Van Zant - Get Right with the Man (2005)

Southern rock and country are musical kissing cousins, so it's no huge surprise that .38 Special frontman Donnie Van Zant and his brother Johnny (of latter-day Lynyrd Skynyrd) cut an album steeped in ... read more the sounds of the latter genre. GET RIGHT WITH THE MAN finds the brothers Van Zant delving into pedal-steel-stoked fare that focuses on blue-collar rebellion ("Nobody Gonna Tell Me What to Do"), bar-brawling ("Takin' Up Space"), and rough roads traveled ("Been There Done That"), and fits in nicely with the contemporary country scene.Everyday people populate these songs, ranging from the waitress at the heart of the sassy "Plain Jane" to the grandfatherly "hillbilly scholar" whose words of wisdom define the tearjerker "Help Somebody." Fans of the duo's rock & roll side need not worry, though, given the jaunty, Skynyrd-like jam "Lovin' You" (replete with female harmony vocals) and the mid-tempo barnstormer "Sweet Mama." GET RIGHT WITH THE MAN presents Donnie and Johnny Van Zant exploring their country roots, but there's still a fair share of Southern rock on this lively album.This DualDisc presents the CD version of GET RIGHT WITH THE MAN on one side and a DVD version with surround-sound mix and a wealth of bonus material (including the documentary VAN ZANT UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL, a music video for "Help Somebody," and bootleg footage from a private party) on the other.