“Family Man”

One of the reasons I enjoy what I do, is that I have the opportunity to hear new  albums, before they are released to the public. Today, I listened to a great  one. Craig  Campbell’s sophomore album will hit stores on May 7. This is a CD that all country music fans are going to enjoy. And for those who have not heard a lot of Craig’s music, it is the perfect introduction.
 
I really don’t think Craig is getting the recognition he deserves. The  singer first caught the attention of country music fans when his single, “Family  Man”, made a quick climb up the charts, back in 2010. That song landed in the  No. 14 spot, way ahead of the singles that followed – “Fish” got to No. 23, and “When I Get It” ended up at No. 38.  The first single from the new album, “Outta  My Head” is at No. 34 right now, but that’s definitely not as high as this one  will go. I don’t think it will be too long until this one finds a home in the Top Ten.
 
Even though “Outta My Head,” is the ninth song on the new album, I’m going to  start with that one. Craig is a great songwriter, and co-wrote six of the  album’s 12 tracks, but he didn’t write this one. It was written by Michael  Carter, Brandon Kinney and Cole Swindell.  The song has a great lyric, a catchy  melody, and a contemporary feel that Craig manages to turn into a country sound.  Though this song is about getting an old girlfriend ‘outta his head,’ it ends up  being a song that it is really hard to get out of your head once you hear it.

“When She Grows Up” begins with daughter Preslee giving us a small sampling  of her vocal talents, with “Jesus Loves Me,” then Dad takes over with a really  inspiring song, all about our kids – what they are to us, and what we are to  them. “What she sees in me, that’s what I want to be – when she grows up.” It’s  one of those songs you won’t really want to sing along with, and your probably  won’t want to dance to it, but you sure are going to want to listen to it. It is  one of my favorite songs on the album.

If you have a front porch, you’ll be able to relate to “That’s Why God Made  a Front Porch.” It’s one of the slow ones on the album. This one reminds me a  lot of Craig Morgan’s “Almost Home.” One phrase seems to run right into the  next, but you need ever one of those phrases to tell the story. While the song  sounds a lot like “Almost Home,” it is a completely different story. This is a  good song to put on when you want to sit back in a comfortable chair, and  relax.

There are a lot of people out there who can relate to “When Ends Don’t Meet.” It pretty much tells us all what we already know about the economy, bills  overdue, a leaky roof, and having someone to lean on in times of trouble.

Most of the songs on this album are slow to mid-tempo. Everyone of them is  perfect for Craig, and while I have my favorite – I think he could just about  release any of them to radio as his follow-up single to “Outta My Head”.

Here is your track listing, with authors: Truck-N-Roll, Craig Campbell, Brett  Beavers, Chris Lindsey; Keep Them Kisses Comin’ Dallas Davidson, Ben Hayslip;  When She Grows UP, Craig Campbell, Alex Dooley, Arlos Smith; Tomorrow is Gone,  Tommy Conners, Kevin Denney, Phillip White; Never Regret, Craig Campbell, Jason  Matthews, Jim McCormick; My Baby’s Daddy, Brandon Kinney, Cole Swindell;  Topless, Craig Campbell, Mindy Ellis, Blair Daly; When Ends Don’t Meet, Jonathan  Singleton, Tony Lane, Dan Isbell; Outta My Head, Brandon Kinney Michael Carter,  Cole Swindell; That’s Why God Made a Front Porch, Craig Campbell, Lee Thomas  Miller; You Can Come Over, Brandy Clark Jessie Jo Dillon, Mark Narmore; Lotta  Good That Does Me Now, Craig Campbell, Michael White and Justin Wilson.

The CD was produced by Keith Stegall and Matt Rovey, and recorded at Sound  Emporium Studios in Nashville.

Be sure to visit Craig’s web site, craigcampbelltv.com, and follow him on  Twitter @craigcampbelltv. Keep up with the latest country music news at countryschatter.com, and follow us on Twitter @countryschatter.
 
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