Music Review: Luke Bryan "Play It Again"

Luke Bryan

Play It Again

Album: Crash My Party

Year: 2014

         Luke Bryan has a special moment with a girl while tailgating in the idealized           “Play It Again.”

       An idyllic guitar opens the single, setting a fond tone. The bag of corn almost falls out of his hand as he watches the girl sip a beer at the next truck. When she leans over to the side to switch the radio station, he notices long and lean legs, shown off perfectly by her white floral miniskirt. He figures she’s already taken by one of the guys grilling hot dogs off to the side. He sets his bag of corn down and tells his friends he has to talk a girl. He introduces himself and she offers him a seat next to her in the truck. He starts asking what part of Georgia is she from, who is her favorite player on the team and then she hops off the truck. (“She was sittin' all alone over on the tailgate/Tan legs swingin' by a Georgia plate/I was lookin' for her boyfriend/Thinkin', "no way she ain't got one"/Soon as I sat down I was fallin' in love/Tryin' to pour a little sugar in her Dixie cup/Talkin' over the speakers in the back of that truck/She jumped up and cut me off.”)

         In the chorus, she exclaims her favorite song is on now. She says the DJ’s have been teasing it for awhile and she thought she’d miss it before the game. She grabs his hand and asks him to dance with her. At the end of the song, she put her hands on his collar and kissed him. She whispered that she wants to hear it again. He grins and nuzzles her nose, repeating that he would like to hear it also. (“She was like, "oh my God, this is my song/I've been listenin' to the radio all night long/Sittin' 'round waitin' for it to come on and here it is"/She was like, "come here, boy, I wanna dance!"/'Fore I said a word, she was takin' my hand/Spinnin' me around till it faded out/And she gave me a kiss/And she said, "play it again, play it again, play it again"/And I said, "play it again, play it again, play it again.”)

He wishes he knew the DJ. He would call into the station, give his friend his life savings if needed in order to get it played again. After a couple games of Cornhole, he decided to try to get the moment to happen again. He went through all the stations. It just caught on and began to play on almost every format. By chance, though, it’s on the adult contemporary station. He turns the volume up and she smiles at him, then cuddles into his arm.  (“I'd gave that DJ my last dime/If he would have played it just one more time/But a little while later/We were sittin' in the drive in my truck/Before I walked her to the door/I was scannin' like a fool AM, FM, XM too/But I stopped real quick when I heard that groove/Man, you should have seen her light up.”)

In the second chorus, she’s gestures to the radio with her arm waving, saying that it’s on again. She gets out of the car and says they have to dance. Again, she gives him a kiss and tells him she’s had a wonderful time. (“She was like, "oh my God, this is my song/We've been listenin' to the radio all night long/I can't believe that it came back on, but here it is"/She was like, "come here boy, I wanna dance!"/'Fore I said a word, she was takin' my hand/Spinnin' in the headlights she gave me a goodnight kiss/And I said, "play it again, play it again, play it again.”)

            In the bridge, they made plans to see each other the next weekend. During the week, he learned how to play the song on the guitar. They are sprawled on the blanket, snuggling close to each other as they look at the stars. She tells him that the song brought them together. He kisses her and says he has a  surprise. He runs to the truck and gets his guitar. From the first notes, she clasps her hands together and is absoutely speechless. (“And she said, "play it again, play it again, play it again"/The next Friday night we were sittin' out under the stars/You should have seen her smile when I broke out my guitar.”)

          In the third chorus, she says she’s been at home and in each room, she would turn on the radio, hoping their song would play. She says one more dance before they sleep. (“She was like, "oh my God, this is my song/I've been listenin' to the radio all night long/Sittin' 'round waitin' for it to come on and here it is"/She was like, "come here boy, I wanna dance!"/'Fore I said a word, she was takin' my hand/Spinnin' in the headlights she gave me a goodnight kiss/And she said, "play it again, play it again, play it again"/And I said, "play it again, play it again, play it again.”)

         In the final section, as the song ends, he waits for it show up on another radio station to continue the moment. (“Yeah play it again, play it again, play it again/Somebody play it again, play it again, play it again.”)

         Bryan’s gushing vocals can’t believe one song changed his life. For him, it’s become sacred. It comes on the radio and he has to stop. It makes him think of her every time. Regardless of what happens, the song will always belong to their relationship.

        The adoring “Play It Again” captures the beginnings of inside jokes and lingering looks among a couple.