This One’s for You, the debut album by Luke Combs, was released on June 2nd, 2017. For this review, however, we will be using the deluxe, This One’s for You Too, released in 2018. Luke Combs, who is one of the biggest names in music, has come quite far from this debut album. Some argue that this is his best album, and I certainly see an argument for it. Commercially, this album has gone 5 times platinum, so it definitely has the success to be in that conversation. In addition, the album has sold nearly 2.5 million units sold in the United States. This all started with the album coming with three singles, originally being “Beautiful Crazy,” “Hurricane,” and “One Number Away,” with two more singles following up with the deluxe version. This album totals up 17 tracks for a runtime of around 1 hour. Since 2017 Luke Combs has amounted quite the fame, but did it all start in 2017?
It certainly did.
Introduction
Personally, I find this as Luke’s best album in his discography. There are arguments for his other projects, but this, again to me, is the most rounded project he has. It seems to have the most emotional connection to him, as I haven’t seen him truly hit this level of deepness again. It’s pure emotions at times, and I am all for it. It brings the rawest vocals out of him, and he sounds extraordinary when he hits those notes. In addition, the production here throughout is phenomenal. He experiments at different points of the album and tries out some different styles not ever explored in country. Whether just using a different style or experimenting with different instruments, it hits at all ends. The structure of the songs remains quite straightforward, but in the end does its job to bring the meaning out of songs. Between the structure and lyricism, Luke delivers on his intentions on this album.
Vocal Performance
Luke’s vocal performance on his tracks is one of his best features of his musical career. He can hit notes a lot of people cannot in country, which makes him quite marketable. Especially on this album, he showcases his extraordinary capabilities. My favorite vocal performance on this album comes on “One Number Away.” He genuinely is just showcasing his raw vocals, which tops his talents off. He sounds great hitting the high notes he does and doesn’t seem to be pushing his limits ever. Back to his marketability, he can go from the raw vocals on “One Number Away” to a song like “When It Rains It Pours,” which again shows how great of a singer he truly is. Going from two different vocal levels and tempos is a strong suit for Luke. All in all, his voice truly connects with the instrumental with ease, which brings a stronger emphasis to the meanings.
Production
Going along with the instrumentals, they are another strong point on this project. Luke said that he was proud of this album as there is no song that sounds alike, and there is validity to this statement. Every song has a unique style, whether it is the instruments used to capitalize on the beat or overall style, there is variety here. And that adds to this album. He experiments at times, and a song like “Honky Tonk Highway” stands out due to this. Many songs really benefit from this, however, also benefit from the seamless integration with the rest of the track. The vocals, as I have stated, mesh wonderfully with the instruments on every track. Not only this, but the flow in which the song moves across is created through the instrumental and is almost intertwined. Bring all this together and the production here is top notch, really making the project stand out in the genre.
Intentions
Finally, we have the intentions of the album. Every song has some connection to Luke, which again, brings the most out of him. With every track having a purpose, it makes each song connect deeper to the listener. From track one to track seventeen, there isn’t one song that has the same storyline or meaning as another. Every album I have reviewed to this point, there were similar purposes behind many songs. This is a small thing, but I find it to make this album stand out more than another generic country project. Luke brought his all out, emotionally, and hit everywhere. Keeping a simple song structure, he was able to pack a punch in every line. The lack of diversity doesn’t hurt the album. It almost benefits the album as Luke was forced to be top notch on his lyricism, which he was. His words throughout, brought meaning, which built tremendous character.
Conclusion
All in all, I think it is fair to say this is certainly more than a good country album. I fail to see any hate for this album, as it hits on every margin you would like a country album to hit. It has some of Luke’s most commercially successful songs, and I still hear some of these tracks on the radio to this date. I give this album an 8.7/10, as I don’t think I have heard a better country album yet.
Weakest Track: The weakest track here is “Don’t Tempt Me.” It doesn’t really have much behind it to make it stand out, and on a project as strong as this one, you have to have a feature to make it stand out. It doesn’t flow that well and the instrumental is definitely the weakest on the project.
Strongest Track: On the contrary, the strongest track here is certainly “One Number Away.” I am a sucker for raw vocals and pure emotions coming together on a song. And that is what this song is. Luke just spewing how he feels on a failed relationship. It has the connection to the listener, which to me all combines the song to a certified masterpiece.
Song Rankings:
- “One Number Away”
- “Hurricane”
- “She Got the Best of Me”
- “Beautiful Crazy”
- “Houston, We Got a Problem”
- “When It Rains It Pours”
- “This One’s for You”
- “Must’ve Never Met You”
- “Out There”
- “Memories Are Made Of”
- “Lonely One”
- “A Long Way”
- “Be Careful What You Wish For”
- “Honky Tonk Highway”
- “Beer Can”
- “I Got Away With You”
- “Don’t Tempt Me”
Final Notes
Song rankings are always subject to change over time, so don’t take these too to heart. They also are just my opinion. With that being said, I would love to hear your opinions, so leave them in the comment section below. We also suggest subscribing to our blog. To do so, go under the tab “Contact” and fill out the form. That will allow you to receive emails of new blogs and maybe get them ahead of time. Finally, go give This One’s for You Too a listen for yourself, as I highly recommend this album to anyone who likes country, and truly wants to listen to a masterpiece.