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Robbie Fulks- Georgia Hard
Amazon.com Few country songwriters are both smarter and funnier than Robbie Fulks, though his humor has saddled him with a reputation as a purveyor of smart-aleck novelty fare. Except for the hillbilly hokum of "I'm Gonna Take You Home (And Make You Like Me)," he plays it comparatively straight on Georgia Hard, confirming that he's a consummate country craftsman in the process. Amid the generous selection of 15 songs, highlights range from the countrypolitan, string-laden "Leave It to a Loser," on which Fulks channels the soulful sophistication of the late Charlie Rich, to the dance-floor buoyancy of "Each Night I Cry," which sounds closer to Rodney Crowell. A pair of murder ballads, "Coldwater, Tennessee" and "If They Could Only See Me Now," show his mastery of the taut, dark narrative, while fans of his sardonic streak will love "Countrier Than Thou." The musicianship is first-rate throughout, with the instrumental "Right on Redd" showcasing the interplay of guitarist Redd Volkaert with steel guitar legend Lloyd Green. If Nashville decides to return to songs of cheatin', drinkin', and killin', this is an album full of hits just waiting to happen. --Don McLeese Review "Fulks will always be down with the twang, but he's not going to live in anyone's ghetto." -- Village Voice "Not so many years ago, Nashville would have celebrated an original like Fulks as one of the greats." -- Country Weekly "Robbie Fulks likes to tick people off....America's most unjustly unsung singer/songwriter." -- Spin After this decade of self-sabotaging career choices, Fulks seems to be returning to his roots. -- CITY PAPER NASHVILLE Robbie Fulks is perhaps the one who flirts most closely with the traditional Nashville structure." -- NEW YORKER he's a natural borncountry singer who in various guises recalls Buck Owens, Whisperin' Bill Anderson, Freddy Fender and an array of bluegrass tenors. -- USA TODAY