The Other Life

Shooter Jennings' albums have wandered all over country and hard rock terrains, never comfortably staying too long with one sound. Like his dad Waylon, Shooter knows all about self-mythology. He's out to remind anyone who doesn't already know about the Jennings family tree just how outlaw his family has been through the years. (A biopic's also in the works.) "Outlaw You" gives that particular lesson; it's a great-sounding tune that lets you forgive his testiness about the pretty boys with cowboy hats and new boots. The tough hard rock of "A Hard Lesson to Learn" is a warning to himself not to be easily seduced by the legacies of musicians doomed by the bottle. "Wild & Lonesome" with Patty Griffin hits the sweet spot with a gorgeous ballad. Jim Dandy of Black Oak Arkansas joins Jennings for the futuristic rocker "15 Million Light Years Away," which (along with the Pink Floyd-like "Flying Saucer Song") suggests he has a hankering for a world outside the elements of Steve Young's "The White Trash Song."