McCreery’s debut doesn’t surprise, but certainly doesn’t disappoint


17-year-old Scotty McCreery captured the hearts of America this spring with his trademark bass-laden country voice that would make any grown man jealous.

This May, he was crowned the most recent winner of the American Idol title and has since become country music’s latest media darling, embarking on a 44-city tour with the Idols 2011 Summer Tour.

Somehow, he found time to record his debut album, Clear As Day, in the five months since his victory. The result is a pop-country crossover album that does not surprise, but certainly does not disappoint.

On Clear As Day, McCreery delivers an album about girls, family and small-town life, building upon the same simple country-boy persona that won him the Idol title in the first place.  The album delivers sweet, emotional ballads such as the title track “Clear As Day”, and up-tempo, quintessential country anthems, such as “Water Tower Town,” in which he sings about everything from Friday night football to pick-up trucks.

Though McCreery and his team have injected an undeniable pop flavor, likely to have a larger commercial appeal, the singer still fully delivers on his country sound. Instrumentally, the album pulls no punches in its country influence, featuring banjos and fiddles, and highlighting slide guitar on almost every track.

Other highlights include one of the album’s singles, “Out of Summertime”, which tells the tale of a summertime love gone sour in the fall, and features a sugary-sweet hook (“Oh, she could’ve been mine, but we ran out of summertime,” McCreery sings) that will be playing in your mind long after the song ends.

Of course, this wouldn’t be a McCreery album review without making mention of his beautiful, baritone country-crooner vocals, which are best showcased on the aforementioned “Clear As Day.” The song is a slow, reflective ballad that takes an emotional, unexpected turn at the end.

Though the record has other similar ballads, McCreery shines on the up-tempo tracks that show off his fun-loving side, like in “Better Than That”, in which McCreery comes off sounding like Taylor Swift’s male counterpart — you can easily imagine this song on country radio today.

If anything, the album only falls short on the tracks when McCreery is trying to pull off a maturity that he doesn’t (and shouldn’t) yet possess.“Back on the Ground” has McCreery singing about coming back home, catching up with his ‘mama’ and reflecting on his youth, when he couldn’t wait to leave town.

It’s a lovely song, but doesn’t really work with him still in the prime of his youth.  It’s quite nonsensical for McCreery, who travels with his mother everywhere he goes (including the Idol tour), to sing this song.

Of course, between the standout tracks and the nonsensical ones, there are a few that remain forgettable thanks to the overuse of country clichés. “Dirty Dishes,” yet another sweet ballad about mama, tells an overly sappy story about his mother thanking God for her kids and her dirty dishes. While it sounds nice in theory, it becomes quite redundant and formulaic.

McCreery delivers a solid debut, easily akin to other male country stars of the moment. If you’re looking for a fun, down-home summertime album sprinkled with ballads about family and heartache, Clear As Day is the one for you. It doesn’t deliver anything groundbreaking to the country world, but it fits right in and provides 41 minutes of pleasant country fare.