Of course, DeGarmo has the typical pop songs on this disc as well. All I Never Wanted is a relatively typical song about broken relationships. The lyrics are certainly above average, and Diana can sing, which allows this song to at least get a second glance. The previously mentioned Boy Like You, while not necessarily being your typical pop song, has the typical pop lyrics that basically say "Screw boys." Till You Want Me, Dreams and Dream, Dream, Dream all lend themselves to the pop sound so evident on her springboard, American Idol. However, Diana tries her best to keep these songs as close to her own style as possible, and she does a pretty good job of that.
Diana also brings in some of the classic songs that she sang during her stint on American Idol Go On And Cry and Don't Cry Out Loud are both featured on the disc, and though DeGarmo has the voice to pull both songs off (and does a darn good job with both), they simply seem out of place with the rest of the disc. They simply aren't the style that Diana can truly do best. It's likely that these songs could have been replaced with some originals, but it is all but expected that any American Idol contestant will cover at least on or two songs they performed on the show on their debut disc. Kelly did it, Clay did it, Ruben did it. And two out of those three are proving to have a pretty successful stint in the business as of now. So, no harm, no foul.
And though DeGarmo did not have a hand in writing any of the lyrics for this disc (or at least not enough of a hand to have her name mentioned as one of the writers), she sings each song with everything she has, as if these are words that came directly from her mouth. The title track, Blue Skies, points to Diana's Christian upbringing (She is, of course, the niece of Eddie DeGarmo...yeah, guy in Christian music that you've heard a lot about). Some people will have the audacity to claim that using "You" instead of "God" is just a feeble attempt to keep her music accessible and that she's losing her faith or something. Not so (Remember, we're talking about Diana DeGarmo, not Mandy Moore). It's nearly impossible to deny who is being pointed to in lyrics such as "You're the one that points me the right way.../Thank you for blue skies/When my head is down, You remind me to look up." Not all of her lyrics are so simple yet deep. In fact, some naysayers will point to lyrics like "Sorry times..." and "I'm just a girl, get used to it" in her first single, Emotional, as an indicator that the disc is crap because the lyrics sound like they're written by a teenager. Well, guess what? Yeah, that girl that's singing these songs? How old is she? Oh right...she's still a teenager. The lyrics may annoy some, but the complaints about them sounding too young are unfounded, as these lyrics actually fit Diana's age better than the more lyrically deep songs.
To sum up this disc, I point to DeGarmo's track The Difference In Me. People who dislike the American Idol competition as a whole will write this disc off quickly as another trinkety piece of pop culture history that will show up on a Trivial Pursuit card someday. And, as Diana contemplates about in the song, it might be enough for some to just give up because people won't see the difference anyway. But Diana just keeps going. She stays true to her own style on this disc as much as she possibly can. Blue Skies carries a vast difference in song quality compared to any Idol competitor's disc to date. Diana has steered clear of the "bubble gum pop" that becomes so apparent in American Idol. While a few tracks point to AI as the clear propellant of her career, her music is far more accessible for the wide range of pop music listeners. This isn't cheesy pop. This is pop that is lyrically and musically beyond DeGarmo's years, and yet she pulls it off without a hitch. And for that, she deserves to become that teenager that's selling millions of records.