Album review: The Shires - Good Years
In this weeks album review I will be talking about the amazing fourth album from British country duo The Shires called Good Years. The Shires are made up of Ben Earle and Chrissie Rhode from neighbouring counties Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire, this is what formed their name The Shires. You know that there is something special about a band when they are on their fourth album and they are still bringing high quality music and getting a lot of success from it, that is what we have with The Shires. Good Years gave them a fourth top 10 album in the UK and a third number 3 in a row, their debut album Brave peaked at number 10, and they are the best selling British country act ever while also being the first to be signed to a Nashville record label.
As you may know by now I absolutely love country music and I have loved The Shires from the beginning, everything about them is amazing. Their voices are incredible and harmonise perfectly while both being able to steal the limelight on their solos, their songs are varied and cover so many topics over each album and it took no time for me to fall in love with this album just like their other three which get a lot of play, also they stay true to what they want to make British country that is personal and relatable. Good Years is definitely an incredible fourth album delivering everything that the previous three have, a mix of songs led by Ben and Chrissie individually and dueting, a range of topics that are both personal and general plus incredible country music with a few songs sporting bigger choruses that previous albums giving a slightly different sound but they pull it off brilliantly.
My favourite song on this album is About Last Night, which is pure perfection and displays everything that I love about The Shires, the song is about two friends who cross the line to more than friends and are trying to talk about it. This song opens with a big belting chorus with Ben and Chrissie harmonising, setting the song off to a great start, then get a verse from Chrissie, a verse from Ben and a verse where they alternate lines and duet a line after twice over, in between each verse they have the big chorus again. The way they sing the song makes it very even and gives the story from both sides with them acknowledging what has happened and what it means, then a conversational style to the last verse rounds it out perfectly. The song shows off all aspects of their voices with the chorus showing off how big they can be and the upper range in particular with Chrissie, then their solo verses show of their individuality with the joint verse showing the softer side of their voices where Ben's lower register shines through. This song literally gives me chills every time I listen to it with all the emotion they get in and is among their best songs so far.
Honourable mentions for this album go to On The Day I Die and Good Years. I'll start with On The Day I Die, which despite the tittle is a fairly cheery affair being about after someone dies celebrating their life and that they got the one they love right. This is lead by Chrissie with Ben harmonising on the chorus, while it is cheery it is a slower song allowing a slightly sombre feel respecting the fact that there is grief and getting loads of emotion across. This song definitely shows off every aspect of Chrissie's voice amazingly. Next for Good Years which is about living in the moment and creating great memories, this song is lead by Ben with Chrissie harmonising on the choruses and last verse. This is properly upbeat and shows off the variety of Ben's voice with the bigger choruses and the softer verses giving him the opportunity to show it off, also getting all the fun emotions into the song aswell.
Time for the ratings for each song on the album;
1. Lightning Strikes - 8.5/10
2. On The Day I Die - 9.5/10
3. Good Years - 9.5/10
4. No Secrets - 9/10
5. About Last Night - 10/10
6. New Year - 9/10
7. Only Always - 8.5/10
8. Independence Day - 9/10
9. Thank You Whiskey - 9/10
10. People Like Us - 8.5/10
11. Better Place - 8.5/10
12. Crazy Days - 8.5/10
I would love to know your thoughts on The Shires and what your favourite song on this album is.
My favourite song on this album is About Last Night, which is pure perfection and displays everything that I love about The Shires, the song is about two friends who cross the line to more than friends and are trying to talk about it. This song opens with a big belting chorus with Ben and Chrissie harmonising, setting the song off to a great start, then get a verse from Chrissie, a verse from Ben and a verse where they alternate lines and duet a line after twice over, in between each verse they have the big chorus again. The way they sing the song makes it very even and gives the story from both sides with them acknowledging what has happened and what it means, then a conversational style to the last verse rounds it out perfectly. The song shows off all aspects of their voices with the chorus showing off how big they can be and the upper range in particular with Chrissie, then their solo verses show of their individuality with the joint verse showing the softer side of their voices where Ben's lower register shines through. This song literally gives me chills every time I listen to it with all the emotion they get in and is among their best songs so far.
Honourable mentions for this album go to On The Day I Die and Good Years. I'll start with On The Day I Die, which despite the tittle is a fairly cheery affair being about after someone dies celebrating their life and that they got the one they love right. This is lead by Chrissie with Ben harmonising on the chorus, while it is cheery it is a slower song allowing a slightly sombre feel respecting the fact that there is grief and getting loads of emotion across. This song definitely shows off every aspect of Chrissie's voice amazingly. Next for Good Years which is about living in the moment and creating great memories, this song is lead by Ben with Chrissie harmonising on the choruses and last verse. This is properly upbeat and shows off the variety of Ben's voice with the bigger choruses and the softer verses giving him the opportunity to show it off, also getting all the fun emotions into the song aswell.
Time for the ratings for each song on the album;
1. Lightning Strikes - 8.5/10
2. On The Day I Die - 9.5/10
3. Good Years - 9.5/10
4. No Secrets - 9/10
5. About Last Night - 10/10
6. New Year - 9/10
7. Only Always - 8.5/10
8. Independence Day - 9/10
9. Thank You Whiskey - 9/10
10. People Like Us - 8.5/10
11. Better Place - 8.5/10
12. Crazy Days - 8.5/10
I would love to know your thoughts on The Shires and what your favourite song on this album is.
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