Chris Acker’s sophomore album, Good Kid, is everything a country singer-songwriter album should be. It’s lively, honest, and catchy as hell. Acker’s songs deliver heartbreaking punchlines with cheeky pleasantries; a nod at the kind of old country humor found in staples such as Loretta Lynn’s “Fist City” and storytelling and disposition of a young John Prine.

While there are traces of these predecessors, the songs remain authentically Acker. It’s clear he has a good time song writing, yet glimpses of darker, more poignant themes emerge in “Aloe Vera” and “Orion’s Gut.” Good Kid is a rousing album with a well-balanced dose of pedal steel, bright organ, and infectious rhythm. Ross Farbe (Video Age) recorded most of the solo songs in the studio, while Duff Thompson (Mashed Potato Records) took on the full-band numbers in live recordings.

Originally released on March 5th, 2020, days before the COVID lockdown began in New Orleans and the rest of the country, ‘Good Kid’ is both a record that was swallowed by the world and one that firmly established Acker’s essential role in the country music landscape.