Man Like Me (CD - 2005)

Personnel: Bobby Pinson (vocals, acoustic guitar); Billy Panda (acoustic guitar, mandocello, mandolin); David Grissom, Troy Lancaster (electric guitar); Russ Pahl (steel guitar, dobro); Glen Duncan (fiddle); John Catchings (cello); Mike Rojas (keyboards); Mark Hill (bass instrument); Brian Pruitt (drums, percussion); Eric Darken (percussion); Bart Busch (background vocals).

Bobby Pinson isn't quite a roughneck rebel, isn't quite a contemporary country crooner. He falls between those two extremes on Man Like Me, his 2005 debut for RCA Nashville, and the results are, perhaps not unsurprisingly, a little confused, alternating between ragged but right confessionals and cloying, calculated sap. This is a record that begins with heavy, distorted guitars on the fist-pumping "I'm Fine Either Way" and ends with an unlisted bonus track of a plaintive acoustic reading of the schoolhouse standard "Jesus Loves Me," complete with a group of kids murmuring along on the fadeout. Throughout Man Like Me, Pinson yo-yos between these two extremes, at times writing good, restless numbers like "Nothin' Happens in This Town" or the carefully observed "Ford Fairlane," but just as often penning cloying ditties like the born-again anthem "One More Believer" or the string of clichés on "Don't Ask Me How I Know," where he passes on such wisdom as "Sell your truck while it's still running" and "Don't drink the water in Mexico." To his credit, Pinson co-writes all of the 11 songs on his debut, and these songs have the seeds of an interesting persona: he has an appealingly ragged voice that fits the rougher side of his material, and with producer Joe Sciafe, he can make some lean, vigorous music. The problem is, he sounds like he's trying to cover too many bases on Man Like Me, to try to be a rowdy outlaw while preserving a church-going image. Plenty of artists have partied on Saturday night and repented Sunday morning, but Pinson has the tendency on Man Like Me to sound too studied on good-time tunes like "Started a Band" and on his sentimental songs. At his best, he dispenses with that kind of commercial condescension and reveals himself to be an observant songwriter and a captivating singer. He doesn't hit the mark enough on Man Like Me to make it a success, but he hits it often enough to make you wonder where he's going to go next. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

He may sport a cowboy hat on the cover of MAN LIKE ME and bear his share of twang in his sound, but Bobby Pinson is clearly a rocker at heart. MAN LIKE ME runs on thick layers of distorted guitars and Pinson's own rough-hewn vocals. While the anthemic feel of some of the tunes might connect with contemporary country fans, Pinson's approach is a blend of ragged-but-right, Steve Earle-influenced country rock and the "heartland rock" sound of John Mellencamp, John Fogerty, Bryan Adams, et al. While the Nashville-based performer is full of passion on the detailed narratives of "I Thought That's Who I Was" and "I'm Fine Either Way," such tracks as "Started a Band" show that he's got a well developed sense of humor about himself. Closing the album with a poignant solo acoustic rendering of a spiritual tune, Pinson reveals the sensitivity lurking beneath his brashness and vigor, fleshing out the emotional landscape of MAN LIKE ME. minimize