Roger Creager - I Got the Guns (2000)

In 2002, almost any cowpoke with a guitar, a little ambition, and a small amount of cash can put their music on a CD. The real trick, though, is getting the attention of a label that can take one's career to the next level. Roger Creager has done just that. A singer/songwriter with traditional roots, he's been playing his brand of country music since he left an accounting career behind in 1997. I Got the Guns is Creager's sophomore effort, self-released in 2000 and reissued by Dualtone in 2002. On first listen, songs like "Mother's a Redneck, Too" and "What's a Lonely Girl to Do" will remind one of the best of Nashville country with a couple of exceptions: the songs aren't over-produced and Creager writes all his own lyrics. A harmonica and acoustic guitar provide a rootsy kick-off to "Storybook" before making way for a bouncy electric guitar and Creager's gritty vocal. The song is injected with the same kind of bravado one would find in an early John Mellencamp or Steve Earle song. "I Got the Guns" utilizes an autobiographical event -- inheriting guns from one's grandfather -- to paint a portrait of a man and his way of life that contrasts sharply with contemporary life. I Got the Guns is also an eclectic album, covering everything from Tex-Mex ("Rancho Grande") to weepy ballads ("The Day You Went Away"). Creager recalls the good things that country music can offer when a good producer and singer/songwriter join forces.~I Got the Guns Review by Ronnie D. Lankford, Jr.