Can't Back Down
Collin Raye built the best of his career with songs of social reality--the recovering alcoholic of "Little Rock," the couple separated by death in "Love, Me," the plea for tolerance in "Not That Different." In focusing on stories of familial love and struggle, the former Reno lounge singer (billed then as "Bubba Wray") has carved out a sentimental, yet viable niche for himself in commercial country. However, while he insists his latest album is about perseverance, it largely bypasses issues for bland love songs--set to overblown pop arrangements--that mostly fail to hit the mark. "What I Need," a meaty ballad about prayers both answered and ignored, gives the album its one true moment, and "Ain't Nobody Gonna Take That from Me" shines in its celebration of an everyday hero. Buteverydayis synonymous withaverage, a word that sums up the bulk of this easy-to-ignore offering.--Alanna Nash