Trisha Yearwood's Real Live Woman is by far going to be my favorite album of hers. She just decided to cut loose and get down to business on this album. In a country music world where everyone is going pop (and that's not always a bad thing), Yearwood has done nothing short of just turning around and going in the opposite direction. Take note: steel guitar runs throughout. Imagine that on a country album! Yearwood has always been quite astute at selecting songs, and this time around it is no different. My favorite is Try Me Again. I dare you not to think this is musical excellence. Her voice has never sounded better. All the songs are great, but my favorites besides Try Me Again are I Did, Sad Eyes (a Bruce Springsteen cover), One Love (which if this wouldn't be a good Bonnie Raitt song, I don't know what would), When A Love Song Sings the Blues, and Come Back When It Ain't Rainin'. It's just a superb album and a must have if you're a music lover or long for an album that doesn't rely on drum machines or cookie-cutter songs that rehash the same thing over and over. This album further proves just how unbelievably talented Trisha Yearwood is. Like many reviewers say, she is one of the best vocalists working in any musical genre. I almost forgot to tell you what a great song the title track is too.

I am real picky about my music - someone's got to blow me away and make me believe what they are singing.

I felt like I had been hit by a tornado in 1994 when I bought my first Trisha Yearwood cd Hearts on Armor. And she made me believe what she was singing like a preacher on judgement day.

As a long time Trisha fan I am excited about this new album for many reasons.

For starters, this is the first time that the fullness and awesome power of Trisha's voice has been captured on tape. Seeing Trisha in concert has always left me wanting an album where she just went in the studio to let go and hold nothing back. This album really does it -- her vocals are amazing.

Trisha also holds nothing back on song selection for this album. Fans will be so happy to finally hear Trisha sing a Linda Ronstadt song. The Linda cover, "Try Me Again" is by far the absolute best track on the album. If you want to hear how Trisha nails it then be sure to order Linda Ronstadt's Hasten Down The Wind cd.

With the exception of "Real Live Woman," the songs on this cd are not a happy look at love but a look at the ups and downs from a great love. I could write in this review what I mean by that and give an example from 11 of the 12 songs, but you've got to listen to this album to know what I am saying.

I almost wish "Real Live Woman" was the last cut on the cd because this song is about a woman who's been through it all and has really found herself.

I hope Trisha knows that through it all she has found herself with the best cd of her career.

My choices for best cuts are "Try Me Again," "Where Are You Now," "I Did," "I'm Still Alive," and "Real Live Woman."

This is definitely my favorite Trisha Yearwood album since the Hearts In Armor one. Starting out with the bluegrass-tinged and haunting "Where Are You Now," you can tell that this album really comes from the heart and with spare instrumentals that are refreshing. Other haunting moments occur on "I Did" and "Some Days." "Too Bad You're No Good" is a first class traditional romp. The album definitely shows off Trisha's range of vocals, from the bluesy "One Love" to the high notes on the Bruce Springsteen-written song "Sad Eyes" But Tricia's nice mid-range vocals prevail on most. Lyrically, all the songs on the album feel like a lot of talent was put into them. I can tell she took a while to choose these songs. Recommended for any fan!

As the Country Music Columnist for BellaOnline.com, I heard two tracks off of this album: Real Live Woman & Where Are You Now and decided to keep this album in my collection.

I was QUITE surprised once I reviewed the other tracks of the album! This album is not pop.... and it's not traditional or contempory country. Trisha has emerged with her own sense of style with this one.

While it's true that most tracks have the same type of beat/sound, that sound is definitely one that agrees with Trisha's Georgia 'twang voice while blending in the California sound (remember when the Eagles were once considered country???).

One song that really stood out for me was "Some Days." When I first heard it, I was wondering what Trisha was thinking when she decided to record it. Then the song started to take on a life of it's own and I found myself singing in the car. It's a great blue-sy country sound that Trisha is great at.

There are some other songs in the album that will grow on you and others that seem similar to previous songs ("I'm Still Alive" is similar to "Baby, I Lied").

Trisha was known to say that this album is the "one" that she has always wanted to cut. And I can see why.... thankfully she tried something different but didn't go the pop music route.

Another solid effort at trying something a bit different but maintaining her country roots!

I have never been a fan of the music that mainstream radio has to offer but this album by Tricia Yearwood is an exception. Blessed with a voice that is all at once warm, engaging, and gutsy in all the right places, Yearwood has managed to produce an album that will appeal to the mass market mentality of contemporary radio without compromising one iota of her integrity. Throughout the album her silky smooth voice wraps itself around a batch of stellar songs penned by the likes of Kim Ritchey, Mary Chapin-Carpenter, and Matraca Berg and includes guest vocals from other artists such as Jackson Browne and Emmylou Harris. Blusey, soulful, and perhaps the most fully realized album of her career - proof that she has the staying power to overcome and outshine the wasteland that is country radio today.