The lead single, Every Mile A Memory, is a perfect example of Dierks' ability to meld past and present together and create something that simply sounds great. The country sound is entirely present, yet Dierks brings some rock flavor to it. Complete the picture with solid vocals and lyrics that are amplified by the music, and the sum is one solid single to create a picture of the entire disc. Can't Live It Down and Hope For Me Yet are two more examples of Dierks' great abilities as an artist.
On the side of the more traditional sounds, Dierks manages himself quite well. Tracks like the title track and Soon As You Can are some of the disc's top tracks, offering great lyrics of hope mixed with a little bit of angst (Though it is a joyful angst, if that is at all possible). The music and vocals have a more classical feel, but it actually works very well for Dierks on these tracks.
Free And Easy (Down The Road I Go) and Band Of Brothers bring back the edgier rock stylings to the music. Again, it seems to work quite well. What remains consistent through all these tracks seems to be Dierks' vocals (Which are solid) and Dierks' writing. At times, it is almost simplistic (Such as on Free And Easy). And yet, he manages to simply write about life and make it hit with most anyone. Dierks has continued to prove himself as one country's top writers.
One other highlight of the disc has to be The Heaven I'm Headed To, which reminds people that Heaven is God's place to accept people into, not our own. In this song, he discusses the types of people who most expect in Heaven and then delves into exactly who he thinks might be headed to Heaven that we may not expect to be there. It's one of those songs that is going to be a real eye-opener for some people and a true re-enforcer of beliefs for others.
Overall, Long Trip Alone is easily one of the year's top country offerings. With this disc, Dierks Bentley continues to prove himself as an artist who is here to stay for quite some time. And, if he continues to make music the way he has been, that is definitely a good thing for country music (And the music industry in general).