The Truth About Men

by Tracy Byrd

Overview

Hitmaker Tracy Byrd flies high again with the chart-climbing title track to The Truth About Men, featuring guest vocals from Andy Griggs, Montgomery Gentry, and Blake Shelton. The disc also includes a live version of his last chart-topping single, "Ten Rounds with José Cuervo."

Product Details

Release Date:	07/01/2003
Label:	Rca
UPC:	0078636707327
catalogNumber:	67073
Rank:	29259

Tracks

1. Drinkin' Bone
2. You Feel Good
3. How'd I Wind Up in Jamaica
4. Tiny Town
5. The Truth About Men
6. Making Memories of Us
7. That's What Keeps Her Getting By
8. When You Go
9. Baby Put Your Clothes On
10. Somewhere I Wanna Go
11. Ten Rounds With Jose Cuervo

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Tracy Byrd   Primary Artist
Eric Darken   Percussion
John Wesley Ryles   Background Vocals
Jim Cox   Piano
Randall Dennis   Piano
Dan Dugmore   Dobro,Steel Guitar
Stuart Duncan   Fiddle
Paul Franklin   Steel Guitar
John Hobbs   Piano
John Jarvis   Synthesizer,Piano,Hammond Organ
Paul Leim   Percussion,Drums
B. James Lowry   Acoustic Guitar
Liana Manis   Background Vocals
JayDee Mannes   Steel Guitar
Brent Mason   Electric Guitar
John "J.R." Robinson   Drums
Billy Joe Walker   Acoustic Guitar,Electric Guitar
Glenn Worf   Bass
Reggie Young   Electric Guitar
Aubrey Haynie   Fiddle,Mandolin
Michael Hart Thompson   Electric Guitar
Neil Thrasher   Background Vocals
Lisa Cochran   Background Vocals
Leland Sklar   Bass
Gabe Witcher   Fiddle
Troy Lancaster   Electric Guitar
Wes Hightower   Background Vocals
Andy Griggs   Vocals
Montgomery Gentry   Vocals
Blake Shelton   Vocals
John J. Moore   Bass,Background Vocals
Larry Shelton   Trumpet
Billy Carpenter   Drums
John Lee Carpenter   Fiddle
Stacy Clark   Trumpet
Mark Matoska   Steel Guitar
Carey Stone   Electric Guitar

Technical Credits

Tracy Byrd   Producer
Bob Bullock   Engineer
Ed Thacker   Engineer
Steve Tillisch   Engineer
Billy Joe Walker   Producer
Tom Shapiro   Composer
Russ Harrington   Cover Photo
Ken Fredette   Reissue Design
Wade Hunt   Art Direction
Casey Beathard   Composer
Sam Story   Engineer
Dan Wells   Composer
Courtney Bentz   grooming
Michael Patrick Heeney   Composer
Marla Suzanne Cannon   Composer
Marla Cannon-Goodman   Composer

Editorial Reviews

Tracy Byrd is a bit of a goofball, which is a compliment. Unlike his second wave new traditionalist brethren, he realizes that a good part of country music is having a good time, and he refuses to take things too seriously. Add to that a good taste in songwriters -- something that can be particularly difficult for his peers, especially in terms of ballads -- and you have somebody who's a reliable record maker, somebody who always has a good joke and a good ballad at hand. Since he's so consistent, he's easy to underrate, because he makes it all seem easy and he does it with a smile. A smash hit like "Ten Rounds With Jose Cuervo" can provide an opportunity to reassess an artist, or at least to take stock of what he has to offer, and that happened with Byrd's 2001 album, Ten Rounds, yet another solid record that stood out from the pack due to that great song. For his follow-up, 2003's The Truth About Men, Byrd could have used that big hit to try something else, but he doesn't. He sticks to his tried and true neo-honky tonk and contemporary country ballad formula. But if a formula works, why try to change it? And The Truth About Men proves that the formula does work, offering smiles and slow dances in equal measure, all delivered with an offhand, guy-next-door charm from Byrd. Sometimes the slow tunes get a little too slow, sometimes the uptempo numbers are a little too silly (the title track has a good premise but some of the jibes don't quite work, not least because the Die Hard 4 mentioned in the second verse as a film preference doesn't even exist), but these are minor quibbles since this is a fun record. It has good-time party songs like the cheerful "Drinkin' Bone" (which is connected to the "party bone," after all) and "How'd I Wind Up in Jamaica," which does Jimmy Buffett better than "It's Five O'Clock Somewhere," Buffett's duet with Alan Jackson that was a smash hit the summer The Truth About Men was released, as well as good ballads like Rodney Crowell's "Making Memories of Us." By the time the record closes with a live version of "Ten Rounds With Jose Cuervo," you're beyond wondering why it's here and just enjoying the ride. True, this album doesn't offer much different than other Byrd records, but song for song, it's one of his finest efforts and a hell of a lot of fun.

All Music Guide - Stephen Thomas Erlewine