Kellie Coffey-Walk On

Artist: Kellie Coffey
Title: Walk On
Genre: Country
Label: Duet
Website
"I Would Die For That" Video
CD Baby Link

I have always thought of country as music for guys who like to dress up and play cowboy on the weekend. What can I say? I have a few hang-ups, but I want to taste all that music's rich buffet has to offer. With Walk On, Kellie Coffey has side-stepped some of the stereotypes I have held about country music through the years. The country music scene isn't just some good-ol'-boy's club; these are every-day people not much different from you and me.

Coffey draws from a deep well of talent on this album. Engineers Glen Spinner and JB have recorded the plethora of musicians featured on this project with precision, while David Zaffiro has blended it all in delicate layers. The music comes through sparklingly clear.

"Walk on", the title track of this album, is about the uncertainty of life's journey. It is richly arranged with a south of the Mason-Dixon, wall-of-sound kind of feel. Coffey sings the words; "I've been beaten down / on the ground / but I'll pick myself up and / dust off and walk on," with power and emotion. It's probably the most relatable song on the record in as far as anyone can identify with its message. Dan Dugmore is a maestro on the pedal steel, and manages to elevate the music of this track to an almost ethereal level.

"Every Thing She Never Wanted" begins with a raucous electronic drum beat you'd find in a Joe Henry song, and then quickly transforms into a full blown country jam. Coffey sings about a woman who's aspirations don't include settling down and starting a family. Well, it happens anyway and she is elated to discover that she couldn't imagine life any other way. This up-beat song has the potential to become a dance floor staple in country western bars from coast to coast.

"It", a song about a housewife's unsatisfied appetite for intimacy with her husband, is a real toe-tapper. The man in this song comes home at the end of the day and wants to lounge in front of the TV, but the gal has a different idea. I found this track interesting for the simple reason that traditionally the rolls are reversed; the guy wants some lovin' but his best lady has a headache. Gordon Kennedy's electric guitar playing injects just a touch of rock/pop into this shuffling country ditty.

Upon listening to the entire album it became clear to me that Kellie Coffey writes songs for the female country fan. She primarily deals with the subject of being a housewife and a mother. There was no one song that made me want to fall in love with her, nor anything that broke my heart. To her credit, she avoids anything remotely political or religious; everything on this offering is personal - like we're old friends who met for lunch and did a little catching up.

Well I can't say I'm a total convert, but I feel like I'm beginning to get country music. The musicians featured on this album are many, and they're doing some great stuff here. I'll keep an ear out for Kellie Coffey, and I hope that next time she delivers that heart-breaking love song my soul is longing for.

© MuzikReviews.com

Chad Adams, August 23, 2007

Tracks:
01. Walk On
02. When Pigs Fly
03. Everything She Never Wanted
04. Strong Enough To Cry
05. I Would Die For That
06. I Thought I Knew You Well
07. Bandwagon
08. It
09. Everywhere
10. I Had A Dream
11. Proud Of Me
12. There You Go Again