KEITH, TOBY

From the breezy pop melody of opening cut "I'm Just Talkin' About Tonight" to the near-rap delivery of "I Wanna Talk About Me," it's clear that country traditionalism is not high on Toby Keith's list of priorities for PULL MY CHAIN. While this won't make Keith any friends among the hardcore honky-tonk crowd, that's not his audience to begin with. Those who like their country mixed with pop-rock (the aforementioned album-opener), soul ("I Can't Take You Anywhere"), and delicate, piano-based ballads worthy of Elton John ("Yesterday's Rain," "You Didn't Have as Much to Lose") will find much to admire about Keith's eclecticism. Tying it all together is Keith's friendly, guy-next-door voice, equally able to portray humor, lust, heartache, and pure exuberance. Incidentally, there's more to than Elton John connection than you might think; EJ's longtime lyricist Bernie Taupin contributed to closing rocker "Gimme 8 Seconds."

Estimated despatch 5-10 days after ordering.