It’s hard to trash an album while also granting it four stars. There was a time when nobody could touch Toby Keith without getting burned- he was that hot. The big Okie rode an unmatched streak of eight studio releases in 11 years, from 1993’s self-titled debut through the mega-successful Shock’n Y’all in 2003. The past five years, by contract, have produced just two painfully mediocre albums of new material, and now his third greatest hits venture, 35 Biggest Hits. Everything a casual fan needs is included, yet there’s little of anything the harder fan hasn’t already heard. The obligatory new hit “She’s a Hottie” is hardly worth the price tag, but if there are timeline holes in your T.K. collection, this will more than fill those voids. Unfortunately, it’s quite clear now that Keith has chosen to trade in his artist hat for that of record label exec and talent scout. (Show Dog Nashville)
