| 01 - Beautiful Day 02:54 |
| 02 - Yellow Blues 03:40 |
| 03 - Down Again 04:12 |
| 04 - Nothin Better To Do 03:36 |
| 05 - Reconsider 03:40 |
| 06 - Feelin Good 03:54 |
| 07 - If The Rain Don't Stop 03:26 |
| 08 - Middle Of The Night 02:59 |
| 09 - She's So Fine 02:17 |
| 10 - Racing In The Streets 05:55 |
| Texan Charlie Robison built up quite a following in his native state and |
| around the country with his first two Americana-bleached albums. |
| Robison's balls-out, hardcore troubadour image and music were as real as |
| the scuffs on his boots. As his career was gaining steam, the |
| singer/songwriter married Emily Erwin of the Dixie Chicks. Robison |
| released two studio albums while married to Erwin, 2001's Step Right Up |
| and 2004's Good Times, but his music took a backseat (in the media at |
| least) to his marriage. After Good Times, Robison vanished for nearly |
| five years before resurfacing in 2009 with Beautiful Day, a ten-song |
| collection that was written and recorded during his divorce from Erwin. |
| The singer's marital split clearly influenced the songwriting and song |
| selection for Beautiful Day. Robison channels the ghost of heartache on |
| tracks like the saturnine "Down Again" and the equally melancholic |
| "Reconsider." The latter, a jingle-jangle country number with whimpering |
| steel guitar and rippling organ, is a pain-soaked tune that cuts to the |
| core of loneliness. "Yellow Blues" borrows the backbone from Steve |
| Earle's "I Feel Alright," and marries it to a pointed set of lyrics. |
| "Promises are overrated/vows have just become outdated, ain't it true," |
| Robison sings. It's not all black clouds and thunder on Beautiful Day. |
| "Feelin' Good" is a ray of Americana sunshine. Robison bangs out a folky |
| rhythm on his acoustic guitar as mandolin and accordion punctuate the |
| cheery melody and lyrics. Other than a pedestrian cover of Bruce |
| Springsteen's "Racing in the Street,," Beautiful Day is a solid effort |
| from one of Americana's most underappreciated singer/songwriters.
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