I'll wind up forgiving you, and probably loving you for the rest of my life...

Ah, she shows such promise. In 2004 Gretchen Wilson showed up with "Redneck Woman", smashing down the all-male club that country radio had been for over a year.Her first album, Here For The Party, was a cool mix was honky-tonk rave-ups and tearjerkers that showcased Gretchen's rural yet powerful voice. With sales of over 4 million and 4 top-5 country singles from that album, expectations were high for her second album. Well, if there's a classic case of sophomore jinx, this is it. All Jacked Up seems like a cariacture of the white-trash chic girl Wilson won me over with Here For The Party. Starting with the swing rave-up "All Jacked Up", which ruins a great groove on a apparent advertisement to driving, fighting, whatever under intoxication (no I don't buy the tag-end "don't drink and drive" throw-in at the end). Even worse is "California Girls", which Wilson feels the need to trash anything that isn't hillbilly (one of the verses says it's fine for Dolly Parton to have surgery but not for others to do it). That road is trolled again on "Politically Uncorrect" which is the obligatory drag-out-the-country-icon track, this time with Merle Haggard, and basically playing the faux-victim card like everyone is burning the flag and spitting on soldiers these days. "Skoal Ring" seems like a track on a forthcoming Jerry Springer Show soundtrack, and "Full Time Job" has a good sentiment (giving props to moms) but it's a little bland and banal.

Now there are a few glimmers of hope to be found here, mostly in the ballads, with "I Don't Feel Like Loving You Today" and "Raining On Me" regaining the heartbroken beauty of gems on her first set like "When You Think About Cheatin'". Also the slow burn of "He Ain't Even Cold Yet" proves winning. "Not Bad For A Bartender" would be pretty cheesy if it weren't for Wilson's delivery and knowledge that she really did live the rags-to-riches life that the song describes. And the addition of the hidden track, a cover of Billie Holliday's "Good Morning Heartache" shows talent waiting to be expunged of the parody-style aping a goood chunk of the album exudes.

The not-so-successful status of the album (it was a #1 album, but a quarter of the sales so far, with only one top-10 song to boast from it) will possibly herald a back-to-basics tack for the next, or possibly even more pandering to the white bread-neck audience they were going after. Hopefully with such a voice as Wilson's, I'm hopin' for the former.

Grade:C
Best Cuts: "I Don't Feel Like Lovin' You Today", "Raining On Me"
Weakest Links: "Politically Uncorrect", "California Girls"

All Jacked Up hit #1 pop and #1 country albums.
"All Jacked Up" hit #8 country, and #42 pop.
"I Don't Feel Like Loving You Today" made #22 country, #109 pop.
"Politically Uncorrect" made #23 country.
"California Girls" hit #25 country, and #121 pop.

You can pick up a copy of All Jacked Up at site like here and here.

You can listen to the track "Raining On Me" by clicking here (rightclick to download it in another window).

And here's the video for the first single, "All Jacked Up".