"All I Want To Do"
The duo’s intent here was to have a lot of swing to the lead single of this album. To funk it up a bit, and keep it very hooky. Musically, this number’s somewhere between Bonnie Raitt and Jack Johnson, with some Marvin Gaye and Van Halen thrown in. "I love the flirty sound," says Jennifer Nettles. "We just always want to bring different energies, and we got to play on the lighter side this time." If you listen close, the easy percussion from Matt Chamberlain gives the song its sexy heartbeat.

"It Happens"
Sometimes, you just gotta let go. That’s what this gritty little tune’s all about, says the duo. "We always say we should take the music seriously, but not ourselves," Jennifer says. When the guitar comes in at the top, you know this is going to be a little more '80s pop than down-home country. Think "Walking on Sunshine." Because this tune wraps it all up with some very advisable lyrics: "Let go, laughing". And Jennifer thinks the ironies, like getting in a fender bender with your ex and his new girl, shows listeners what a grand sense of humor the universe has. It’s a very uptempo way to look at a world that’s out of your control.

"We Run"
New love. Young love. Green love. There’s an excitement to that experience that Sugarland has captured in this intoxicating bluegrassy rocker. Jennifer admits this grew from a seed of an idea that Kristian Bush had, since he grew up playing mountain music in Tennessee. And this song lends itself to that Appalachian sound, that driving four-on-the-floor beat. You can’t really describe that feeling, so the duo chose to show it rather than tell it. The imagery--of pockets of dirt and reckless weather on the breath--convey how beautiful, messy and powerful love can be.

"Joey"
Teenage love doesn’t always have a happy ending. Especially when a tear-jerker like Bill Anderson has pen in hand. He helped Jennifer and Kristian craft this modern take on the traditional teen tragedy, and yet much more alternative influences went into the vocals. "We ended up with a haunting wail in the chorus and this R.E.M. background vocal," says Kristian of the melancholy music. "It’s simple and dark." The rich texture of this song is built around all those "what ifs" that run through your mind as you explore regret. "Nothing mitigates loss," says Jennifer. "But everyone has regrets, so we can all relate."

"Love"
Jennifer's powerhouse pipes take center stage in this ballad. And that strength comes though in the form of questions, about how you can possibly define love. Is it the face of a child? Kindness in the eyes of a stranger? In a hotel room in Washington D.C., when Sugarland was chasing down the theme of the whole album, the topic of love came up. "No way could you ever narrow it down," Jennifer says of their writing time with Tim Owens ("Settlin’"). There’s love lost, love found, new and old loves. So this tune gets right in the middle, and makes some reaches musically. Kristian's powerful voice is featured for the second half of this song. "When we were writing the back half, Jen said ‘I want you to sing these words I wrote just for you,’" recalls Kristian. "I will always feel special singing those words."

"Genevieve"
Jennifer said that Kristian had the whole first verse worked out. That verse--and his pure, sweet mandolin work--were inspiring enough. But when the idea for some three-part harmony came up, it only made this dirge of a country heartache even better. Jennifer says it reminded her of some of the southern Baptist hymns she grew up on, and likes that the story’s not clear cut. "It’s a beautiful thing when we get to play characters that are complicated." There’s a mystery of who this character is that is coping with such a dramatic loss. It’s a little twisted. But that creates an even stronger pull into the lyrics.