Kenny Chesney, ‘Noise’ [Listen]
Kenny Chesney says “Noise” is his first song with real social importance, and the timing couldn’t be better. Without being political, he takes on politics. Without sounding like a luddite, he challenges technology. Without smelling curmudgeonly, he recalls how things once were.
There’s no doubting the urgency in Chesney’s voice as he sings this country-rocker about the constant hum that bears down on us every day. Suddenly open air has become a vacuum that pulls in distractions from every corner of the universe. If you’ve felt guilty about not being able to put your cell phone down during dinner with your kids, Chesney’s song is going to twist that knife deeper.
“Noise” is, if nothing else, relevant. He doesn’t as much offer a solution to how to escape the cacophony around us as much as he does spend a few minutes describing it. Few would argue with his and co-writers Ross Copperman, Shane McAnally and Jon Nite’s basic premise: it’s nearly impossible to find one square-inch of perfect silence in the world, and that works to our detriment.
Perhaps lost in Chesney’s first new single from an upcoming 17th studio album is the progressive production. While hardly genre-bending, there’s a few effects (vocal and otherwise) that act as static, mimicking his theme on this song. Guitars come from every direction. The rhythm section isn’t as imposing as you find on some modern country arrangements, but it never has been for Chesney. The vocals and lyrics are never covered on “Noise,” a song that could signal the start of a more socially active era for one of the greats of all time.
Did You Know?: McAnnally is been a good luck charm for Chesney. He helped write three of his most recent hits: "American Kids," "Wild Child" and "Somewhere With You."
Listen to Kenny Chesney, "Noise"
Kenny Chesney Talks About Noise
Kenny Chesney, “Noise” Lyrics:
“Wrecking balls, downtown construction / Bottles breaking, jukebox buzzing/ Cardboard sign says ‘The Lord is coming’ / Tick tick tock / Rumors turn the mills back home / Parking lot kids with the speakers blown / We didn’t turn it on, but we can’t turn it off off off.”
“Sometimes I wonder how did we get here / Seems like all we ever hear is …”
Chorus:
“Noise, yeah we scream, we shout til we don’t have a voice / In the streets, in the crowds, it ain’t nothing but noise / Drowning out all the dreams of this Tennessee boy / Just trying to be heard in all this noise’ says it all.”
“Twenty four hour television / Gets so loud that no one listens / Sex and money and politicians talk, talk, talk / But there really ain't no conversation / Ain't nothing left to the imagination / Trapped in our phones and we can't make it stop, stop this.”
“Every room, every house, every shade of noise / All the floors, all the walls, they all shake with noise / We can't sleep, we can't think, can't escape the noise / We can't take the noise, so we just make …”
“Can’t tame the noise.”