Almost Goodbye (CD - 1993)

Personnel: Mark Chesnutt (vocals, acoustic guitar); Pat Flynn, Glenn Gordon, Biff Watson (acoustic guitar); Brent Rowan (electric guitar); Paul Franklin (steel guitar); Rob Hajacos (fiddle); The Nashville String Machine (strings); Wayne Toups (accordion); Pig Robbins (piano); Steve Nathan, Matt Rollings (keyboards); David Hungate, Bob Wray (bass); Owen Hale, Paul Leim (drums); Lynn Peterzell (percussion); Bergen White, Jana King, Lisa Silver, Curtis Young, John Wesley Ryles, Tom Flora, Christopher Harris, Dennis Wilson (background vocals).

Recorded at Javelina Studios, Nashville, Tennessee.

There's some weak material on Mark Chesnutt's third release, though he still sings them like the most romantic Western swinger since George Strait. "Almost Goodbye" is backed by a string arrangement as powerful as the one on "I'll Think of Something," but songs like "Texas Is Bigger" and "My Heart's Too Broke" aren't the attention-grabbers "Old Flames Have New Names" and "Bubba Shot the Jukebox" were. One of Chesnutt's biggest strengths is his casual delivery. "Almost Goodbye" and "It Sure Is Monday" both topped the singles charts. ~ Brian Mansfield

Weak material weighs down Chesnutt's third release, though he still sings them like the most romantic western swinger since George Strait. "Almost Goodbye" is backed by a string arrangement as powerful as the one on "I'll Think of Something," but songs like "Texas Is Bigger" and "My Heart's Too Broke" aren't the attention-grabbers "Old Flames Have New Names" and "Bubba Shot the Jukebox" were. One of Chesnutt's biggest strengths is his casual delivery, but Almost Goodbye sounds too easy. "Almost Goodbye" and "It Sure Is Monday" both topped the singles charts. ~ Brian Mansfield minimize