[8] The Boston Globe wrote that "the album dwarfs much of today's country radio fare—and Stewart is a true master at work.

"[6] The Chicago Tribune called the album "a convincing illustration of why Stewart is a king of that increasingly rare breed: the honky-tonkers.

"[10] The Dallas Morning News noted that Battleground "has a raw, hollow, sound that immediately conjures up a dark bar.

"[14] The Buffalo News determined that, "scratchy and scrawny as his voice is, there is something quite compelling about the way this country/blues/rock veteran puts across a song.

[16] Robert Christgau concluded that Stewart's "r&r groove is sharp-witted where Steve Earle's is muscle-headed and the average Nashville cat's just mechanical.