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Binding: Audio CDEAN: 0828768073926 Label: Sony Manufacturer: Sony MPN: 80739 Number Of Discs: 1 Publisher: Sony Release Date: May 23, 2006 Studio: Sony Editorial Review: Amazon.com: Nothing changes folks like babies and war, and since the release of their last album, 2002's Home, the Dixie Chicks have been forever altered by both. If that album showcased the trio as precocious young adults, Taking the Long Way finds them sobered and matured, and in a grown-up state of mind. Produced by the celebrated Rick Rubin (Johnny Cash, Red Hot Chili Peppers), who saw the Chicks as "a great rock act making a country album, not a country act making a rock album," their new record impresses both as beautiful sonic tapestry (peppered with myriad Beatlesque hallmarks) and forthright yet vulnerable portrait of three women shaken by the personal and political events of the past few years. As they make clear in the defiant "Not Ready to Make Nice," they still smart over the backlash from their 2003 Bushwhacking. But as they assert on the equally autobiographical "The Long Way Around," they could never "kiss all the asses that they told me to" and just follow others aimlessly--and silently--through life. This means that the Chicks are simultaneously prideful and scornful of celebrity ("Everybody Knows"), and that as new mothers they increasingly treasure the refuge they find in life with their families, out of the spotlight ("Easy Silence," "Lullaby," "Baby Hold On"). The push and pull of both passions drive this record, which also touches on the personal issues of infertility (with which sisters Martie Maguire and Emily Robison both dealt) and Alzheimer's (from which Natalie Maines's grandmother suffers). The trio crafted all 14 cuts with the help of such writers as Sheryl Crow, Gary Louris, Mike Campbell, and Keb' Mo', laying out their lives as honestly and intimately as they might in their diaries. For that reason, on first listen, Taking the Long Way seems too somber--in need of a bit of levity and more than a couple of uptempo songs (like the sexy, '60s-flavored "I Like It") to resonate for the long haul. It also seems to lack the writing quality that Darrell Scott, Patty Griffin, and Bruce Robison brought to Home. But on repeated plays, those concerns dissipate. By the last cut, the R&B/gospel offering "I Hope," the Chicks have chronicled their journey with as much spirituality as spunk, their pain deeply ingrained in their protests. --Alanna Nash Description: With Taking The Long Way, one of the most anticipated albums in recent years, the Dixie Chicks are putting themselves out there like never before. For the first time, every one of the disc's fourteen songs are co-written by the Chicks themselves, exploring themes both deeply private and resoundingly political. Collaborating with legendary producer Rick Rubin (who has worked with everyone from Johnny Cash to the Red Hot Chili Peppers, from Run DMC to Neil Diamond), the biggest-selling female band in history has truly pushed themselves to new heights both as writers and as performers. "Everything felt more personal this time," says Maines. "I go back to songs we've done in the past and there's just more maturity, depth, intelligence on these. They just feel more grown-up." Inspired by such classic rock artists as the Eagles, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, and the Mamas and the Papas, Taking The Long Way adds a sweeping, Southern California vibe to the Chicks' down-home intimacy. That ambition is matched with lyrics addressing everything from small-town narrow-mindedness ("Lubbock or Leave It") to the psychology of celebrity ("Everybody Knows"). "This album was about finding a balance in the different aspects of our lives," says Emily Robison, "but there's something thematic there, too--it's really about being bold." Dixie Pics
Dixie Discs
Album Description: Japanese pressing. No extras. 2006. Average Rating:
 Rating:  - NEW DIRECTIONA brilliant album which takes the Dixie Chicks in a slightly new direction musically, appealing not just to Country fans but across the whole spectrum. All the fans will have a copy already but for anybody new to the band I would just say don't hesitate-this is sensational! "Not Ready To Make Nice", especially if you know the history,must be one of the most powerful and evocative anthems of the last 30 years, up there with the likes of "Bat Out Of Hell" and "Total Eclipse Of The Heart". ... Read More Rating: - our brother's interview (below)uh, yep. our brotheer (bonehead is his name)kinda knows how ta write. so, we let him doo da prvius reeview. Rating:  - Open Mouth Insert FootYou can feel the pain in her voice from knowing she cheated her entire troup out of millions of dollars with her childish comments. I bet Natalie winds up in the gutter somewhere or worse. The albums just ok but way too depressing for normal people. Maybe the liberals will buy a few. I'm glad she's not in Texas anymore. Rating: - Fantastic, very personal musicI'm not a big fan of country music, so I was skeptical when my friend gave me this CD for my birthday. That being said, it has not come out of my cd player since. Several of the songs on the album are very personal, and resonate very strongly for me on a deeply emotional level. "I'm not ready to make nice" makes me cry almost every time I listen to it. It describes my feelings about a current life situation very clearly, and conveys how angry I feel about what has happened both now and in the past. ... Read More Rating: - No Holding BackThe Dixie Chicks' came back with a #1 album and a whole ton of attitude. Opening up with the title track, Natalie Maines and her gal pals take us through heart felt confessions and foot stomping pissiness. I had heard them perform "I Hope" a few weeks before this came out on some concert show and since I did like their last album and pretty much love Natalie's attitude, I figured I'd buy this one if I found it priced cheap enough. But then on the season finale of the TV series Medium, they ... Read More |
