Branders-and their spiritual roots-are honored in “The Cowboy Song.”
On “The Night I Called the Old Man Out,” a boy respects his father’s authority only after dad bloodies him in a fistfight. Also, “love” can be found in a one-night stand (“Callin’ Baton Rouge”), an adulterous affair (“The Night Will Only Know”) and rebellious teen sex in the back of a pickup truck (“Ain’t Going Down”). Alcohol flows on several tracks, including “American Honky-Tonk Bar Association,” which replaces church and family with the local tavern.
This disc soared to the top of the pop and country charts. And it’s musically enjoyable. Too bad the family-friendly values Garth conveyed on earlier albums are falling In Pieces.
