Song Review – Jon Pardi’s “Head Over Boots”
If you’re a male performer and signed to a country music major label, you better hope you got the memo. Better get yourself fitted for a three-piece suit pronto, take some dance lessons, and get your falsetto tuned up so you can do your best Bruno Mars impression because otherwise your masters might be sitting on a shelf while you’re sitting out on the street. This Metro-Bro business is a take-no-prisoners kind of phenomenon and it’s either acquiesce or get rolled.
Country traditionalist and Capitol Nashville-signed singer and songwriter Jon Pardi is right there in the sweet spot where the machine could suck him in and make him yet another casualty of country music’s latest scourge. He’s 30-years-old, has only released one record, had some success but is still enough of an unknown quantity that he could go though an image overhaul, hang up the cowby hat, and come out singing regurgitated disco hits. That’s just about how things are going these days, and with some of the artists you’d least expect.
The situation with Jon Pardi appeared even more dicey when the word got out that he and his producer Bart Butler were feeling pressure from the label to deliver something they could sell to today’s radio listeners. This is usually where the narrative goes south. Pardi was paired up with Luke Laird—one of Nashville’s exclusive songwriters in the increasingly-insular songwriting environment. Pardi needed a lead single for his second upcoming album, and it needed to be something that sticks. This all was a recipe for Jon Pardi fans to get stabbed in the heart like so many of the fans of other lower-tier major-signed country artists recently.
But I’m happy to report that everything turned out okay. If “Head Over Boots” is as bad as Jon Pardi’s sophomore album gets, then were in pretty damn good shape.
“Head Over Boots” is not a great song, but it’s country, and it’s Jon Pardi, and it suits the ears just fine. The key for Pardi and Laird was to put something together that was positive in nature, but still native to Pardi’s sound, and something still traditional enough to delineate Pardi from radio peers. So they headed to the dance halls of Texas for inspiration, and “Head Over Boots” sure enough conjures up that warm feeling of Gruene Hall in the fall, and the vibe of Texas-style country—sensible but more substantive.
“Head Over Boots” is a great vessel for Jon Pardi’s tone, and the Telecaster solo is quite tasty, giving off that Pete Anderson, early Dwight Yoakam vibe. Fiddle and steel guitar are also present, but not so overbearing that it will ruin the song’s chances at radio. At its heart, “Head Over Boots” is a simple love song.
It’s not going to set the world on fire, and it may struggle at radio from its traditional-leaning sound. But most importantly, it proves to us that Pardi will not be the next positive country role model to fall to the forces of disco country. Perhaps with Mo Pitney, Chris Stapleton, and a gaggle of other emerging traditionalists, there’s still hope for country yet.
September 29, 2015 @ 9:07 am
I was hoping you’d review this song! I love it, but the analogy of head over boots is a little weak. A two second thought could come up with that tweak to an old saying. But the sound and other lyrics are pretty great. Is that why you gave it a 7?
September 29, 2015 @ 10:26 am
Yeah I agree the lyrical hook is just a little mild here, but it works. It’s nothing special, but would be a huge improvement over whatever else they’re playing on country radio right now.
September 29, 2015 @ 9:14 am
I wasn’t familiar with Pardi prior to listening to his new single, but it’s nice to hear something that sounds like this being aimed at country radio plays. As you said, it’s a basic love song with some cheesy pap for lyrics, but the instrumentation works and it’s a nice change of pace from the mainstream singles you typically review. I hope you’re right in that this was the single his label requested for radio. That would seem to give high hopes for the rest of the album.
September 29, 2015 @ 6:35 pm
You should definitely listen to Pardi’s debut CD. It’s pretty awesome, one of my favorite CDs that has come out in the last few years.
September 29, 2015 @ 9:40 am
I like this quite a lot. It’s the kind of song I always expect to hear on country radio but almost never do.
October 7, 2015 @ 8:39 am
Dude, that’s perfect. This song right here should be your average country radio song. Sorta traditional, sorta catchy, sorta modern . . just a fine little song.
Instead, the average country radio song is what? . . . Chase Rice’s Ready, Set, Roll? And this song is in the extreme minority?? That is some fucked up shit right there.
September 29, 2015 @ 9:41 am
Honestly, I’m not the best at always recognizing clichés, but this song is packed with them. It is a decent tune. Nothing memorable.
September 29, 2015 @ 10:16 am
Thematically, it’s basically the same as Easton Corbin’s latest single; laundry list metaphors about liking a girl (at least there’s no buzz and Dixie cups). But I’m really happy they didn’t metro-bro this one up. Yeah, it’s cliche lyrically, but they kept the music country. It’s a nice toe-tapper with an actual melody. How this does on the radio might tell us if there’s hope for traditionalists on country radio at all.
September 29, 2015 @ 11:36 am
I didn’t like “Write You a Song” front to back like most people, but the great tunes were very, very great. This isn’t bad, and I’m glad he’s refusing to change. Nobody wants to say it out loud, but I would say that his voice holds him back. It grows on you–a lot, honestly–but modern music listeners need to be gripped by a voice immediately, and his just doesn’t do that right away.
September 29, 2015 @ 11:50 am
I love his first record. This song is a decline in the quality delivered on the first record, but it is better than most shit on country radio. So, yeah……..
September 29, 2015 @ 11:53 am
I really hope that Jon Pardi catches on more. I mean he really does his best to bridge the gap between a traditional and modern sound. I feel like as long as he stays true to himself he could potentially help change things for the better. I also feel like Chris Stapleton could help change things, but he is kind of an oxymoron. Sure he came out with an amazing album, but the fact that he had anything to do with Thomas Rhett’s new album just makes me sick. I don’t understand how someone who obviously appreciates tradition could do something so untraditional. I don’t like him honestly. Am I the only one that feels this way or am I crazy?
September 29, 2015 @ 12:13 pm
You have every right to criticize or be suspicious of Stapleton for some of the songs he’s been a part of.
September 29, 2015 @ 1:22 pm
Well, to me there’s a difference between what you do to put “food on your family” (to quote a past president) and what you do for fulfillment. Yeah he wrote or co-wrote some garbage, but Traveller seems to be “Stapleton unleashed ” or “Stapleton from the heart” (to quote me). He especially won me over when he said his inspiration was Metamodern Sounds, that he didn’t realize an album could be made that sounded so good. That’s when he sought out Cobb.
So like Trigger says, you have every right to criticize, but I’m still of the (humble) opinion that Traveler is 2015 Album of the Year.
September 29, 2015 @ 3:40 pm
“Well, to me there”™s a difference between what you do to put “food on your family” (to quote a past president) and what you do for fulfillment. ”
I ‘ve played covers to put food on the table my entire life . But I’ve never had to stoop to playing shit to do that. There are PLENTY of fantastic hit cover tunes around to choose from and plenty of great ideas left to write . So I can’t really condone someone like Stapleton hopping aboard the ‘ easy money ‘ train when their are countless more noble ways of putting food on the table that allow you to keep your integrity intact without contributing to the demise of the genre .
September 29, 2015 @ 11:58 am
“Dance halls of Texas for inspiration” nails it. Definitely sounds on the order of things I hear at little places in central TX. I don’t know that radio will take to it, but I’d imagine it going over well in a “Texas dance hall” type of environment.
September 29, 2015 @ 12:10 pm
“Fiddle and steel guitar are also present, but not so overbearing that it will ruin the song”™s chances at radio.” Trigger you hit the nail on the head there. That’s a pretty unfortunate statement to be made about country music when those 2 instruments are the foundation of country music. I hope Jon can really break through this time I’ve always been a fan of his.
September 29, 2015 @ 12:24 pm
Jon Pardi is mainstream country’s best kept secret. Both his album and EP were super solid. I’ve been a fan since “Missin’ You Crazy.” I saw him in concert almost two years ago and he was a great entertainer, even though the crowd mostly didn’t know who he was.
I think he’s developing a loyal, if smaller, fan base. “Up All Night” went gold despite only reaching #11 on the radio.
He seems the most likely of today’s neo-trad artists to break out big, mostly because a lot of his music is fun and upbeat.
September 29, 2015 @ 3:49 pm
Sounds like a country production . Points for that .
Unremarkable vocal with little to no character . Reminiscent of Karaoke nights at the pub .
Lyrically cliche to the nth degree- starts nowhere , goes nowhere . No narrative , just a list of overused phrases ( the bridge is absolutely dreadful ) . In fact the more I listen to it the more laughable the lyric is . This is just BAD writing – grade school level at best – and would be carved to pieces at any writing seminar or by any halfway- reputable song evaluation service .
Sorry , but we are still awaiting country music’s savior . Jon Pardi it is not .
September 29, 2015 @ 7:31 pm
Nobody claimed that he was the savior. I’m actually tired of people even saying that. I know you’re a critic though and I get it, and tend to agree.
September 29, 2015 @ 6:07 pm
I love this song. No need for anyone to analyze it as anything more than it is- a simple love song with a great country sound. The production of this song is already enough of a risk, it wouldn’t be wise to put in a super deep or heavy story in as well (not to say these lyrics are bad at all). I agree with a 7/10 rating for the song itself, but in terms of a lead single for today’s radio, it’s a 10/10.
September 30, 2015 @ 6:00 am
Gotta admit that Jon Pardi is one of the few mainstream artists that are worth the listen. Easton Corbin was up there until the last album and metro change. With that being said, I never really knew about Pardi until Trigger put up the review of the EP. After which I sampled and quickly bought his first album. Something about a fiddle and steel guitar grabs my attention. He definitely has potential if not to be influenced by the metros. I’ll be more convinced when he releases the entire album, if he strays away from his country sound.
September 30, 2015 @ 9:20 am
This guy is such a stud. Some absolute gems on his first album (Love You From Here, Empty Beer Cans, That Man etc.). I have a feeling his new album is going to be even more traditional. This single isn’t the greatest but I love all the fiddle and steel in the song. Jon is probably one of my favourite country singers right now.
September 30, 2015 @ 1:29 pm
I wish today’s country radio consisted of more guys like Pardi, Stapleton, the Turnpike Troubadours, ect. Then I would actually listen to it.
October 3, 2015 @ 3:30 am
Pardi’s great, and yet another artist I’m grateful to have been introduced to through this site. He’s playing live at a small country bar in Sarasota, FL a week from Friday and I already got my tix. Can’t wait. Wouldn’t be surprised to see him having a beer at the bar after the show, chatting with fans…
October 5, 2015 @ 12:12 pm
Yeah Buddy!