Caylee Hammack released her highly anticipated debut album ‘If It Wasn’t For You’ Friday. Hammack chose not to ride the wave of her 2019 Top 40 hit ‘Family Tree’ by putting it near the end of this collection. Instead, she let the music speak for itself, and boy does it ever. The audience might need repeat listens to appreciate all the different facets of this album, from vocals to lyrics to production, and that’s a good thing. There are not many full albums that I would say I’d gladly listen to multiple times, but this is definitely on that short list.
There are three different types of songs that a critic or a record executive look for when compiling an album: radio songs, concert songs and deep cuts. I can honestly say, from my perspective, any song on this album can find success at radio and find their way into a setlist in her concerts. There’s enough repetition to get the audience involved at a concert, but not so much that it makes you think she’s not an inventive writer. If I were a musical director, this album would be easy to direct in concert, from the dramatic pauses to calls for audience participation. Her vocals are dynamic, stellar and don’t take away from the production or the lyrics. Everything blends perfectly.
Standout tracks include ‘Preciatcha’, ‘Just Like You’ and ‘Redhead’, a duet with Reba. ‘Preciatcha’ is a bit of a head scratcher if you’re just looking at the track list but makes perfect sense as soon as you listen to it. As an artist, you need to be able to keep them guessing and compel them to want to listen to find out what’s going on. That’s exactly what this song does. And to protect the curiosity of the song, I won’t tell you what it’s about, just go listen to it. ‘Just Like You’ describes a woman in a bad relationship who wishes she could act the way he does with no remorse. ‘Redhead’ is one of two collaborations on this album, which finds her and Reba describing how their parents weren’t prepared for the eccentricity and power they would bring into the world. I can easily see this song or ‘Mean Something’, a collaboration with Tenille Townes and Ashley McBryde, taking home a win in the Musical Event of the Year category at a future ACM or CMA Awards.
Just because these few songs are highlighted, doesn’t mean you should skip out on the rest of this album. If you’re anything like me, you’ll be grooving along the entire time and even find yourself singing halfway through a brand-new song. People have been waiting for this album for quite a while and it did not disappoint. To listen to ‘If It Wasn’t For You’, click here.
