Kenny Chesney - Be As You Are: Songs from an Old Blue Chair

Kenny Chesney's most personal album yet. While not "chock full of hits," "Be As You Are" is a very good album and one that gets better each time you listen to it.

After 10 years in the country music business, Kenny Chesney figures he can afford to take a chance with the immensely personal collection of songs that makes up “Be As You Are: Songs From An Old Blue Chair.” The album is a self-written (with some co-writers like Dean Dillon, Skip Ewing, Scotty Emerick and Phil Vassar) collection of songs that deal with Kenny’s love affair with the Caribbean Islands. While Kenny’s often had island themes on his last couple of albums, “Be As You Are” is the first to be completely about the islands.

“Be As You Are” is a 12 song, 13 track collection (“Old Blue Chair” has an “Island Mix” that bookends the album) of mostly “slow-paced” ballads. The title track “Be As You Are” is a nice harmonica laced ballad that says we should all be confident in ourselves. “Guitars And Tiki Bars” was the title to Kenny’s summer concert for 2004 and it’s presented as a fun tropical track that reminds me of Jimmy Buffett in terms of sound and lyrics. Written with Phil Vassar, “Island Boy” is a melodic piece of music while “Boston” is the song that features a sexy Latin-styled guitar. “Sherry’s Living In Paradise” is a piano laden ballad that could very well be the only single released from this album.

“Be As You Are” is a mellow collection of songs that won’t be for everyone. Yet to me it’s also the best album of Kenny’s decade-long career. If you like acoustic based, island themed songs, check “Songs From An Old Blue Chair” out.