ALBUM REVIEW: George Strait calls on friends, family for ‘Cowboys and Dreamers’
Listening to George Strait is like chatting with an old friend. It’s comforting and deeply enjoyable every time for classic country music fans. Cowboys and Dreamers is no different for the undisputed King of Country. It’s his 30th album of new material.
Cowboys and Dreamers
George Strait
MCA, Sept. 6
7/10
Get the album on Amazon Music.
The crooner comes back time and time again with those same smooth vocals. His latest has 13 feel-good guitar- and pedal-steel-driven songs, but this time around, he leans on his songwriting friends, including his son, Bubba, for the material.
The man knows how to sing a love song, that’s for sure. On “To The Moon,” written by Marty Brown and Steve Clark, Strait speaks to true love being uncomplicated. The song layers acoustic guitar lines, piano and violin before building up with backup vocals and a full string section.
“The Little Things,” one of just two songs George Strait co-wrote on the album, is about the sped-up nature of life, with the little details getting lost in the process. Strait sings of Merle Haggard songs, his mom’s voice on the telephone and the sight of his sleeping child, which help lift the burden of solving life’s big unanswered questions.
His other cowrite is on “The Book.” Ripe with fiddle and guitar, it talks about God looking “for some good cowboys to save from a burning hell.”
But it’s not all fire and brimstone. Strait has a funny and playful side. On “Honky Tonk Hall of Fame” (written by Chris Stapleton, Jameson Clark and Timothy James), he and Stapleton share a story of the most lonesome and heartbroken cowboy of all time against an arrangement of pedal steel, fiddle and honky tonk piano.
Tropical and sunburned-sounding single “MIA Down in MIA” (by Adam Craig and Dean Dillon) is in the style of Jimmy Buffett and Kenny Chesney. Strait sings about needing a vacation and wanting to get lost at the beach. Mandolin, breezy pedal steel and Spanish guitar lines it perfect for lounging.
Strait takes a stab at Waylon Jenning’s “Waymore’s Blues,” a faithful rendition of the original, Jennings’ vibrato and lilts to match. There are a couple more layers of guitar and percussion, and possibly an organ, that make the sound fuller. The title track (written by Jessie Jo Dillon, Keith Gattis and Strait’s son, Bubba Strait) is another standout that details the artist’s musical evolution while staying true to his country roots. An impressive dosage of guitar picking leads the track, along with another bright acoustic guitar line and light percussion.
Strait is still one of the strongest voices in country music, despite his decreased output over the last decade. Even at 72, his voice is still like honey.