Based on a True Story...
by Blake Shelton
User Score
4.5

Mixed or average reviews- based on 26 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 11 out of 26
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 26
  3. Negative: 12 out of 26
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  1. jethibea
    Apr 8, 2013
    4
    Although i can't give it a 0 like some others on here, what those reviews are saying is essentially true. There's not a lot of interesting stuff on here. The lead single 'Be Cool if You Did' is pretty good, and one or two other tracks stand out. Otherwise, there is nothing new here lyrically or melodically. Blake Shelton seems so likeable you want to like this music, but how can you whenAlthough i can't give it a 0 like some others on here, what those reviews are saying is essentially true. There's not a lot of interesting stuff on here. The lead single 'Be Cool if You Did' is pretty good, and one or two other tracks stand out. Otherwise, there is nothing new here lyrically or melodically. Blake Shelton seems so likeable you want to like this music, but how can you when there are artists like Kacey Musgraves and Allison Monroe and Jamey Johnson and, for crying out loud, his wife Miranda Lambert, pushing the envelope and doing something interesting with country music.

    I know there are a lot of other very good country artists who exist outside of this generic rehash of country formula. I would take a look for those artists before investing in this kind of album.    … Collapse

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
64

Generally favorable reviews - based on 5 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2 out of 5
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 5
  3. Negative: 0 out of 5
  1. Los Angeles Times
    Mar 27, 2013
    63
    With its easy rhymes and hummable choruses, the album doesn't ask the listener to work any harder than Shelton himself is prepared to work.
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  2. Boston Globe
    Mar 26, 2013
    60
    The album may be based on a true story, but it doesn’t offer enough personal touches to distinguish it from a lot of other tales coming out of Nashville.
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  3. AllMusic
    Mar 26, 2013
    60
    That Shelton can pull off this big, swinging bravado isn't much of a surprise--when his voice trills electronically on "Small Town Big Time" he makes it sound like a joke--but there's just a little bit too much of the schtick; individually the cuts work fine but they overwhelm not only the gentler moments ("Sure Be Cool If You Did," "Do You Remember") but cancel each other out over the long run.
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