Greg Trooper - Make It Through This World (2005)

Singer/songwriters are not known for their cheeriness, so it's kind of nice when Greg Trooper opens Make It Through This World with the gospel-tinged "Dream Away the Blues." Yes, the singer/narrator may be a bit down now, but he confidently asserts that one day he'll dream away the blues. He follows this with a mellow R&B number, "This I'd Do," a song that finds the singer promising to do whatever it takes to please his love interest, while a serene "Green Eyed Girl" playfully finds the singer wishing for the world only to admit he'd be satisfied if he had his girl sitting by his side. Trooper's relaxed vocals seem at home among the acoustic and electric guitars that make up the album's tasteful arrangements. On songs like the title track and "Don't Let It Go to Waste," he even melds his folkie heart to country music, delivering each piece with a quiet confidence. There's also an evocative ode to the great Galveston flood, "No Higher Ground," that carries a positive cadence despite its tragic subject matter. The overall mood of Make It Through This World is upbeat, and it works so well because Trooper's performance seems to in tune with the music and material. Singer/songwriters, it appears, can have good days just like everybody else.