Having long since established herself as one of country’s most powerful and popular singers, Martina McBride spent the last several years engaging in some modest experimentation. She proved herself a capable producer by taking the reins on 2005’s winning covers collection, Timeless, but seemed a little less assured with the more mainstream Waking Up Laughing two years later. Martina brought in Dann Huff—the man behind flashy hits for Rascal Flatts and Keith Urban—to co-produce Shine, and together they deliver a smartly restrained back-to-basics move.
Shine carefully gives us a healthy portion of everything we’ve come to expect from Martina: romantic joy (“Sunny Side Up,” the only song here Martina co-wrote), friendly encouragement (“Wrong Baby Wrong Baby Wrong”), even an “Independence Day”-tinged tale of abuse and revenge (“Wild Rebel Rose”). The arrangements are tastefully simple, and Martina’s voice carries the melodies with the offhand ease of a master vocalist who understands you don’t have to shout to shine.