Blue Sky Riders, <em>Finally Home</em>: The Review

Blue Sky Riders'is a celebration, imbued with the unbridled passion of one more go around, one more spin on the dance floor, one more chance at true love.
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NASHVILLE, TN - NOVEMBER 07: (L-R) Kenny Loggins and Georgia Middleman of Blue Sky Riders perform at the Let Us In Nashville: A Tribute to Linda McCartney benefit concert at the Ryman Auditorium on November 7, 2011 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Erika Goldring/Getty Images)
NASHVILLE, TN - NOVEMBER 07: (L-R) Kenny Loggins and Georgia Middleman of Blue Sky Riders perform at the Let Us In Nashville: A Tribute to Linda McCartney benefit concert at the Ryman Auditorium on November 7, 2011 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Erika Goldring/Getty Images)

The thing about life is it is accompanied by a soundtrack, and that soundtrack differs for each one of us. Our lives are marked by songs from the fleeting days of our childhood, to our entrance into adolescence, first love and rebellion. Songs are the consolation prize during angst-ridden heartbreak, the unifying vision of what is possible for our world when we join together, the mirror we hold up to ourselves to see the miles traveled and the races won and lost.

So to listen to a CD of new music by three established veterans of the craft of writing, who have already penned some of those milestone moments in our lives, is a thrill that carries it with it the burden of what's already been said and done, as well as the challenge of what we need to hear in this moment to mark the place we occupy now.

Blue Sky Riders' Finally Home is a celebration, imbued with the unbridled passion of one more go around, one more spin on the dance floor, one more chance at true love. It is overwhelmingly jubilant, at times youthfully defiant, but always a delicious blend of stunning harmonies -- familiar enough to warm your heart, yet new enough to be exciting and fresh. (Can you tell I like it?)

Fresh off their appearance on The Tonight Show With Jay Leno, Blue Sky Riders, which is comprised of Kenny Loggins, Gary Burr and Georgia Middleman, is a band changing the conversation, refusing both the pressure and temptation to cram themselves into any one box of genre or style. Music is music. Good music is good music. And Blue Sky Riders seems intent on delivering that message personally.

The 15-track CD that evenly distributes the lead vocals and harmonies between the band's three members is chock full of upbeat, hooky choruses as well as meaningful, reflective ballads that kind of take you by surprise in both their simplicity and profound truth.

From the use of bagpipes to harmonica to accordion, the production value of each song contained some element that delighted me unexpectedly. As for the songs themselves, it's hard to pick a favorite. I think the runaway hits are "Dream" and "Feelin' Brave." But I have no shortage of love for "Little Victories," "Another Spring" and "Windeer Woman," even though I don't exactly know what a "Windeer Woman" is.

So if you've been saying to yourself, "There's no music I'd want to buy out there," buy this. You're the person this CD was made for. At least, I am. Finally Home is the soundtrack for this moment in our lives, and it's a beautiful one at that. Blue Sky Riders' Finally Home is available now.

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