Black in the Saddle

by Cowboy Troy

Overview

No matter how hard he tried, Cowboy Troy never quite shook the impression that his 2005 debut, Loco Motive, was a novelty -- and he tried hard, working the record for a long time, eventually scoring a plum gig as a co-host of CMT's singing competition Nashville Star, which raised his profile considerably and revealed an amiable, relaxed charisma unheard on his desperate-to-please debut. But no matter what he did, he never erased the perception that his country-rap fusion was no more than shtick, quite likely because the hammy, ham-handed Loco Motive was played entirely for laughs, and his clumsy rapping suggested that he didn't have the skills to really succeed as a rapper, so he turned toward novelty instead. Troy intends to blast these preconceptions out of the water on his second album, Black in the Saddle, whose defiant title alone suggests the aggression of this record even if it doesn't hint at how truly hard this hits. Where Loco Motive was a conscious pop crossover, the kind of record that can score you a gig on a national TV show, Black in the Saddle is lean and mean, targeted at eternal adolescents who love wrestling, beer, and hick chicks in equal measure. If the debut sounded like a throwback to 1990, this sophomore effort is a throwback to 2000, the era when rap-rock ruled, since this not only is fueled by heavy metal guitars, it also has a dose of that genre's self-pitying angst ("Take Your Best Shot Now," "Paranoid Like Me"). This gives Black in the Saddle a sonic cohesion -- only interrupted by the pure glitter-ball disco of "Blackneck Boogie," a blatant and not entirely unenjoyable stab at a dance craze -- yet it also fits Cowboy Troy's newly dexterous verbal attack. He rarely stumbles and never sounds stiff, which is a considerably improvement over the awkward flow on the debut, but he still has a considerable Achilles' heel in his tin ear. His delivery may have improved but he still is spitting out some of the goofiest lines to ever be uttered by a rapper. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Product Details

Release Date:	06/05/2007
Label:	Warner Bros./Raybaw
UPC:	0093624323327

Tracks

1. Buffalo Stampede
2. Lock Me Up
3. How Can You Hate Me?
4. Take Your Best Shot Now
5. Hick Chick
6. Man with the Microphone
7. My Bowtie
8. Cruise Control
9. Paranoid Like Me ('Tis the Season of Discontent)
10. Blackneck Boogie
11. Hick Chick
12. I Play Chicken with the Train

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Cowboy Troy   Primary Artist
Angela Hacker   Primary Artist,Vocal Harmony
M. Shadows   Primary Artist
J-Money   Primary Artist
James Otto   Primary Artist
Jonathan Yudkin   Dobro,Fiddle,Strings,Mandolin,Banjo
J.B. Money   Vocal Harmony,Guitar (Acoustic)
Adam Shoenfeld   Guitar (Acoustic),Guitar (Electric)
Steve Brewster   Drums,Shaker,Percussion
Larry Franklin   Fiddle
Jeffrey Roach   Piano,Timpani,Keyboards,Synthesizer
Michael Rojas   Piano,Keyboards,Organ (Hammond)
James Pennebaker   Pedal Steel,Guitar (Electric)
Randy Kohrs   Dobro,Lap Steel Guitar
Mike Brignardello   Bass
Glenn Worf   Bass
Larry Babb   Drums
Brian Barnett   Drums
Gary Burnette   Guitar (Electric)
Jeff Armstrong   Synthesizer
Ethan Pilzer   Bass

Technical Credits

Jonathan Yudkin   Composer,String Arrangements
Mike Bradford   Composer
John Netti   Mixing Assistant
Max Abrams   Composer
Paige Conners   Production Coordination
Brian K. Nutter   Composer
Julian Bunetta   Mixing,Producer
Trish Townsend   Stylist
Wayne Brezinka   Art Direction,Package Design
J.B. Money   Producer
Brooke Ludwick   Creative Director
Brian Nutter   Composer
Troy Coleman   Composer
Adam Shoenfeld   Composer
Angie Aparo   Composer
Cowboy Troy   Composer
Fred Archambault   Engineer
John Rich   Composer
Lowell Reynolds   Mixing Assistant,Assistant Engineer
Bobby Pinson   Composer
Bob DiPiero   Composer