Blake Shelton's Barn & Grill

Performer: Blake Shelton
Engineer: Ed Seay; Jim Dineen; Ed Seay
Producer: Bobby Braddock
Distributor: WEA (Distributor)

Notes: Personnel: Blake Shelton (acoustic guitar); Blake Shelton (vocals); Terry McMillan (whistling, whistle, harmonica, Jew's harp); John Willis, Bryan Sutton, Byrd Burton (acoustic guitar); Brent Rowan (electric guitar, bass guitar); Sonny Garrish (steel guitar); Connie Ellisor, David Davidson , David Angell (violin); Rob Hajacos (fiddle); Kris Wilkinson (viola); Carole Rabinowitz-Neuen (cello); Mike Rojas , Gordon Mote (piano); Tim Lauer (Hammond b-3 organ, Wurlitzer organ); Bobby Braddock (Wurlitzer organ, synthesizer, mini-Moog synthesizer); Alison Prestwood (bass guitar); Shannon Forest, Shannon Forrest (drums); Ed Seay (cymbals); Shawn Simpson (shaker); Danny Myrick, Curtis Young, Dennis Wilson , John Wesley Ryles, Melodie Crittenden, Paul Overstreet, Wes Hightower, Blue Miller, Carl Jackson (background vocals); Paul Franklin (steel guitar, lap steel guitar); Jonathan Yudkin (violin, fiddle, viola, cello). Audio Mixer: Ed Seay. Recording information: Cool Tools Audio, Tracking Room; Emerald Sound Studios "Tracking Room"; Sony-Tree Studio. Photographer: Se�or McGuire. Blake Shelton's third album showcases a young country singer/songwriter with a penchant for storytelling and a willingness to mix poignancy and humor. On the opening track, "Some Beach," Shelton engages in a lighthearted romp highlighting the Jimmy Buffett influence that seemed to become more and more prevalent among country artists in the early 2000s. A tropical lilt is also present in the self-effacing "On a Good Day," which goes so far as to flirt with a reggae groove. While Shelton delves into deeper emotions on "When Somebody Knows You That Well" and the grandly unfolding "The Bartender," perhaps the most striking moment on BARN & GRILL is the closing song, "I Drink." Penned by cult-favorite alt-country songwriter Mary Gauthier, it deftly traces a drinking problem back to a troubled childhood and an alcoholic father, with no sentimentalism whatsoever, using punchy, sardonic songcraft to deliver a powerful message that could very easily have come off heavy-handed. It's a fine way to end an album, and a hopeful sign of what could be around the corner on Shelton's fourth.

Country star Blake Shelton's popularity is due not only to his rakish good looks, easy-going country croon, and tuneful songwriting, but also in part to the fortuitous failure of Warner subsidiary Giant Records. After the label folded in 2001, Warner Brothers picked up Shelton's contract and helped catapult him to the top of the charts with hits like "Austin," "The Baby," and "Some Beach."

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