As someone with a diverse music taste, especially when it comes to Country music, I’ve found that it’s still easier to discuss what I don’t like within the genre, rather than what I do like.
When approached with the question, “What type of Country do you listen to?”, 90’s (of course) always comes to mind, as well as the Texas music scene. But then my brain goes “Oh! I like this as well,” and then I find myself on a 3-minute spiel about this project from this artist and so on. Maybe it just boils down to the fact that I’m a very passionate Country music fan, but regardless, I think I’ve finally found the one word (well, three words…one artist) that fits my taste perfectly. And that, my friends, is… old Jason Aldean.
It’s not to say that every song from his first few records were great (although, they pretty much are) and it’s not to say that he’s no longer a great artist, but I’ll be damned, there’s just something about “The Truth” and “Why” and “Tattoos On This Town” and “Dirt Road Anthem” and “Night Train” and..okay, let me stop. You get the point…
But aside from those singles, Aldean probably has the best deep-cuts of any artist in Country music, and while I’m not sure who I’d put in second, I don’t think their catalog would come close.
Aldean’s first, self-titled album, came out in 2005 and it features his first No. 1 single, “Why,” as well as “Amarillo Sky” and “Hicktown.” Some notable deep-cuts off this album to listen to if you haven’t are: “You’re The Love I Wanna Be In,” “Even If I Wanted To,” and “She Loved Me.”
In may of 2007, Aldean followed up his self-titled record with “Relentless.” The album debuted at #4 on the Billboard 200 and at #1 on the Top Country albums chart. When looking back at his discography, this album didn’t produce any massive singles at Country radio but it still featured solid deep-cuts such as “Back In This Cigarette,” “Do You Wish It Was Me” and “Who’s Kissing You Tonight.“
Moving on to “Wide Open,” his third studio album from 2009, this is where Jason Aldean really started to take off as an artist…
Jason and co. decided the lead single off this record would be the rockin’, “She’s Country,” which I’m not sure you’ll ever catch an Aldean show without hearing this one in the setlist. Wide Open produced three more singles, “Big Green Tractor,” “The Truth,” and “Crazy Town.” Aside from the massive success those singles had at Country radio, I’d almost go as far as to say the deep-cuts, such as “On My Highway,” “Keep The Girl,” “This I Gotta See” and “Love Was Easy” stand out to me the most. All-in-all, it’s a damn good album.
Alright, arguably Jason’s best album to date – ”My Kinda Party.” Almost 15 years ago, Aldean put out the album that made him thee biggest act in Country music at the time. It was responsible for five monstrous singles:
- My Kinda Party
- Don’t You Wanna Stay ft. Kelly Clarkson (Why there’s no music video for this, I’ll forever wonder.)
- Dirt Road Anthem
- Tattoos On This Town
- Fly Over States
Truth be told, there could’ve been four more singles from this record and they probably all would’ve gone No. 1.
Phenomenal deep-cuts:
- See You When I See You (Should’ve been a radio single and I’ll die on that hill).
- Country Boy’s World
- Texas Was You
- Just Passing Through
- I Ain’t Ready To Quit
“Night Train” was a great follow up to My Kinda Party and also produced five big-time singles, including “When She Says Baby,” and the Eric Church/Luke Bryan collaboration, “The Only Way I Know.” The deep-cuts to listen to from this record include:
- Staring At The Sun
- Walking Away
- Water Tower
- Talk
- I Don’t Do Lonely Well
Old Boots, New Dirt (2014) Deep Cuts:
- Tryin’ To Love Me
- Don’t Change Gone
- Miss That Girl
- Show You Off
I know we live in a time where double-albums seem to be the new “cool” thing to do. Even with that said, I don’t think anyone in mainstream Country can touch Aldean’s deep-cuts. Check out some of the tracks I name-dropped here: