Jake Worthington (Big Loud, 2023)

Credit Texas native Jake Worthington with adherence to tradition. His deep voice resonates best on ballads such as "State You Left Me In" as his voice conveys the anguished heartbreak he sings about.

The production has the predictable elements – pedal steel, fiddle, electric guitars but might be just a tad too dense. Yet, quibble aside, it is the ballad fare where Worthington shines best such as "She Ain't You," a classic country, pedal steel driven slow dancer that would be suitable in any decent country joint jukebox in any era from the sixties forward. Easing into the mid-tempo "I Ain't Goin Anywhere" hits that pure country sweet spot as well as any here. "Without You" checks most of the boxes too except the "Hey, Baby" mimics Hank's "Hey Good Lookin'."

When Worthington goes up tempo though, the results get somewhat mixed. "Closing Time" is a conventional idea, but the barrelhouse piano, tremolo guitar, fiddle and stomping rhythm seem perfectly compatible with his deep voice. "Ain't Got You to Hold" is stock full of cliché-ridden lyrics ("George ain't got so exes"), but is a fun singalong with strong pedal steel breaks and is ready made radio staple in the vein of George Strait.

Worthington just seems to overreach and fall prey to overproduction on such fare as "Single at the Same Time" and "Pop Goes the Whiskey" with ERNEST, "Next New Thing," "Honky Tonk Crowd" and "Night Time Is My Time." Maybe it's just that these seem so familiar, as if we've heard them under other song titles. Perhaps that's due to Worthington, who takes credit for 12 of the 13, working with eight different co-writers.

So, yes, this is a mixed bag that suffers from a bit too many cliches, overreaching vocals and trite songs on the con side, but Worthington demonstrates emotive strengths in enough songs here to offer promise, and his voice is indeed the real deal.