Uncle Kracker’s first cd in almost 5 years hits stores tomorrow (09/15), and all reports have had the record turned in a couple years ago, rehashed, turned in again and now finally seeing the light of day.  It looks like rumored tracks with Leo Sayer (Happy Hour) and Boyz 2 Men (The One That Got Away)  didn’t make the cut on the retail version I’m reviewing.  I have however heard a 5 song sampler that found it’s way to me last year, that featured Happy Hour, The One That Got Away, Vegas Baby (Should have been in the Hangover) and my favorite track “That’s What’s Happenin” with the great line “I make pop hits, cuz pop checks are bigger”  Gotta love honesty in music artists.  So here’s a track by track review of the retail CD available in stores tomorrow.  The Amazon download version features 3 bonus cuts “Celebrate”, “Josephine” and “Let me Love You”

Overall:  8/10  Very refreshing to hear an artist make an album about being happy and loving their life, too many of today’s artist can only write good songs after they are dumped or something bad happens in their life.  The majority of us don’t need music to make things seem worse, music should enlighten us and make our days brighter and more fun.  Kracker does a great job capturing a fun, feel good vibe on virtually every track on the album.

1.  Smile:  The first single from Happy Hour is one of the few traditional ballads included, and makes for a good first single.

2.  Another Love Song:  Very clever song which disguises itself as a tongue in cheek question about whether the world needs another love song, and in turn really is another love song.  Great song.

3.  My Girlfriend:  If this were a country album, this would be the “Novelty Track” but in pop circles, it could very well be one of the next singles from the album.  Starts out as a song about a broken hearted man, and when we hear “the person she’s meeting isn’t a he” we then get the very poppy upbeat chorus of “My girlfriend’s got a girlfriend now”  and then the typical male response of  “It was cool for a minute, now it’s bringing me down”  Very good song, reminds me of Lit, Blink 182 late 90’s type music.

4.  Living the Dream:  This track takes the chorus from the Tawny Kitean…I mean Whitesnack song “Her I go Again” and gives it an Uncle Kracker touch, making it a song that you can’t help but sing along too.

5.  Corner Bar:  This track amazes me at it’s ability to fit the “happy, fun” vibe of the album.  A song about “Detroit/Michigan’s woes” that still manages to have an “I’m still ok” vibe to it.  “You can take my house, take my car, but you can’t take my seat at the corner bar”

6.  Me Again:  This song is pretty much a country ballad, featuring country singer Jesse Lee dueting with Kracker wishing that the next time an ex falls in love it’s with “me again”

7.   Good To Be Me:  The song that describes the vibe of the album, no real good reason that he feels it, but it’s just good to be Uncle Kracker

8.  I Hate California:  This song is another novelty type pop song, about a girl who leaves and goes to California causing UK to hate Cali.  This song  features some punchlines like “I wish she’s meet Phil Specter and he asks her to come home” Pretty harsh, but funny.  And the line “She’s selling scientology with John, Tommy and Katie, man I bet she’s really got it made”

9.   Hot Mess:  The only song on the album that falls flat, I really like the music that backs it, but the lyrics and chorus seem forced to try to add an element of “Hip-Hop” to the album.

10- Hey Hey Hey:  UK’s second song with the same naming strategy, one of his first singles was “Yeah, Yeah, Yeah” back in 2001.  It’s another great sing along that “the sun is shining on my face and everything will be ok”

11- I’m Not Leaving:  The only track from the 2008 sampler to make the final cut, it’s another good love song in the mold of “Memphis Soul Song” “Rescue” and “Writing It Down”  The kind of song Kracker can release and the AC crowd will eat up and gain him a few hundred k more sales.

12- Main Street:  Originally featured on side 2 of Bob Seger’s classic “Night Moves” UK covers it the way Seger should be covered, without trying to alter the formula much and just singing a great song.  It’s nice to hear a true cover these days, ever since Limp Bizkit’s “Faith” cover, it seems everyone wants to make a song “theirs” rather than just cover a great song and let it stand on it’s own.

In the end, I love the album and haven’t stopped listening to it all weekend, I really wish “Vegas Baby” and “That’s What’s Happening” made the album, but maybe Atlantic has a different strategy for them (Hangover 2?).  After 72 and Sunny and the last time I saw Kracker live, I had almost written him off as being an artist whose music I was into.  I’ve always dug UK as a person and love the realism you feel when he interviews, just started disliking the Ballad filled music he was creating.  With this release Kracker has gotten a fan back and I hope to hear many more album coming from “The Clem” with a fun and happy vibe to them that people can listen to and feel good about their day.