Search - Mary-Chapin Carpenter :: Shooting Straight in the Dark

Splendid Early Album From Mary Chapin Carpenter

John Kwok | New York, NY USA | 01/29/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Fellow Brunonian Mary Chapin Carpenter is often seen as a country musician, even if many of her songs don't easily fit the stereotypical view of a Nashville music scene dominated by the legacy of Patsy Cline, Hank Williams, and Johnny Cash, to name but a few. Instead, she might more accurately be described as an urban folk musician, whose musical influences range from rock to folk, bluegrass and country. If you regard Mary Chapin Carpenter mainly from this perspective, then you should truly appreciate listening to this early album of hers, which is replete with folkish tunes to hard rocking country/folk ballads that are played on both contemporary pop and country stations. The most popular song from this album, "Down At The Twist and Shout" is a vibrant, zydeco-influenced country rock song which was among her first major hits. However, another, lesser hit, "Can't Take Love For Granted", more accurately encapsulates her introspective, feminist-oriented urban folk tradition which has made her music quite distinctive, but underappreciated, by more traditional country/folk music fans and critics."

Great!

J. McAndrew | USA | 07/24/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

""Going Out Tonight" and "Middle Ground" are especially strong. This CD from 1990 of course includes the popular "Down at the Twist and Shout." I enjoyed being introduced to this at country station KMOM back in 1990. In some ways, 1990 doesn't seem that long ago. I'm curious to check out some of Capenter's more recent work."

Will Appeal to a Variety of Tastes

Robin L. McLaughlin | Seattle, Wa. | 03/16/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Mary Chapin Carpenter is classified as a country artist, and she is, but her music, lyric, and vocal styles range beyond that. Meaning, if you're not a big country fan, (I'm not), give Shooting Straight in the Dark a listen anyway and see what you think. Her deep, rich voice is unusual among female singers and sometimes I simply have to just close my eyes and let it wash over me, it's such a pleasure to listen to.



As others have mentioned, the songs on this album range from ones that fit it on any country radio station, to others that would be comfortably at home on any adult contemporary station. Even though Down at the Twist and Shout isn't a style of music that is my normal fare, I still find myself singing along anyway. Middle Ground is a fantastic song and is a great example of not only MCC's music talents, but also her lyrical storytelling ability. Halley Came to Jackson is another one I always find myself singing along to. But the best song on the album in my opinion, and one which underlines her broad appeal and mastery of song lyrics, is Can't Take Love for Granted. This song is firmly entrenched in my all time favorites playlist.



If you're not sure yet whether or not to take the Mary Chapin Carpenter plunge, Shooting Straight in the Dark is a great place to start."