Sugarland - LIVE on the Inside Review

Taking their cue from a couple of recent successful rock bands (AC/DC and Eagles), Sugarland has chosen to release their latest album exclusively at Wal Mart.  Now, I'm NO fan of Wal Mart, but I am a fan of Sugarland so I took my little self down there to snag a copy of this CD/DVD set, LIVE on the Inside.

LIVE on the Inside, the CD,  is just what is sounds like, a compilation of concert performances from places like Lexington, KY;  Alberta, Canada; Austin, TX; Atlanta, GA and Minneapolis, MN.  What might surprise you about it is all the covers of well-known rock artist songs included in this set.  It really shouldn't surprise, though, because their last studio album Love on the Inside, was all over the place musically and rock influences were stamped all over it.  In fact, right before jumping right into a cover of Eddie Vedder's Better Man, Nettles tells the crowd she's spotted two ladies down front wearing Led Zeppelin and Clash tee shirts and she loves that because, "it's all about all kinds of music up here in Sugarland".

The CD opens with one of my favorite Sugarland songs, Love, with its slow building crescendo, at first featuring just she on vocals and Kristian Bush on guitar, then swelling to a full on anthem trying to define the undefinable.  By the time Bush chimes in with his baritone at the end, everyone is on their feet and swaying.

Edie Brickell recorded Circle in 1988 for her and her New Bohemians excellent mega-selling album Shooting Rubber Bands at the Stars and Nettles gives it that same folksy charm almost channeling Brickell.

Sex on Fire is a Kings of Leon song, appearing on their current album Only by the Night.  Nettles and Bush slow it down to an acoustic ballad, losing none of it's power as an ode to red burning passion.

They also cover Beyonce's Irreplaceable, adding mandolins, speeding it up some and telling dude to "get out" like only a country girl can.  Then there's R.E.M.s The One I Love, turned from alt rock to simmering, aching ballad.  Finally, they shout out to the B-52's, covering that universal dance staple, Love Shack.

And not ONE of these covers is inferior to the original.  In fact, I'd guess the artists who first recorded them would be very, very pleased.

Of course they perform their own high quality material, too. In addition to the aforementioned Love, plopped dead center of this set is the irresistible All I Want to Do.  Then comes their current single Joey fronted by a cover of R.E.M.'s Nightswimming, a song that ties in nicely with the ballad of love lost in the most permanent way.  The CD ends with the hugely popular Nettles penned Stay.

If that weren't treat enough, the DVD is pristinely produced, filmed in High Definition at Rupp Area in Lexington, KY.  Watching this one gets a sense of what Sugarland is about as Nettles works the crowd and that's performing live, connecting with their fans.  They seem to enjoy puttin' on the ritz tirelessly and that, along with excellent camera work will draw you in, making you feel a part of the experience even as you sit on your sofa holding your beer.  This 15 song concert repeats only five songs from the CD, the rest of the set covering their three previously released albums, mostly the tremendous songs from the Love on the Inside CD.  Sugarland brings the country to the rock n' roll and so obviously have a great time doing it.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Jennifer Nettles is the preeminent female voice in country music today and very few can bring passion to a lyric the way she does.  She digs the emotion out of every song and makes us feel what she's feeling. The perfect example is Joey.  You'd have to have embalming fluid flowing through your veins to not be moved by the pain she emotes regretting she didn't somehow prevent the death of her former flame.  Stay just might actually have you feeling sorry for the "other" woman.  Kristian Bush adds pristine showboating musicianship and affecting growling vocals often perfectly complimenting Nettles' big country twang.

Some have said Kristian Bush might be Andrew Ridgley to her George Michael, but nothing could be further from the truth.  They seem to feed off each other as he brings perfectly complimentary vocals, song writing prowess and unbridled enthusiasm to the game.

In fact, Sugarland excels everywhere a band like Gloriana fails. They bring real emotion to real songs and don't let the production get in the way of the music.  There's nothing slick about these guys.  And they prove they can take any song and make it their own.

LIVE on the Inside is like getting a hold of your dream car.  Once you start it up and take it for a drive, you might have a hard time turning it off and putting it away for a while, even for supper. So, go on down to your local Wal Mart, lay down your $12, then walk away smiling at how you ripped THEM off.  GRADE: A