Despite All I Want's Southern-rock edge (pairing electric with steel guitars, the dulcet tones of dobro with Hammond organ), the songs never pick up any steam. From the tepid "All I Want (Is a Life)" to the greeting-card sentiments of "Great Divide" and "Can't Be Really Gone," McGraw hobbles from one clunker to another. Even the studio wizardry of legendary producer Chris Lord-Alge seems wasted on such bona fide rockers as "Renegade" and "I Like It, I Love It." No doubt these tracks will find their way onto country radio, but as a whole, All I Want leaves you hungry for some serious, hard-driving, shit-kicking country.

-- David Gérard