Entertainment Weekly (No. 812, p.72) - "Jennings aimed for rock but made the perfect outlaw country record instead..." - Grade: A-
Personnel include: Shooter Jennings (vocals, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, dobro); Leroy Powell (lap steel guitar, background vocals); Eric Heywood, Chris Lawrence (pedal steel guitar); Ted Russell Kamp (piano, bass instrument, background vocals); Bryan Keeling (drums); Faith Evans, George Jones, Jessi Colter, Hank Williams Jr. (background vocals).
Recording information: Paramount, Hollywood, California; Hollywood Sound, Hollywood, California.
The long hair and beard, the distinctive black Fender Telecaster, the 1970s-style logo--it all looks so familiar, almost like a Waylon Jennings record. Many listeners may have this sense of deja vu when first presented with PUT THE O BACK IN COUNTRY. This is understandable, of course, since Shooter Jennings is indeed the son of the Outlaw country hero. Despite the striking visual resemblance, however, those searching for a straight-up HONKY TONK HEROES redux may want to look elsewhere.
Sure, the album is as rough and ready as the elder Jennings's '70s work, and features a guest appearance from George Jones. However, the aesthetic here often has more to do with the punky No Depression sound of Uncle Tupelo and Slobberbone than with the 1970s Outlaw scene. Raging rock guitars and pounding John Bonham-esque drums are often the order of the day ("4th Of July," "Steady at the Wheel," "Daddy's Farm"), though the Charlie Daniels-style violin and sliding steel guitar ("Solid Country Gold") serve to occasionally remind the listener of Shooter's pedigree. A little bit country, a lot more rock & roll, and filled to the brim with Waylon-like attitude, PUT THE O BACK IN COUNTRY shows that while Shooter Jennings may inhabit a different orchard than his father, the apple still doesn't fall far from the tree.