sides. But whether he's singing... Read More

More
Artist: Trace Adkins
Community Score: 10.00

More... is a very apt title for Trace Adkins' third album, since it essentially offers more of the same. For some artists, this would be a harsh criticism, but not in the case of Adkins, since he's proving himself to be one of the more reliable neo-traditionalists of the late '90s. Unlike some of his peers, Adkins doesn't pattern his singing... Read More

The Secret of Giving: A Christmas Collection
Artist: Reba McEntire
Community Score: 9.00

Reba McEntire's second Christmas album is a departure from 1988's Merry Christmas to You. Secret of Giving features more down-to-earth, pop-country tracks that reflect her decidedly contemporary country style of the '90s. Cheerful and sincere, McEntire shows her usual eloquence on songs like "This Christmas," "Up on the Housetop," "This Is My... Read More

A Paul Brandt Christmas: Shall I Play For You
Artist: Paul Brandt

Paul Brandt's A Paul Brandt Christmas: Shall I Play For You? features a mix of traditional and contemporary holiday tunes as well as guest artists like Union Station, who appear on "The Way In A Manger" and "What Child Is This." Terri Clark collaborates with Brandt on "Santa Looked A Lot Like Daddy," and Kim Richey appears on "Run Run Rudolph."... Read More

Live at Billy Bob's Texas
Artist: John Conlee

It's been far too long since a new John Conlee studio album, but in the meantime this concert date Live at Billy Bob's Texas is more than an acceptable substitute. The 18 tracks included here feature almost all of the singer's biggest hits, from "Rose Colored Glasses" to "Lady Lay Down" to "Common Man," each crisply rendered by a fine backing... Read More

Single White Female
Artist: Chely Wright
Community Score: 9.50

Chely Wright reunited with producer Tony Brown -- the man behind hit records by George Strait and Reba McEntire, as well as Wright's own Let Me In -- for her fourth album, Single White Female. The record picks up where its predecessor left off, offering a selection of ten songs with clean, tasteful arrangments that place Wright in the forefront.... Read More

Keepers: Greatest Hits
Artist: Tracy Byrd
Community Score: 6.00

Keepers: Greatest Hits is an excellent summary of Tracy Byrd's first five albums, collecting the very best of his hits. Included are the radio version of "The Keeper of the Stars" (rather than the earlier recording that appeared on No Ordinary Man) and a new song, "When Mama Ain't Happy," neither of which appear on other Byrd albums. The... Read More

I've Got a Right to Cry
Artist: Mandy Barnett

If ever there was a singer who was born to sing the torch and twang style that Patsy Cline created, it is Mandy Barnett. A soft-spoken performer who belts 'em out with all the guts and grit of the founding mothers of traditional country music, Barnett is amazing. Producer Owen Bradley, a legend himself, is known for his classic production style... Read More

I Don't Want to Miss a Thing
Artist: Mark Chesnutt

What do we make of Mark Chesnutt's foray into crossover territory? The bulk of I Don't Want to Miss a Thing is smooth new country, retaining the elements of neo-traditionalism that characterize the best of Chesnutt's earlier albums. There's a nice mix of material, ranging from the tender "Tonight I'll Let My Memories Take Me Home" to the honky... Read More

Revelations
Artist: Wynonna Judd
Community Score: 8.00

Wynonna had no problem with the spotlight; or, as the tabloids regularly revealed, with opening up her private life for all to poke through and ponder. For all of her cultivating of celebrity, her albums continued to turn down the lights and focus on the softer glow of emotional verities her albums. Revelations is another worthy solo effort by... Read More

New Day Dawning
Artist: Wynonna Judd
Community Score: 7.00

Southern gospel and soul, rockers, and ballads all grace Wynonna Judd's fifth release as a solo artist and her first as co-producer. One of the most recognizable voices in country music, the depth and range of her voice can be heard from the first track, the rhythmic "Going Nowhere," to the last, the soulful "I Can't Wait to Meet You." Fans will... Read More