Kellie Pickler's 100 Proof: A Review

Kellie Pickler released her third studio album, 100 Proof, this week.

I’ve been looking forward to this album ever since Pickler finished promoting her last record, which came out in 2009. But the anticipation has really been killing me since “Tough”, the first single from 100 Proof, was released to radio early last summer. It’s been seven long months of reading articles and wondering, but 100 Proof is finally here. And it’s Pickler’s finest work yet.

Though I received my copy in the mail (I went old school for Kellie and bought the physical disc) the afternoon of its release on Tuesday, I waited until the next morning to give it a first listen because I wasn’t feeling well. That is how serious I am about this album. I wanted to be in the right headspace to enjoy it and evaluate it objectively. So I played it for the first time Wednesday morning on the way to work. I sat in the passenger’s seat in complete silence and took in every note, every word, every twangy strum of the banjos and mandolins. I haven’t been able to stop listening to it since.

Like I said, I’ve been looking forward to this album for a long time. I’ve read a lot of interviews where Pickler discussed her goals for the album. She wanted to make a record that reflected her roots, the kind of country music that she grew up with and that inspires her. At one point, the quote was that she wanted to make “dirty” country music that was rough around the edges (just like Pickler describes herself in “Tough”). Considering what massive success Miranda Lambert and the Pistol Annies have found recently doing that, I knew that the time couldn’t be better for Pickler to—as the second track on 100 Proof says—“unlock that honky tonk.”

And that’s the first thought I had when the music started playing. The album opener, “Where’s Tammy Wynette,” has Pickler pining for a honky tonk angel—a reference to Wynette’s collaboration with fellow classic country superstars Dolly Parton and Loretta Lynn—while she sounds a lot like one herself. From there, Pickler gets more fired up and commands, “Don’t tell me country’s gone!” as she blasts her way through the second track, a surefire future hit, “Unlock That Honky Tonk.”

The next two songs see Pickler demonstrating something country gets right every time—heartbreak. With “Stop Cheatin’ On Me” and “Long As I Never See You Again,” Pickler takes us through experiences that would make anyone grow a thick skin, which she tells us all about on “Tough.”

But it’s not all sorrow and misery on 100 Proof. The second half of the album is what happens once you recover from the heartbreak and finally find some peace and happiness [“Turn On the Radio and Dance” and “Rockaway (the Rockin’ Chair Song)”]. Even the tear-jerking track “Mother’s Day”—a sort of follow-up to Pickler’s hit “I Wonder” (from her first album) that explores the way her mother leaving her as a child impacts her in adulthood—has a positive twist to it. And the wonderful thing is that, even though the figurative tune changes in the later songs, the album’s sound is consistent throughout. 100 Proof delivers authentic country music through and through.

If I’ve learned anything about 100 Proof from listening to it nonstop the last couple days, it’s that this is the most personal album Kellie Pickler has released to date—in everything from its sound and style to its subject matter. From start to finish, 100 Proof is the story of what Pickler’s been through since her last album and who she’s grown up to be. It’s safe to say that she has definitely matured in her songwriting, as well as her singing. And this is what I love about albums that aren’t firsts. It’s wonderful and inspiring to see an artist, who clearly spent the start of her career working on her craft and learning about herself and the music business, finally come to a place where she can afford and enjoy being her authentic self as a woman and a musician. It’s a great thing to witness as a fan of the artist and a fan of music.

So, just in case it wasn’t clear, I am so pleased with 100 Proof. It lived up to all the expectations I had for it after reading about the process for so long. The only disappointment is that it is quite short compared to most albums (about 34 minutes), but I’m not going to complain about that. I’m so excited to have more Kellie Pickler music to enjoy, and good country music at that!

My favorites right now (i.e., if I am forced to pick only a few—in reality, all of them are my faves):

- “Where’s Tammy Wynette”

- “Unlock That Honky Tonk”

- “100 Proof” (this is actually the second/current single)

PS – This has been a fantastic country week for me! A new Kellie Pickler album, Carrie Underwood announced that she’s releasing a new single next month, AND I am seeing Miranda Lambert and Chris Young in concert tomorrow night. WOO WOOOOOOO!!!!! Or, better yet, YEEHAW!!!!!!!!!