Deana Carter’s ninth release The Chain is a collection of rock and country classics with an amazing ensemble of guest musicians who are featured on the songs they made popular over three decades ago. Imagine an album where Paul Simon, Dolly Parton, Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson, and Fred Carter, Jr. are all gathered together to perform on the songs they made popular at the height of their respective careers and you get an idea of what this album is all about.

Some purists will roll their eyes when they hear about another album where classic tunes are updated and rerecorded, and I can understand their point of view to a degree, but those people need to be reminded that music has always been an oral and instrumental tradition where songs are passed down and reinterpreted from one generation to the next. In my opinion, revisiting the classics of music isn’t nearly a big a sin as when they turned “The Dukes of Hazard “ into a film, or when they remade “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” for the third time. One of my favorite Bob Dylan songs is “Lay Lady Lay,” and I can’t stress how hot it is to hear Deana Carter’s sweet and breathy voice singing Dylan’s sincere words of longing. The song is updated with a nice sharp drum beat, and the pedal steel is as haunting as ever while the guitar has been electrified giving it a little more attack. Paul Simon and Fred Carter Jr. share guitar duty on “The Boxer” while Deana and Paul’s son Harper trade off on the vocals. This track remains true to the original Simon and Garfunkel version with the addition of some improvised keyboard in the chorus and accordion on the bridge.

It’s a real treat to hear Kris Kristofferson performing with Carter on “Help Me Make It Through The Night.” His voice has an earthy and raw quality, and it contrasts well with Carter’s clear and sugary voice. “Love Is Like A Butterfly” is a little more up-beat this time around with a more modern drum arrangement and a nice addition of descending bells on the chorus. Carter trades verses with Dolly Parton, whose voice is irresistible with its range of clarity and breathiness.

If every country album had the soul of this release I’d probably be a bigger fan of country music. The tracks have a simple arrangement and are reminiscent of a time before the overproduced and, in my opinion, annoying style of today’s popular country music. Listening to The Chain is more like being a fly on the wall while old family friends get together and play songs by the Franklin stove in a mountain cabin.

Artist: Deana Carter
Title: The Chain
Genre: Country
Label: Vanguard Records
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Tracks:
01. Crying
02. Help Me Make It Through The Night
03. Love Is Like A Butterfly
04. The Boxer
05. Lay Lady Lay
06. The Weight
07. I’m Not Lisa
08. Swinging
09. On The Road Again
10. Good Hearted Woman
11. He Still Thinks I Care
12. Old Man

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- Chad Adams