Beginning Of Things - Charlie Worsham (2017)

I didn’t know anything about Worsham before I spun this today. He appears to be a “Nashville cat,” a gadfly and session player who seems to have worked with everyone as a band member and songwriter. He’s most recently been traveling as a Dierks Bentley sideman.

This heavy schedule must be the reason he only has two records under his own name. This second one is a genuinely delightful collection of upbeat pop country.

Country and pop have always been intertwined, and different generations and schools of thought have had different ideas about how to handle that balance. This is definitely on the modern pop side of the equation, and it succeeds admirably.

Tracks I Liked

Call You Up - A great pastiche of sophisti-pop and plaintive modern country

Only Way To Fly - slightly cryptic bet-on-yourself motivation

The Beginning Of Things - the most poignant track here, nailing the human condition brilliantly