People have so many differing opinions on Morgan Wallen, but one thing’s inarguable: He’s captured something special in the heart of mainstream country music fans.
His latest album Dangerous: The Double Album is one of the most successful albums in country music history, breaking records all over the place.
And while the songwriting is better than most of what you hear in the mainstream, many of the songs on the new album are just too “pop” sounding for the more traditional country lovers to enjoy. That has been, and will continue to be, the biggest gripe about Morgan with traditional country fans… production.
Enter the Dangerous Session.
The mega-star in the making sat down to record stripped-down versions of some of the album’s biggest hits and, honestly, they’re so much better than some of the pop-leaning album cuts for me. Taking the fluff out, removing the trap beats and snap tracks, breaking out the acoustic guitars and just letting Morgan sing is the real show of his talent as an artist and performer.
Does stripping it down to the bare bones make you a country music superstar? Probably not. Does that pop-production expand Morgan’s audience and give him the opportunity for radio hit after radio hit? Definitely.
That being said, I’m still not alone in this…
Here’s the best examples of Dangerous Session versions being better than the album cuts.
“865”
This is by far my favorite song from the album. Great writing, catchy melody, an Eric Church reference, I mean what more can you expect from the guy? While the album version is probably the most country sounding, it’s just that much better stripped down like this.
“Sand In My Boots”
This was by far the biggest winner of any song off the album. Fans quickly compared the story (and kind of the melody) to a modern-day “Anything But Mine,” and while the production on this one isn’t bad, Morgan brings the already nostalgic song to another level with this solo performance on keys.
“Wasted on You”
This is where the magic of the Dangerous Sessions is exemplified. “Wasted on You” is a straight-up pop song on the album, but here, we get the opposite.
I mean, it’s not Tyler Childers, but come on, this performance really shows off Morgan’s voice better than just any other song on the album.
“Somebody’s Problem”
This is probably my favorite step up of any song when comparing the album version vs these ones. My fiancée always loved this one and I couldn’t quite wrap my head around it until I heard this cut.
Why can’t this be the official? I’ll never understand…
