IT JUST COMES NATURAL - GEORGE STRAIT
George Strait has been in a zone for 20 years, rarely experimenting with a formula that has yielded scores of hits. He slams a homer here with “Give It Away,” a leavin’ song that would’ve worked in any decade. If anything, Strait is more stone country than ever, with George Jones-esque jewels like “She Told Me So” and the tasty Guy Clark shuffle “Texas Cookin’.” The Cowboy has developed a slight vocal catch that lends weight to warm ballads like “Better Rain” and “I Ain’t Her Cowboy Anymore.” Strait’s delivery is smooth as silk on the perceptive “He Must Have Really Hurt You Bad,” and “What Say” is a neoclassic slow waltz. Generous at 15 cuts, the record wraps with the stirring “Come On Joe,” a fitting cap for one of Strait’s — and this year’s — best. Billboard
