Revelation

1	The Shade 2:47
2	Singer in a Band 3:13
3	Don't Ruin It for the Rest of Us 3:39
4	I Wish That Wasn't All 3:36
5	If I Ever Get Her Back 2:48
6	If Nobody Believed in You 3:56
7	Farewell Party 4:39
8	Things Like That (These Days) 3:30
9	Revelation 3:30
10	What's a Guy Gotta Do 2:22
11	No Time to Cry 4:14

Barnes & Noble

Considering that Revelation is one of the most eagerly anticipated country albums in recent memory, it's perhaps surprising that Grammy nominee Joe Nichols strikes an introspective tone on five of the disc's first six tracks. The album begins not with a de rigeur bombastic country rocker but rather with "The Shade," a folksy, languorous ballad about appreciating the simple things in life. It's followed by "Singer in a Band," a low-key, heartfelt meditation on the insignificance of one's own place in the world in light of other folks' misfortunes. The one early track to break this introspective pattern, "Don't Ruin It for the Rest of Us," hardly kicks out the jams; instead it's a genial, loping ode to a spruced-up groom who's leaving his bar buddies behind. Oh, Nichols can whoop it up when he wants to, as he does most impressively on the strutting "What's a Guy Gotta Do," a twanging, high-octane barn burner in the Dwight Yoakam tradition. But that's not the point. Revelation is about messages, and Nichols, his smooth baritone conveying his complete conviction in his songs, prefers to be heard sotto voce -- his brand of honky-tonkin' is more a state of mind and stylistic framework than a cultural outpost. Honky-tonk's modern-day, frill-free musical palette, rich in multiple fiddles and pedal steel punctuation, was Nichols's meal ticket out of the box, and here he makes the old new again. Lefty Frizzell is nodding approval from his perch on high, and Merle Haggard and Alan Jackson ought to be proud of this musical offspring: The lad has learned his lessons well, and Revelation is a real stunner. David McGee

All Music Guide

After years of toiling away in Nashville, Joe Nichols finally had a lucky break in 2002, signing to Universal South, who helped turn his major-label debut, Man With a Memory, into a hit on the strength of the hits "The Impossible," "Brokenheartsville," and "She Only Smokes When She Drinks." As the album started to make waves, Nichols joined Alan Jackson on tour, and it was a good match. After all, Nichols not only is clearly influenced by Jackson, but as Revelation (his 2004 follow-up to Man With a Memory) illustrates, he's in a way the first of the post-Jackson contemporary country singers, learning honky tonk from the neo-traditionalist singer and sharing a similar affection for '70s soft rock. Jackson has stronger ties to hardcore country, whereas Nichols favors the softer stuff; even when there's a strong twang, as there is on the amiably catchy "Don't Ruin It for the Rest of Us," it's subdued and polished, almost functioning as texture. This is deliberately suburban country, country lacking a down-home spirit, country that's several generations removed from its rural origins, and while that will likely irk some listeners -- certainly fans who favor the rebellious spirit of Waylon Jennings, who Nichols covers on the title track, but possibly fans of Jackson, who remains quite traditional country despite the schmaltz and Jimmy Buffett duets -- there's also something to be said for the laid-back sounds of Nichols. He's an heir to the soft rock of the late '70s and early '80s, where even his faster songs sound more California mellow than Nashville slick, and he has a friendly voice that makes Revelation a pleasant listen. Stephen Thomas Erlewine