Big Dreams & High Hopes

Jack Ingram’s transition from Texas singer/songwriter to Nashville star hasn’t always been a smooth one—his 2007 breakthrough album, This Is It, suffered at times from a case of musical multiple personalities, and the release of Big Dreams & High Hopes was delayed by several months to allow for some extra tweaking. The result is a surprisingly coherent effort that finds Jack getting closer to the balance of Texas grit and Music City gloss perfected by George Strait. It’s still pretty easy to tell Jack’s edgier originals from hit-factory fare like the current hit, “Barefoot and Crazy,” but they sit alongside one another much more easily now.