WALKER HAYES

                                                               "Drinking Songs" 

                                                               Monument Records

With his highly-anticipated Country Stuff The Album releasing in just a few weeks (1/21/22), Walker Hayes continues to tease what we can expect from it with the release of “Drinking Songs.”

Hayes has always been a master wordsmith since his earliest releases, leaning on the witty side but then smashing each memorable line into an even more memorable melody that stays with you for days. That’s exactly what he’s showing us again on “Drinking Songs.”

The song, written by Hayes with Jordan Gray, steers slightly away from the purely pop laden loops and beats that we’ve gotten from “U Gurl” and “Fancy Like,” and goes into more of a grit fueled, country sound that gives modern taste to a clap along groove that plucks just as much influence from the namecheck throughout the song of Hank Jr.

Ironically, the alcohol-free Hayes, takes you straight into the bar with him through lyrics which describe the scene (and his emotions) perfectly: smoke rings in the dark room, a sad song on the jukebox, a strong drink on the rocks, and a broken heart sitting on the barstool.

Whereas the first verse sets the immediate scene, Hayes uses the second verse to focus on how those who are the closest to him are trying to help with their advice on getting over his broken heart; “My momma put me on a prayer list, brother says only time will fix.”

However, the true catch to song is revealed in the chorus where Hayes states that being exactly where he’s at is the cure that he’s truly needing; a cure that comes through a glass of bourbon and a Bocephus song, the two things that never let him down as he boldly declares in the hook – drinking and drinking songs!

Walker Hayes immediately became a mainstream radio sensation with “Fancy Like,” but between “U Gurl,” “Country Stuff,” “Drinking Songs,” and his current charting single “AA,” he’s continuously proven that he is clearly in the zone right now and is gearing up to release an album that isn’t going to have a skip song in the bunch.

(Review Written By: Jeffrey Kurtis)

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