Arriving a few short months after the standards collection
Let's Face the Music and Dance
, which itself came less than a year after his
Legacy
debut
Heroes
,
To All the Girls
splits the difference between these two albums for
. As a duets album comprised entirely of female partners,
is, like
, driven by superstar guest power but the intimate, relaxed feel is reminiscent of
. Such a quiet, comfortable setting is welcoming to a wide variety of partners, ranging from living legends
Loretta Lynn
Dolly Parton
Mavis Staples
, and
Emmylou Harris
to more recent superstars
Miranda Lambert
and
Carrie Underwood
. Between these two extremes lie such excellent, underappreciated, new alt-country singers like
Brandi Carlile
the Secret Sisters
, family -- both sister
Paula Nelson
Melonie Cannon
, the daughter of
Buddy Cannon
-- and stars who are working their way toward legend status (
Norah Jones
Alison Krauss
Sheryl Crow
Wynnona Judd
Shelby Lynne
). Similarly, the songs split the difference between new versions of
Nelson
classics ("Bloody Mary Morning," "Always on My Mind," "Please Don't' Tell Me How the Story Ends"), covers of beloved songs ("Til the End of the World," "Have You Ever Seen the Rain"), and brand-new tunes (
Dolly
brings in "From Here to the Moon and Back," which she wrote for Joyful Noise, a gospel musical co-starring
Queen Latifah
). Nearly all of this proceeds at an amiably lazy gait, which makes the handful of cuts that stray from this path quite notable: "Bloody Mary Morning" retains its trademark gallop with
Wynnona
;
hits the honky tonk fairly hard on "Making Believe";
gives a hazy south-of-the-border feel to "The End of the World," and
Krauss
' "No Mas Amor" is dreamy. Although there is not a bad cut here -- this is all assured, easy, impeccably tasteful work from
Willie
and his partners -- the 70-minute length of
does make the album feel a little samey, but that can be a good thing, as it makes for nice, romantic mood music or a drowsy Sunday afternoon at home. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine