The Silver Tongued Devil and I

Nine different people play strings on this album, opening with a saloon-jumping theme of the Jekyll and Hyde story. Or, rather, the first and second song together fit this theme: the first he's a devil, the second he's the gentle, faithful lover. Like all great country albums, this one doesn't shy away from stories about freeloving women, alcoholism, rambling, and drug abuse. All sung and spoken in Kristofferson's simple yet rich storytelling voice. All pointing toward a life thrown away, a life of loneliness with nothing but memories of the "good times" to torture you. Just an aside: Kristofferson seems to have had a beef with Chads.

It's hard to draw a concrete conclusion as to what's the difference between and this. This is as good as his debut, if not better at moments. It's definitely filled with more melancholic songs, and his knack for writing picturesque lyrics is better. A perfect album for when you want to feel like an outcast.