Everything Is Fine

With a few slowly-drawled, deep-toned syllables, Josh Turner can obliterate the lines between traditional and modern country. 2007’s Everything is Fine is an album noteworthy for its choice batch of tunes and strong sense of artistic identity, but first and foremost it’s Turner’s voice that’s central to the music. His richly emotive bass tones equally convey the passion of “Firecracker” (a salacious duet with Trisha Yearwood), the contentment of “Soulmate,” and the playfulness of “Trailerhood.” The album’s tracks are steeped in local color, with “South Carolina Low Country” offering a nostalgic glimpse of Turner’s earlier days. Josh reaches far back into country’s heritage for “The Longer the Waiting (The Sweeter the Kiss),” invoking centuries-old Anglo-American balladry in its words and melody. As in his previous releases, the echoes of Johnny Cash and Waylon Jennings hover in the background without crowding out Turner’s own sense of style. Frank Rogers’ acoustic-oriented production adds to the robust yet clean-cut feel of the tracks. Without overstating the case, Turner’s Everything is Fine is nearly flawless.