Totally Country, Vol. 6

Performer: Various Artists
Producer: Bobby Braddock; Faith Hill; Frank Rogers; Garth Fundis; Gary Allan; George Strait; Gretchen Wilson; Tony Brown; Jeffrey Steele; John Rich; John Shanks; Kenny Chesney; Mark Bright; Mark Wright; Martina McBride; Michelle Branch; Buddy Cannon; Byron Gallimore; Carson Chamberlain
Distributor: BMG (distributor)

Notes: In what is country music radio's equivalent to the long-running NOW THAT'S WHAT I CALL MUSIC series of pop hits, the sixth volume of TOTALLY COUNTRY includes hit singles from 2006 by AMERICAN IDOL winner Carrie Underwood, long-running stars George Strait and Faith Hill, and newer rock-tinged acts such as Gretchen Wilson and Big & Rich. The fairly eclectic lineup makes TOTALLY COUNTRY VOLUME 6 sound like an hour's programming on a particularly good country radio station, minus all the pick-up truck ads. BMG's 2007 compilation Totally Country, Vol. 6 is a good cross-section of mainstream country circa 2006 -- usually big hits but also smaller singles from big names, all adding up to a fairly representative snapshot of the sound of the mainstream in 2006. Among the highlights: American Idol winner Carrie Underwood establishing herself as a genuine country star ("Jesus Take the Wheel" isn't here, but the very good "Don't Forget to Remember Me" is); Brad Paisley nimbly updating the Bakersfield shuffle with the sunny, exuberant "The World"; pop star Michelle Branch successfully going country as part of the Wreckers on their excellent single "Leave the Pieces"; Sugarland's surging, anthemic "Something More"; Montgomery Gentry's "Something to Be Proud Of"; Gretchen Wilson's loose, funny "California Girls"; and George Strait's typically satisfying "She Let Herself Go." Faith Hill, Lonestar, Kenny Chesney, Martina McBride, Phil Vassar, and Big & Rich are all here, along with a handful of others, and even if not every song clicks, overall there's a high hit-to-miss ratio -- enough to make this a worthwhile roundup of notable country hits from 2006. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

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