Although the new CD didn't sell as well as the trio's 2002 release, "Home," which sold 780,000 during the first week in release, "Taking the Long Way" has earned the Chicks the distinction of having three CD releases that immediately blasted to the top of the Bill Board charts.
Despite the fact that a few wimpy country music stations have refused to play the single, "Not Ready to Make Nice," and that many country music fans have been boycotting the Chicks' music, there's no arguing with the Chicks' success. The Texas trio makes great music, and they have the fans and CD sales to prove it.
The first single from the CD and the accompanying video have received heavy air play and the Chicks' message is anything but meek and/or apologetic. "And how in the world can the words that I said/Send somebody so over the edge/That they'd write me a letter/Sayin' that I better shut up and sing/Or my life will be over/It's a sad, sad story when a mother will teach her/Daughter that she ought to hate a perfect stranger."
But "Taking the Long Way" begs a couple of questions.
First, will country fans be as accepting of the Chicks' latest efforts, especially since the songs, all of which were written by the Chicks in collaboration with such luminaries as Dan Wilson, Sheryl Crow, Linda Perry and Keb Mo, might be interpreted as an assault on those ex-fans and flag-waving Nashville stalwarts such as Toby Keith — all the small-minded country folk who have threatened to end the Chicks' music careers?
And will the 14 CD cuts, many of which might be interpreted as topical and reactive, have the staying power of earlier tunes such as "Wide Open Spaces," "There's Your Trouble," "Long Time Gone," and "Travelin’ Soldier"?
Probably not. The possible singles are weaker — although the songs evidence a distinct growth in the Chicks' music — and lack the mass appeal of the Chicks' earlier music.
There's nothing on the new CD as bouncy as the hook on "There's Your Trouble" or the groove of "Long Time Gone," and listeners won't find a misty sentimental narrative such as "Travelin' Soldier," which is surely an aesthetic leap.
Although the music and lyrics are more introspective and personal than anything that's appeared on the previous CDs, there are probable singles such as "Everyone Knows," "I Hope," "Easy Silence," and "Favorite Year," none of which is likely to climb the country charts with a bullet.
Other serious artists who have inadvertently garnered country airplay in order to encourage a higher level of sophistication among their fans have found themselves on the fast track to oblivion.
Mary Chapin Carpenter, who was a country star in the late 1980s and early 1990s, discovered that country fans weren’t interested in the contemplative tunes on her "Stones in the Road" CD. If you're into line dancing, there's no need for introspection.
The Dixie Chicks are taking big chances with "Taking the Long Way," but if there are any mass-market country rockers who can rattle cages on Music Row, it's these Texas musicians. The Chicks are out there, singing nothing but the truth.
Stephen Smith can be reached at travisses@hotmail.com.
