Keith Urban’s new single "Wasted Time" employs just enough banjo to keep it from being called pop. Of course, that it’s sung by one of the format’s most recognizable voices helps, too.

"Wasted Time" is progressive with a capital "Gressive" — it’s what the Band Perry were trying to do with “Live Forever,” but they may have pushed too far, and country wasn’t quite ready for it. A fusion of bass and synthesizers drives this spacey, pop-country rocker. Urban’s story is straight down country Main Street, and that’s why it’s sure to be a big hit with programmers or even listeners thinking twice about the new concepts.

Greg Wells and J. Hart helped write this song from Ripcord, but pop influences are more present with Urban’s sonic arrangement. It’s a clever blend of styles that builds off how far he pushed his sound on Fuse. Without a doubt it’s the most genre-bending single from this new album and all indicators are that it's a better representative of what’s to come.

Country music needs Keith Urban pushing the format’s limits. He’s a trusted artist that never settles for what’s worked previously, and "Wasted Time" is another reminder of that. Remember, it was just three years ago that “Cop Car” was considered edgy. From there rose Sam Hunt and a new generation of country alchemists.

Listen to Keith Urban's "Wasted Time" 

More About Keith Urban's 'Ripcord' Album

Keith Urban, "Wasted Time" Lyrics:

“The rain is comin’ down tonight / I’m smilin’ lookin’ at this photograph / I hear that song and I’m flyin’ right back to when we / Had it made / Every Friday night when the sun went down / We’d be runnin’ them streets like we owned the town.”

“And I just can’t let it go / No, I just can’t let it go / I wonder if you ever think about it like I do / Seven kids on a two-lane road / Had the Guns on the radio / After all this time it still / Feels so good.”

Chorus:
“When I think about those summer nights / Singin’ out the window on the back roads / Sweet Child Of Mine / Sippin’ on the Loko’s, spark a light / Ain't it funny how the best days of my life / Was all that wasted time / All that wasted time / Swingin’ out on the line / Livin’ all that wasted time.”

“Outta nowhere it slipped away / The rope by the river hangs silently / And the town that we knew / Ain't nothin’ like it used to be / I, I can’t explain / They took all the color from the picture frame / And the days got sold to the grid and the game.”

“Summer dresses dryin’ out on the hood of the car / Only music that we had was out the left speaker / We were livin’ every second till the time ran out / We had nothin’ but we had it all.”

“When I think about those summer nights / Sneakin’ out the window, runnin’ back roads / Your hand in mine / We were goin’ nowhere / But were so alive / Ain't it crazy how the best of my life / Was all that wasted time / All that wasted time / Swingin’ out on the line / Livin’ all that wasted time.”

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