A couple of years ago after a local George Strait concert I spent a few minutes with the singer on his bus. I asked him what his plans were. He looked at his lead guitarist.

"Well," Strait said, "maybe we'll try a little Motown soul next."

They both laughed.Strait plans to be what Strait's always been.

If you like uptempo tunes with a Texas swing beat to them, or lonesome weepers full of heartbreak, he's your boy.

If you don't, he ain't.

Strait has been forced to take a few punches over his new album. Critical critics are miffed because it sounds like every album in the Strait canon. They claim he's not growing, not pushing, not experimenting.

My own feeling is he's doing all three. But he's growing and pushing deeper into the roots.

To begin with, Strait's at a point where he has access to the best material of the best songwriters in the business. Everyone else gets his discards.

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"Overnight Success," for instance, would sound good no matter who cut it. It's a classic drifting, dreamy tune with a strong hookline _ typical of Strait. The singer has spent the night alone waiting for his lover to return. When she shows up the next morning he croons "If you planned on hurting me, you're overnight success." The lilting melody almost cries out for old-timey Jordanaire harmonies.

"Hollywood Squares" is one of those goofy, giddy novelty songs that show up on Strait's records. This one tells us "I have so many exes and owe so much, I outta be on Hollywood Squares."

"Ace in the Hole" a bouncy number, is an inside joke (Strait's band is called Ace in the Hole) and "Baby's Gotten Good at Goodbye" is his current hit. The title cut, "Beyond the Blue Neon" has just been released as the singer's next single.

In all, a tight, clean, interesting, heartfelt album. Like the ones before it. And, quite likely, like the ones that will follow.

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