Batson's Blog

It's almost impossible to find Jennifer Nettles without a smile on her face, but on her new album, That Girl , she turns the happiness down a notch. When I first heard that Nettles was coming out with a solo album, I fully expected to hear a bunch of pop-infused country jams. Well that theory was totally off base. There aren’t very many pop songs on this album – not in the way “Like Sugar” was. What That Girl does have is emotion. It’s dripping with emotion. It’s reflective and covers a range of topics, but most songs have roots in love. Songs that may be generic for other singers end up being impressive pieces of work when Nettles gets involved. The writing on That Girl probably isn’t as amazing as some of Sugarland’s best work, but they’re still better than your typical pop song. Falling Jennifer Nettles starts off this album with a light, nice, country sound that features the impressive range of her powerful vocals. Just like some of the greats in the music in...

Jennifer Nettles is going solo. So long to Sugarland and hello to new adventures. When I heard that Nettles was going solo, I was excited. She has great range and a charming twang to her vocals. I always find it funny when a singer, who is pretty much the main singer, or only singer of the group, goes solo – like Gwen Stefani, Rob Thomas, Justin Timberlake and Beyonce. They were pretty much singing 85% of the songs they churned out anyway. I assumed we’d be getting some of the same kind of music from Nettles that we got from Sugarland. Now I’m not so sure. Nettles debuted her new song -- "That Girl" -- almost two weeks ago on Good Morning America and it was....different. It’s described as a follow-up, of sorts, to Dolly Parton’s “Jolene.” It's not the catchiest of songs, but I do like it.