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''Strong'' is the title of an album released in 2004 by American country music singer Tracy Lawrence. His only album for the DreamWorks label, it produced three singles for him on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Singles & Tracks (now Hot Country Songs) charts: "Paint Me a Birmingham" (#4), "It's All How You Look at It" (#35) and "Sawdust on Her Halo" (#48). "Paint Me a Birmingham" was also recorded in 2003 by Ken Mellons on his album ''Sweet'', from which it was released as a single shortly before Lawrence's rendition. - Wikipedia

There are people who won't like Tracy Lawrence's DreamWorks debut, just as there are folks who don't like babies or Bert Lahr's portrayal of the Cowardly Lion. Strong isn't an unblemished triumph; it can be cloying, and bland in a Dave Loggins, Stephen Bishop sort of way. But most of it is so unaffected, so large-hearted, that full-scale resistance to its charms might be a sign of severe sourpussery. A sentimentalist and a realist in the great country tradition, Lawrence gravitates toward tales of working-class heroes and everyday tenacity. The vaguely Stonesy title track is a smart, unpatronizing tribute to single moms, while "What the Flames Feel Like" gets in the heads of recovering addicts with knowing frankness. And though politically progressive country fans (we're out there!) might be suspicious of the gee-whiz nostalgia in "When Daddy Was a Strong Man" ("Wish change would leave well enough alone"), the song is wiser about its things-ain't-what-they-used-to-be melancholy than it initially lets on.

As with his earlier work, Lawrence applies his expressive twang to a mix of ballads, Southern rock, tuneful country-pop, honky tonk, and whatever else seems to fit. "It's All How You Look At It," opens with a guitar-and-drums intro derived from Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit," "Bobby Darwin's Daughter" brings to mind Harry Nilsson's "Everybody's Talkin'," and the gospelized shuffle "Sawdust on Her Halo" explores the Saturday night/Sunday morning dialectic with wit and soul.

"There are people who won't like Tracy Lawrence's DreamWorks debut, just as there are folks who don't like babies or Bert Lahr's portrayal of the Cowardly Lion. Strong isn't an unblemished triumph; it can be cloying, and bland in a Dave Loggins, Stephen Bishop sort of way. But most of it is so unaffected, so large-hearted, that full-scale resistance to its charms might be a sign of severe sourpussery. A sentimentalist and a realist in the great country tradition, Lawrence gravitates toward tales of working-class heroes and everyday tenacity. The vaguely Stonesy title track is a smart, unpatronizing tribute to single moms, while ""What the Flames Feel Like"" gets in the heads of recovering addicts with knowing frankness. And though politically progressive country fans (we're out there!) might be suspicious of the gee-whiz nostalgia in ""When Daddy Was a Strong Man"" (""Wish change would leave well enough alone""), the song is wiser about its things-ain't-what-they-used-to-be melancholy than it initially lets on.

As with his earlier work, Lawrence applies his expressive twang to a mix of ballads, Southern rock, tuneful country-pop, honky tonk, and whatever else seems to fit. ""It's All How You Look At It,"" opens with a guitar-and-drums intro derived from Nirvana's ""Smells Like Teen Spirit,"" ""Bobby Darwin's Daughter"" brings to mind Harry Nilsson's ""Everybody's Talkin',"" and the gospelized shuffle ""Sawdust on Her Halo"" explores the Saturday night/Sunday morning dialectic with wit and soul.

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