Much like Reese Witherspoon's transplanted Southern belle character, the songs on Sweet Home Alabama have their hearts and affections rooted deep in the heart of Dixie. Sheryl Crow is almost unrecognizable yodeling and twanging on her version of Hank Williams's country-porch picker, and Shannon McNally adds grace to a smoky, strings-and-blues guitar-strewn number. Uncle Kracker's acoustic-based cut lopes like a cowpoke and Dolly Parton contributes a vintage square-dance stomper, while newcomer Jason Chain's "You Got Me," a standout, is halfway between roots rock and R.E.M.-ish jangle. Surprisingly, noted alt-country leaner Ryan Adams channels the churning, belching riffs and mannerisms of Led Zeppelin, and Jewel chooses to rock out on Lynyrd Skynyrd's classic with distortion and sultry, weathered vocals. Other deviations from country style don't fare as well--Avril Lavigne's "Falling Down" is generic alt-rock lite, the Freestylers' raucous jazz-funk scatting is misplaced, and the Calling's faithful take on "Keep Your Hands to Yourself" is strained rather than lighthearted. In the end, roughly half of Alabama's tracks qualify as true gems in the rough, although wading through the filler to find them might cause some old-fashioned country-style heartbreak of your own. --Annie Zaleski
