On Friday, November 10, popular American country singer Chris Stapleton released his long-awaited 5th album, Higher. Stapleton hasn’t released an album since his widely-known and adored Starting Over, released on November 13, 2020. Higher has 14 tracks and a run time of 55 minutes.
I am a die-hard Stapleton fan, and I have been counting down the days for this release. I had very high expectations and he did not disappoint me. His popular songs “Traveller”, “Tennessee Whiskey”, and “Broken Halos” made me fall in love with country music.
Seeing as my favorite Stapleton songs are emotional ones, I was pleased by the passion and heartbreak brought to these new releases. The most emotional tracks in my opinion are “It Takes A Woman” and “Trust”. “It Takes A Woman” is a love letter to Stapleton’s wife, Morgan Stapleton. Her beautiful background vocals can be seen throughout many tracks on the album which I found provided something special to his songs. Written with the help of Steve McEwan, Stapleton touches the hearts of many listeners, including myself, with the song “Trust” which is seemingly about unconditional love susceptible to the hardships life throws its way. Stapleton truly has a way with words shown in his breathtaking lyrics including “Too many people have been let down by broken promises on rocky ground.”
Taking a more enthusiastic and cheery look at Higher, one of the more upbeat songs that I enjoyed was “White Horse”. When listening for the first time I thought it would be another sad, slow song, but I was mistaken. The first chords are slow but the beat slowly begins to change into becoming an upbeat song. I love everything about this song, especially how much it surprised me during my first listen. “White Horse” is a song that truly stands out from the rest, as Stapleton took a chance and stepped away from his normal slow pace and sad lyrics.
I’ve always talked about how much I wanted to attend a Stapleton concert, and this new album makes me want to go even more. This album is a great representation of Chris Stapleton as a singer. Stapleton’s vocals are as amazing as ever. Higher is full of great songs and is 100% worth a listen.