Toby Keith
If only the whole of Toby Keith's fourth major-label album were as memorable as "The Lonely," the haunting, hard-to-forget lament that opens the set, this Oklahoma native and former semipro footballer would have a 10-song touchdown. Conjuring up ethereal images of brokenhearted lovers and losers reveling in their pain, the tune—the only one in the lineup not written or cowritten by Keith—could be termed Nashville noir, and it makes everything following it pale by comparison. To be sure, the singer-guitarist's pleasant, vibrato-heavy baritone imbues the remaining cuts with a sturdy, macho assuredness, but most of the tracks fall into the generic heap of slick, assembly-line songs that litter today's country chart. And it's a pity since Keith has a proven songwriting track record with past hits like "Should've Been a Cowboy" and "You Ain't Much Fun" among others. Hopefully his next project will prove that his writer's cramp comes just once in a Blue Moon. (A&M Nashville)
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