Country music

Bentley has been releasing albums for a decade and has achieved substantial success. Rock critic Ken Tucker says the singer's latest album, Home, is an attempt to raise his profile to a new level, with mixed results.

Fricke was one of the most popular country-music vocalists of the 1980s/ Between 1982 and 1984, she scored six No. 1 hits. Since then, her career has dimmed, but now she's back, having arranged some of her biggest hits with bluegrass instrumentation.

Owens may be best known as the smiling country singer who co-hossted Hee Haw, but he also sang original tunes. A new collection, Buck Owens: Bound for Bakersfield, goes back to the days before Owens made it big.

Four the Record is Miranda Lambert's first new collection of songs after her 2009 album Revolution. Since then, Lambert has quickly become one of Nashville's most prominent stars. But rock critic Ken Tucker says Lambert is still not a typical country act.

Lynne's new album Revelation Road contains both a torchy pop ballad and a startlingly direct song about her parents' murder-suicide. Rock critic Ken Tucker says the album is an excellent showcase for Lynne's sharp songwriting and fantastic voice.

The Lost Notebooks of Hank Williams features a number of major country and rock musicians, who craft songs around lyrics that Hank Williams left behind in four notebooks when he died in 1953. Bob Dylan, Alan Jackson, Jack White and Norah Jones are among the artists on the album.

In the liner notes to his new album, Ghost on the Canvas, Campbell writes that it's the last studio record he plans to make after being diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease. Rock critic Ken Tucker says the album "has a melancholy air of valedictory about it."

Bridges won an Oscar in 2009 for his performance as a broken-down country singer in the film Crazy Heart, for which her performed his own vocals. He also sings as himself on a new self-titled album.

Singer Blake Shelton scored his fourth consecutive No. 1 country hit with "Honey Bee," from his just-released album. Rock critic Ken Tucker says the album shows Shelton's playful, unpredictable side.

The star is admired for his guitar playing, and for the way he mixes elements of country and rock music without pandering to either audience. Ken Tucker says that Paisley's new album, This Is Country Music, is less a manifesto than an enjoyable way to hear him expand his fan base.
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