Phil Vassar "Bobbi with an I"

Review by Matthew Fortuna
request Phil Vassar "Bobbi with an I" A tow truck driver and a little pink dress – it is not often that a country boy will tackle a topic like transvestites, and especially in a single. A lighthearted look at an evolving societal side of sexuality, Phil Vassar’s “Bobbi With An I” is a lighthearted affair with a 21st century topic.

Rocking in typical Phil Vassar fashion, the singer and songwriter offers “Bobbi” as the first single from his upcoming fifth studio album. On the heels of Prayer of a Common Man and singles “Life is a Beautiful Thing” and “I Would,” this new offering reflects a little playful songwriting, adding country flavor to a metropolitan subject.

“Bobbi With an I” is a rocking romp with infectious piano and a sing along chorus featuring “Ha ha ah ah ah.” Vassar sings of the transvestites: “You better watch what you drink/ She might look better than you think.”

Vassar may be trying to bridge the gap that country music has felt with liberal ideas, and attempts to deliver some light hearted culture to a topic

Phil Vassar Pulls The Funny Card

that has been hot button/ Reflecting his country culture’s acceptance of the topic, he sings: “So we live and left live/ That’s how it is/ Nobody gives a second thought these days/ It’s Bobbi with an I/ Just one of the guys.”

The former songwriter for the likes of Tim McGraw, Jo Dee Messina, and Alan Jackson, Vassar offers his rugged vocal and a rough Virginia sound as the singer passes his mid 40s. Still vital and vibrant in the country music scene, Vassar may know a Bobbi with an I, or two, and he reflects how Bobbi fits into the country landscape as well as any good ol’ cowboy or girl, just like the cowboys from Willie Nelson’s “Cowboys are Frequently Secretly Fond of Each Other.”

An ode to the unseen sides of country, “Bobbi With an I” is Vassar’s nod to the changing landscape, and is a signal that the genre remains in tune with the times.

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