Shy Blakeman is damn sure country, in fact just about as country as a singing, guitar playing and songwriting guy can be. All that, and also a whole lot more. And his third and truly definitive album, LONG DISTANCE MAN, is damn sure country and a whole lot more as well. It’s rich with the true to the music yet renegade spirit that launched Blakeman out of Kilgore, Texas. It’s also rooted in the outlaw country and classic country-rock he was all but literally weaned and teethed on as a child in Wyoming. You can hear how he learned what to do (and not just) from his time in Nashville. And also be thrilled and enchanted by the musical savvy of the long vital Los Angeles roots-rock scene and some of its hottest musicians that played on the album. It takes but a spin of the disc to know that Shy Blakeman is a country music man for all seasons, and primed for the long run through many more to come. From the first notes of the opening title track, it’s obvious there's something very cool in LONG DISTANCE MAN that takes country into a wider musical realm.