Martina McBride Album Series Rankdowns

[bboat11]

Here is the top 6!!! We are down to 3 album tracks as well as the 3 singles  Which will be the one to miss the top 5???


I Just Call You Mine
Lies
Ride
Walk Away
What Do I Have To Do
Wrong Baby Wrong Baby Wrong

[.indulgecountry]

"Wild Rebel Rose" was robbed!! :'(

[castleoblivion26]

"Wild Rebel Rose" was definitely robbed and "I Just Call You Mine" is generic fluff that has overstayed. Don't get me wrong I do like that song but it is generic and among the weakest songs she has ever released as a single. "Wild Rebel Rose" had a story, maybe a little vague but I think that is part of the charm of the song.

also "I Just Called You Mine" needs to be the next song out because how is it still in!

[SHOOTER]

Y’all did YNLM dirty!!!

[bboat11]

This is my third town. 

God, let it be the last one. 

Start a new job Monday.

 I need a little time not to run. 

Just when I think it’s over, startin’ over, 

You get closer. It ain’t over.

6. "What Do I Have To Do"

Track #6
Runtime: 3:42
Songwriters: David Campbell, Michael Dulaney, Tom Shapiro, Neil Thrasher
Vocal Range: F3 - D5




Total: 124
Average: 6.53
Std Dev: 2.99


codyj100 - 1
born - 2
d3vin44 - 3
castleoblivion26 - 4
Normi - 4
dub - 4
bboat11 - 5
soulfulwings - 6
.indulgecountry - 6
kansasmeetsmo - 7
Troublemaker - 7
SHOOTER - 8
Cody Wants Out... - 9
austin - 9
BackwoodsBarbie - 9
fearlessarrow - 9
someguy - 9
cerulean - 10
Kanenrá:ke - 12


@adam1995
Leo ✔
BlueShades874
tim
George Strait Junkie
DistrictTwelve


Just outside the top 5, we say goodbye to "What Do I Have To Do". This song is codyj100's #1! It is also Kanenrá:ke's #12, which is officially the final last-place ranking to leave the rankdown. As you can see from the trajectory, this song was pretty much never a contender for the top 5, but it was also never really below many of the songs that ended up behind it. In other words, this song did very well, but unfortunately it was never quite able to generate enough support to play with the big dogs in the top 5, all of which were pretty much in the top 5 for the whole submission process.

My thoughts on this song? It is absolutely amazing. This is one of my go-to examples of a classic Martina McBride sounding song. Strong lyrics, strong melody, and a very strong vocal performance help this song to stand out on this album. Unfortunately it is on the same album as "Walk Away", which sounds quite similar, but I would argue is a superior song in every way (and the results seem to agree), which hurts this one's memorability. That does not mean that this song is not amazing however. This has always been one of my immediate favorites on the album, and I always thought it would have made a great single.

I definitely cannot fathom anybody ranking this song in LAST PLACE... Kanenrá:ke, I am very curious why you dislike this song so much, when it is basically everything that fans look for in a Martina McBride song... Lol

SPOILER: Click to show

{Songs Remaining}
I Just Call You Mine
Lies
Ride
Walk Away
Wrong Baby Wrong Baby Wrong

[bboat11]

Which means that your top 5 consists of all 3 singles, and 2 of the most heavily buzzed-about album tracks from her entire career! Will the lead single have an easy ride to the finish? Could the second single be fixing to call the #1 spot its own? Will an acclaimed album track walk away with the victory? Are all of these predictions wrong baby wrong? Or could it all be lies, and the most epic ballad on the album is climbing the walls all the way to the top?

Get your top 5 predictions in!!

The top 5:

I Just Call You Mine

Lies

Ride

Walk Away

Wrong Baby Wrong Baby Wrong

[.indulgecountry]

My predictions:

1. Wrong Baby Wrong Baby Wrong
2. Ride
3. Lies
4. I Just Call You Mine
5. Walk Away

[born]

Hey, that was a great song :(

Deserved top 5.

[BackwoodsBarbie]

Great top 5.

My predictions

1. Wrong Baby Wrong Baby Wrong
2. I Just Call You Mine
3. Lies
4. Ride
5. Walk Away

[Troublemaker]

1. I Just Call You Mine (looks like I’m in the minority here)
2. Lies
3. Ride
4. Wrong Baby Wrong Baby Wrong
5. Walk Away

[Cody Wants Out...]

Here's how I see it going:

5. I Just Call You Mine
4. Walk Away
3. Lies
2. Ride
1. Wrong Baby Wrong Baby Wrong

[codyj100]

Dang it, dang it dang it. I knew based on the rankings this wasn't going to make #1, but I had hoped for top five. I was soooo close. The way Martina rides the opening line (and title) during the chorus "What Do I Have To Doooooo" is exactly why I fell in love with Martina. It's not her most powerful vocal, but there is power there, and it is just so smooth. 

My predictions for top five 

1. Wrong Baby Wrong Baby Wrong
2. I'll Just Call You Mine
3. Ride
4. Walk Away
5. Lies 

And OMG...how is it that my favorite song on the album is followed by my least favorite on the album?? I went from just jamming to "What Do I Have To Do" to cringing at "Don't Cost A Dime."  

[bboat11]

I turn around one more time,

 Regret still has your face. 

I can read your mind right now. 

You want me to stick around. 

But nothin’ ends if I don’t leave right now.

5. "Walk Away"

Track #4

Runtime: 3:45

Songwriters: Nathan Chapman, Liz Rose, Jesse Walker

Vocal Range: F#3 - C#5

Total: 107
Average: 5.63
Std Dev: 2.97


bboat11 - 1
born - 1
soulfulwings - 2
fearlessarrow - 3
codyj100 - 3
.indulgecountry - 4
d3vin44 - 4
Cody Wants Out... - 4
SHOOTER - 5
castleoblivion26 - 6
Kanenrá:ke - 6
austin - 7
BackwoodsBarbie - 7
dub - 8

someguy - 8
cerulean - 8
kansasmeetsmo - 9
Normi - 10
Troublemaker - 11

@adam1995
Leo ✔
tim
BlueShades874
George Strait Junkie
DistrictTwelve

Bowing out at #5 we say goodbye to another album track, and this time it is MY #1 to leave us... "Walk Away" has been a clear favorite of mine ever since the first time I heard the album. This song is just astonishingly good to me. The emotion and passion in Martina's voice, paired with the evocative lyrics and chilling arrangement work together here to make this what is essentially to my ears a perfect song. To me this has always been the big missed hit opportunity on the album. Whether it could have been more successful than any of the other three singles is uncertain, but I would like to think that it would have been better received overall than at least "I Just Call You Mine", which seemed to sap all of her momentum.

This song was pretty much always a contender for the top 5, but also received enough hate to keep it towards the back of the top 5. It never made a run for #1 or anything, which I thought that it might do going into the rankdown. born also loses his #1 alongside me, which makes this the first song to receive multiple #1 ranks.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Songs Remaining}
I Just Call You Mine
Lies
Ride
Wrong Baby Wrong Baby Wrong

[castleoblivion26]

"Walk Away" is amazing and I honestly should have ranked this song at #4 over "What Do I Have To Do" because I always go back and forth on both of those songs. Sad that it couldn't outlast "I Just Call You Mine" which has no business being in the Top 4 of this album

[bboat11]

Up next we lose the song that was stuck at #2 fighting for the lead for most of the rankdown. Unfortunately 2-4 were all so tightly packed together that a couple low ranks at the end managed to shove this song all the way back to #4 :'(

[fearlessarrow]

"Walk Away" didn't finish as the top album track? As Martina would say, "wrong baby wrong". "Lies" is also really good too, so I can't say I'm surprised since it was always between "Lies" and "Walk Away" as the top album track I would imagine.

[bboat11]

I don’t walk these halls,

 And I don’t climb these walls every night. 

And I don’t cry. 

And even though I’m waiting by the phone

 I don’t want you to call.

 I don’t miss you at all. 

Lies.

4. "Lies"

Track #11

Runtime: 4:07

Songwriters: David Campbell, Catt Gravitt, Tania Hancheroff, Gerald O'Brien

Vocal Range: E♭3 - E♭5

Total: 92
Average: 4.84
Std Dev: 2.91


bboat11 - 2
castleoblivion26 - 2
d3vin44 - 2
.indulgecountry - 2
Troublemaker - 2
Cody Wants Out... - 3
born - 3
dub - 3
kansasmeetsmo - 3
fearlessarrow - 4
cerulean - 4
BackwoodsBarbie - 5
Kanenrá:ke - 5
SHOOTER - 7
someguy - 7
soulfulwings - 9
Normi - 9
codyj100 - 10
austin - 10

@adam1995
Leo ✔
BlueShades874
DistrictTwelve
tim
George Strait Junkie


Next, we say goodbye to our final album track from the album! "Lies" is freaking INCREDIBLE, so I am pleased to see it being the highest album track if "Walk Away" couldn't do it.

That being said, I am extremely disappointed that this song got tanked at the end. This song was on pace to be the #2, which I was pretty darn happy with. Unfortunately it was not meant to be, as some last-minute low ranks pushed it all the way back to #4.

Anyway, this is by far one of the biggest standouts on the album. I love the premise of using blatantly false statements in the verses, just to launch into describing the way the narrator is not upset about their recent breakup in the chorus. The way the juxtaposition discredits all of the positive reassurances in the chorus as false is SO well-written, and Martina's vocal performance here is practically transcendent. The way this song builds is just plain scintillating.

Okay, I'll stop now before I run out of big words.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Songs Remaining}
I Just Call You Mine
Ride
Wrong Baby Wrong Baby Wrong

[.indulgecountry]

"Lies" is gorgeous. Deserved better and to be above at least 1 or 2 of the singles.

[born]

Wow, I lost my remaining top 3 songs just like that.

I hope “Ride” doesn’t win but I’m sure it will.

[bboat11]

And just like that, our top 3 consists of all 3 of the album's singles!

As much as people get tired of seeing singles win album rankdowns, I must say I am definitely okay seeing the singles do so well here. All three of them are criminally underrated in Martina's catalog, and I was honestly worried that at least one of them was going to get robbed in this rankdown. None of them are well-known enough to have as strong of a familiarity bias as songs like "A Broken Wing", "Independence Day", etc., so I personally feel like all three of them making the top 3 is a statement about their overall quality moreso than a reflection of what was most "popular". It would have been nice to see "Lies" or "Walk Away" make it further into the top 5, but at the end of the day I still feel like the whole top 5 is pretty damn flawless.

I am especially surprised to see "I Just Call You Mine" still in! I always seem to be the only one who loves that song, but clearly that is not the case after all

Anyway, tune in tomorrow for the top 3 reveal!!

[BackwoodsBarbie]

Flawless top 3 😀

[codyj100]

bboat11 I almost ranked "Walk Away" as my #1. That has been my favorite song from the album for the longest time. But, when I revisited the album, "What Do I Have To Do" struck a chord with me that I hadn't noticed before. Props on the great ranking for "Walk Away" though.

EDIT: Alright, I have to go re-listen to "Lies." I must be missing something. lol 

[d3vin44]

If there was an album where album tracks should’ve dominated, it was this one.

[bboat11]

Apr 12, 2018 11:18:35 GMT -5 codyj100 said:

bboat11 I almost ranked "Walk Away" as my #1. That has been my favorite song from the album for the longest time. But, when I revisited the album, "What Do I Have To Do" struck a chord with me that I hadn't noticed before. Props on the great ranking for "Walk Away" though.

EDIT: Alright, I have to go re-listen to "Lies." I must be missing something. lol 

I would also highly recommend watching the live video of "Lies" that I posted. It is just a crappy digital camera recording, and yet it still perfectly captures the magic of seeing her sing in a live setting. Just watching the way she sings that song makes its emotional power more tangible. The most astonishing aspect is the difference between the first and second choruses. On the studio recording you can tell the first chorus is supposed to be more restrained and the second chorus is a little heavier, but the difference is way more noticeable in a live setting. The restrained head voice mix in the 1st chorus is very pretty of course, but then when she launches into that second chorus you realize just how HUGE her voice is, and it is absolutely captivating By the time she finishes the "And I don't climb these walls" line, it feels to me like even the air in that room probably had goosebumps! Lol

But she has a knack for making everything even better in a live setting. The way she moves and gestures with the music as it starts getting more and more intense, the way the room reverberates with her voice, the epic perfection that is her band... Lol if you watch it and find that you can't appreciate that song live, then you are probably never going to appreciate it!

[bboat11]

Is anybody here and ready to finish this up??

[bboat11]

It brings you up slowly,
Then shoots you like a rocket toward the ground.
It twists you and it shakes you
Before it turns you upside down.

3. "Ride"

Track #8

Runtime: 3:53

Songwriters: Michael Davey, Andrew Dorff, Chris A. Robbins

Vocal Range: G3 - D5



Total: 88
Average: 4.63
Std Dev: 2.52 (3rd smallest!!!)


someguy - 2
Cody Wants Out... - 2
fearlessarrow - 2
BackwoodsBarbie - 2
soulfulwings - 3
austin - 3
castleoblivion26 - 3
Troublemaker - 3
cerulean - 3
bboat11 - 4
SHOOTER - 4
kansasmeetsmo - 5
Normi - 6
dub - 6
.indulgecountry - 7
codyj100 - 7
d3vin44 - 7
born - 8
Kanenrá:ke - 11


@adam1995
Leo ✔
DistrictTwelve
tim
George Strait Junkie
BlueShades874


For the first single to leave the rankdown, we say goodbye to the album's lead single. "Ride" was ALMOST a top 10 hit, making it up to #11 on the chart before plowing into a brick wall for whatever reason. I think it is a shame that this song was not a bigger hit, because it is largely forgotten in her discography, which is rare for a lead single. I think this song sounds like a huge hit, so I never have understood why nobody ever seems to like it in comparison with the rest of Martina's hits. The production job on this song is top notch, and the way Martina sings "RIIIIIDE" at the end of the chorus is effervescent, to put it mildly.

This song was always a top 5 contender, but never really managed to escape the #3 position aside from one brief moment  towards the end of the submission process.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Songs Remaining}
I Just Call You Mine
Wrong Baby Wrong Baby Wrong

[.indulgecountry]

Kinda shocked this went out before "I Just Call You Mine." Wow. I think WBWBW definitely won now, even though I was pretty confident before.

[Kanenrá:ke]

Bye boring "Ride"!

[bboat11]

‘Cause everyone that sees you always wants to know you.

 And everyone that knows you always has a smile. 

You’re a standing ovation

 After years of waiting for a chance to finally shine. 

Everyone calls you amazing. 

I just call you mine.

2. "I Just Call You Mine"

Track #2
Runtime: 4:20
Songwriters: Jess Cates, Ty Lacy, Dennis Matkosky
Vocal Range: F#3 - E♭5



Total: 87
Average: 4.58
Std Dev: 2.89


Troublemaker - 1
soulfulwings - 1
SHOOTER - 2
cerulean - 2
Normi - 2
codyj100 - 2
bboat11 - 3
BackwoodsBarbie - 3
born - 4
fearlessarrow - 5
Cody Wants Out... - 5
.indulgecountry - 5
dub - 5
austin - 5
someguy - 6
kansasmeetsmo - 6
castleoblivion26 - 10
Kanenrá:ke - 10
d3vin44 - 10


@adam1995
Leo ✔
BlueShades874
tim
DistrictTwelve
George Strait Junkie


This song is amazing, and I am SO SHOCKED and thrilled to see it make the top 2!!!!! I was so worried that this song was going to be tanked, because everybody who ever talks about it always acts like they hate it for whatever reason. For me personally, this was my immediate favorite one the album when it came out...(at least until I heard "Walk Away" like 2 tracks later... Lol!) But this song is one that I was clamoring for to be a single from the moment I heard it, and I was so happy when it ended up being released! Unfortunately it stalled in the teens for her, without even coming close to the top 10


Anyway, I am shocked that people dislike this song. The most common complaint I hear is that it is too "sappy and generic". (Which is barely even a valid excuse to dislike a love song, but I digress. People call a song sappy simply because it's about love...) To me this song is super unique in its lyrical delivery as well as the way the melody unfolds, which makes it stand out among most other love songs to me. The lyrics are way more evocative than your traditional "sappy" love song. I mean seriously, "You're a standing ovation after years of waiting for a chance to finally shine" is definitely in the running for being the coolest lyric I have ever heard in a love song And Martina's vocal delivery here is one of my favorite moments of the whole album. There are so many cool vocal inflections in this song that I live for!

---

You cry if you want to.
That’s what we all do.
But if you think you’ll never move on,
You’re wrong, baby, wrong.

1. "Wrong Baby Wrong Baby Wrong"

Track #1
Runtime: 3:42
Songwriters: Stephen Barker Liles, Robert Ellis Orrall, Brad Warren, Brett Warren
Vocal Range: F#3 - E♭5



Total: 48
Average: 2.53
Std Dev: 2.39 (1st smallest!!!!!!)


.indulgecountry - 1
someguy - 1
fearlessarrow - 1
SHOOTER - 1
Cody Wants Out... - 1
cerulean - 1
castleoblivion26 - 1
Kanenrá:ke - 1
kansasmeetsmo - 1
austin - 1
Normi - 1
BackwoodsBarbie - 1
dub - 2
soulfulwings - 4
born - 5
codyj100 - 5
Troublemaker - 5
bboat11 - 6
d3vin44 - 9


@adam1995
Leo ✔
BlueShades874
tim
DistrictTwelve
George Strait Junkie


In what ended up not being a close battle AT ALL, "Wrong Baby Wrong Baby Wrong" takes the crown!!! This song, similar to "Ride", had quite a bit of buzz, but then completely hit a brick wall at #11. Which is pretty ridiculous, because this song has gone on to be just about as remembered as some of her big top 10 hits. This is by far the most well-loved hit on the album, so it SHOULD have been much bigger than it was!

In a swift move of decisiveness, 12 out of the 19 participants put this song in their #1! Once this song reached #1, it stayed there and never even came close to losing it. "Walk Away" was also an steady #5 contender, while "I Just Call You Mine", "Ride", and "Lies" had a nail-biter battle for positions 2-4.

[bboat11]

Thank you to everybody who participated in this!!! I am so glad that we managed to get 19 people Hopefully y'all will consider participating in the next one too!!!!

Speaking of, go vote for which album we should do next  Poll closes at the end of the day tomorrow!