When I say I am a person who enjoys a wide variety of genres, I mean that. At first glance, I may not look like I enjoy a good country song, but in fact, I do. Though I am relatively new to the world of country music, I have spent time listening to a few artists and coming to enjoy their work.

With that said, I decided to put on my headphones and review the number one Country Music Awards (CMA) album for 2022. That album is “Growin’ Up” by Luke Combs. He is one of those artists I enjoy listening to, and was recommended to me by a friend.

“Growin’ Up” is Combs’ third studio album and was released on June 24th, 2022. Winning the CMA number one Album of the Year on November 9th, 2022, the album features twelve songs that run just over 40 minutes.

The album kicks off with “Doin’ This,” a steady song in which Combs, through melody, explains how singing was always the plan for his life, no matter what. The song also builds up to a brief electric guitar solo, which complements the song nicely.

“Any Given Friday Night,” the second song, contains a banjo/electric guitar mix. This song is about boys chasing girls on a Friday night, and as I listened to the song, I can imagine that sort of scene playing out in a Dairy Queen parking lot, just like Combs sings in this song.

The third entry, “The Kind of Love We Make,” is the song that would go perfectly cruising down a dirt road with your boots up on the dash (if you aren’t the one driving of course). This song has a nice, steady tempo, and it cruised right into my country playlist.

Number four, “On the Other Line,” threw a curve ball as the rhythm gave off a reggae-type of flow at the beginning of the song, rather than a strictly country sound. However, the song slowly morphed back into a country-type beat near the middle, which I found to be very compelling.

The drums pick up with song number nine, “Ain’t Far From It.” With a honkey tonk piano to aid the beat, this is exactly what I would expect to hear at a bar, with people dancing and having a great time. The song ends with a drum solo to knock your boots right off.

“Growin’ Up” finishes with a heartbreak song, “Going, Going, Gone.” With an acoustic lead, the song is about a girl who is “made for moving on.” This song is not a slow song, but another steady song, as if the breakup isn’t crushing, but rather gives a feeling of being sad as you remember the times you spent together. It brings a smooth end to the album and gives it an emotional close.

Overall, I really enjoyed this album. Some things I like about Combs are that his songs are always a medium, steady tempo. His songs are not too fast or too slow. The drum set is not too overbearing in his songs, and it gives a nice, helpful beat to each song.

I also like his use of an acoustic guitar to begin most of his songs. The guitar gives off a sort of homebrew kind of feel, as if the songs are like a warm, homemade pie compared to a cold store-bought pie. Comb’s voice is always well tuned in each song, and all of his lyrics sound sincere. Combs does not over-rely on an electric guitar, and that helps with the smooth country genre he fits in.

Though I do not listen to country music every day, this album is one I would point you to if you asked me for recommendations. If you want some modern country music to listen to, kick your feet up, and listen to this album.

Paul Tointigh is a third-year Communication major at the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma.