Melt

1	These Days 4:14
2	Too Good Is True 3:20
3	I Melt 3:54
4	Mayberry 4:33
5	Love You Out Loud 3:06
6	Dry County Girl 3:16
7	Like I Am 4:06
8	You 4:08
9	Fallin' Upside Down 2:34
10	Shine On 3:01
11	My Worst Fear 3:56

Barnes & Noble

Buoyant harmonies, infectious rhythms, bright pop-country melodies, and an optimistic worldview made Rascal Flatts' 2000 debut album a platinum winner, and that formula serves the clean-cut trio well on their sophomore effort, Melt. Already a hit single before the album's release, "These Days" kicks off the disc with a heart-tugging, mid-tempo meditation detailing a post-breakup life and the love lingering there. It's no doubt the first of many chart-toppers off an album that typifies state-of-the-art mainstream country. In 2002, that means it has an industrial-grade pop sheen overlaying pockets of traditional instrumentation and an ever-so-slight twang in its well-crafted vocals. But give the Flatts' boys -- Joe Don Rooney, Jay DeMarcus, and Gary Levox -- credit for bringing a lotta heart to what could be a constrictive, if lucrative, musical template. They inject a winning conviction into "Like I Am," a power ballad declaring a man's vow to work on being as good as his woman thinks he is. Stressed out by the pressures of the five o'clock world? In a charming bit of introspection, the Flatts recommend turning off your mind and making a restorative journey to "Mayberry," a place in memory where life was "black and white" and days were passed on the front porch drinking Cherry Coke. On the propulsive "Fallin' Upside Down," complex harmonies and vocal interplay, heightened by some searing '80s rock guitar and artsy keyboard flourishes, become the aural equivalent of the first deliciously dizzying feelings of new love. Rascal Flatts make no apologies for their sunny disposition, and there's no need to. A little light during dark days is always welcome. And the Melt-in-your mouth pills here go down sweetly. David McGee

All Music Guide

Gary LeVox has amazing vocal ability unsurpassed by any other male country singer heard on the charts today. That's why the best songs from Melt are the ballads -- he sings them with such a fiery zeal that you can't help but be transfixed by the titanic sound coming out of the speakers. But that certainly doesn't mean that the up-tempo and quicker songs aren't worth listening to. In fact, the whole 11-song collection is worth listening to over and over. A platinum-selling debut album with a follow-up sophomore album that's as brilliant as the first -- if not more so -- doesn't happen all that often in an industry subject to dozens of newcomers a minute. Their harmonies are musically superior and their songwriting efforts continue to be original and fresh. Rascal Flatts is a band that deserves more than its due. ~ Maria Konicki Dinoia, All Music Guide