Carnival Ride
by Carrie Underwood
Metascore
72

Generally favorable reviews - based on 10 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 10
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 10
  3. Negative: 0 out of 10
  1. AllMusic
    80
    Sound and feel do mean a lot, but country records really survive on the strength of their songs, and the remarkable thing about Carnival Ride is that it's stronger song for song than Some Hearts, some of this due to Carrie herself, who bears four songwriting credits here, often in conjunction with some permutation of Steve McEwan and Hillary Lindsey, who pen a bunch of other tunes here.
  2. Blender
    70
    Cheery and unassuming, Underwood is a pleasant oddity: a pop star whose central belief is her own powerlessness.
  3. Rolling Stone
    70
    Carnival Ride is more country and therefore more confident.
  5. Slant Magazine
    40
    Carnival Ride simply doesn't offer anything for the unconverted in terms of Underwood's growth either as a vocalist or as an artist.
  6. Entertainment Weekly
    83
    Carnival Ride covers its bases impeccably, from the roof-raising opener 'Flat on the Floor' to the gorgeous, torchy ballad 'I Know You Won't' and the already-massive anthem 'So Small.'
  7. Billboard
    80
    The Oklahoman delivers in spades on her sophomore effort, on which she was much more involved in the creative process.
  8. Boston Globe
    80
    Carnival Dreams, a worthy successor to Underwood's 6-million-selling debut, will surely install the blond belter from Checotah, Okla., on the crossover throne once occupied by Faith Hill and Shania Twain.
  9. The New York Times
    70
    It's a straight-up Carrie Underwood album, and a very good one, with a handful of romps and laments that exist mainly to set the stage for the big-voiced, '80s-influenced, Southern-accented power ballads she sings so well.
  10. Hartford Courant
    40
    A record with stronger songs that somehow manages to sound just as banal as her first.
  11. PopMatters
    70
    Carnival Ride doesn’t include anything as stand-alone stunning as the song she’ll still be singing at state fairs when she’s 64, but it’s a much better front-to-back collection than her debut.

Awards & Rankings

79
#79 Most Discussed Album of 2007
81
#81 Most Shared Album of 2007

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
5.6

Mixed or average reviews- based on 136 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 79 out of 136
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 136
  3. Negative: 53 out of 136
  1. Luci899
    Nov 8, 2018
    0
    Eww. A disgusting album by one of the worst artists in country music history.
  2. manningn15
    Sep 17, 2018
    10
    This is my favorite album of 2007 and one of my favorite country albums of all time. Carnival Ride was a very nice improvement on her greatThis is my favorite album of 2007 and one of my favorite country albums of all time. Carnival Ride was a very nice improvement on her great debut album. She is my favorite singer of all time and the best country singer of all time and one of the best singers of all time. My favorite songs off the album are So Small, Last Name, Just a Dream, All-American Girl, Flat on the Floor, I Told You So, Twisted, & Wheel of the World. The music videos for Just a Dream, So Small, and Last Name were beautifully done. This is also one of my favorite albums of all time. I also loved how bright and simple the album cover was.… Full Review »
  3. madpaiva
    May 16, 2018
    10
    Filled with beautiful and deep ballads that go to more lively music, Carrie follows the quality standard of her previous album.
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