If "Get Right with the Man" was a coming out party for Van Zant, "My Kind of Country" is a full-blown coronation. These pedigreed brothers from Southern rock’s first family took a break late last year from their respective hard-touring bands (Lynyrd Skynyrd for Johnny, 38 Special for Donnie) to lay down a new batch of songs that takes the promise of GRWTM and delivers a true classic—totally contemporary, but with Van Zant style and timeless subject matter.

“When we did Get Right with the Man, we didn’t know how people would accept it, us coming from rock backgrounds and now doing a country record,” observes Donnie. “But it was cool. Radio accepted us with open arms, and we put the record out and it did real well for us, so it was a dream come true for both of us.”

The duo’s first-ever country single, “Help Somebody,” reached number seven on the charts, and the follow-up, “Ain’t Nobody Gonna Tell Me What to Do,” cracked the Top 15. It’s now safe to say country has embraced Van Zant, and with My Kind of Country the brothers show they’re here to stay.

Van Zant sing about real problems and concerns that keep real people up at night and bring them comfort in the daytime. The brothers co-wrote more than half the cuts and enlisted some of Music Row’s most expressive writers on others. The result is more than impressive, and the subject matter is universal.

Read more...