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CD Reviews

 FRONT ROW SEATS

    2006 brought possibly the finest Oak Ridge Boys release on Spring Hill Records. Front Row Seats is a pure country album that is as good as anything that was released at that time by any artist, and one of the finest albums in the Oak Ridge Boys long career.  The production is excellent, and every member's voice is in top-notch shape on this recording, and they each sound fabulous on their respective lead vocals. 

    The song selection here is superb. From the humorous lines of the opening songs, "Hard To Be Cool (In A Minivan), to the final convicting message of "Did I Make A Difference", the Oak Ridge Boys prove (as they have time and time again) that they still have a lot to offer despite radio continuing to ignore them.  

    William Lee Golden really shines on this album.  His voice sounds fantastic, and his charisma radiates through songs like "Heaven's A Small Town", "Something In The Water", "Crazy Not To", and "Didn't It Rain".  This is some of his best work

    Joe Bonsall's highlights on this CD include "Hard To Be Cool (In A Minivan)", "Heaven On Earth", and the profound "Smaller", a heartfelt song about the woes of the fast paced, non-personal world that we live in today.....great song, great vocal performance.

    "Ace" Duane Allen shows up as always and delivers smooth lead vocals on numbers like "Until You Get There", "Dream On Me", the fantastic "Closer To Home", the thought provoking "Did I Make A Difference", and, possibly the finest song on the CD, "Jonah, Job & Moses", a country gospel song that finds the singer confessing that they are not perfect and struggle in their daily walk with God.  Deep, confessing lyrics like this let you know that you're not alone in your feelings and emotions and it's part of being human.

    Richard Sterban sings a beautiful love song called "A Feeling Like That" that recounts times in life when your heart may have been broken or your heart may be overflowing with joy. Again, his voice sounds fantastic.

    All Oak Ridge Boys country fans should love this CD.  It's chock full of fabulous songs and fabulous performances.  It's a good thing that this album was so extraordinary, because the fans were about to wait longer than ever before to hear new music from the Boys. And this CD is just what we needed to hold us over.

     

Outstanding Cuts: Hard To Be Cool (In A Minivan), Heaven's A Small Town, Smaller, Jonah Job & Moses, Closer To Home, Did I Make A Difference
 Cut Outs: Compared To You

                                                                        ---Edward Wille

 


     While the Oaks have been consistently releasing new music over the last 5 years, this is their first mainstream-country album since 1999's "Voices" release. The result is a project that sounds just a modern and fresh and anything on radio today.
   
    What makes this album stand out is the song selection. Each one of these songs is relevant to a wide spectrum. None of this bubble gum diddy stuff and no sappy "rip your heart out" songs. Just strong, relevant material.

    The production on this CD is very interesting in that the voices are comfortably out front. The music arrangements are strong and full, but they never overpower the vocals. And the harmony is extremely tight, even though each voice can be heard clear as day. The result is an album that is simultaneously exhilarating and relaxing.

    A very impressive effort!!

                                                                        ---Kyle Boreing