Keith Urban

Personnel: Keith Urban (vocals, acoustic & electric guitars, electric sitar, ganjo); Steve Wariner (acoustic & electric guitars, background vocals); Biff Watson (acoustic guitar); Bruce Bouton (steel guitar, dobro); Paul Franklin, (steel guitar); Aubrey Haynie (fiddle, mandolin); Steve Conn (accordion); Matt Rollings (piano, organ, synthesizer, background vocals); Glenn Worf (bass); Chris McHugh (drums, drum loops, percussion); Kim Keyes, Jerry Flowers, Tabitha Fair, Emily Robison, Martie Seidel, Curtis Young (background vocals); The Love Strings.
Principally recorded at Javelina Recording Studios, Nashville, Tennessee.
"Rollercoaster" was nominated for the 2001 Grammy Award for Best Country Instrumental Performance.
Keith Urban is Australian, but listening to his debut self-titled solo CD, you'd swear he was raised somewhere south of the Mason-Dixon line. Just as the Beatles mimicked the American accents of their musical heroes, Urban, the former leader of the group the Ranch, adopts the twang of the country stars he heard growing up Down Under. Urban's brand of country includes soulful vocals; a nice mix of acoustic and steel guitars, banjo, fiddles, and mandolins; and some fine songwriting, from Urban, Steve Wariner, and even two former members of the Go-Gos's (!) The subject here, with few exceptions, is love in all its aspects, from the hooky opening cut, "It's a Love Thing," to the gorgeous ballad "Your Everything," to the Cajun stomp of "I Wanna Be Your Man (Forever)." Urban's excellent guitar playing throughout the CD is tasteful and understated, but adds immeasurably to the arrangements. When he really cuts loose, on the instrumental "Rollercoaster," you can hear why acts like the Dixie Chicks and Garth Brooks tapped him to play on their CDs. Overall, KEITH URBAN offers a taste of what this talented singer, songwriter, and guitarist might do in the future.