[8] BBC Music gave the album a generally positive review, stating that "It does sound like her muse is finally on the mend.

"Up Against the Rain" and "Cotton's All We Got" were written about Townes Van Zandt and Lyndon B. Johnson, while "Not Innocent Enough" is about Phillip Workman, a man who was sentenced to death after the shooting of a police officer.

USA Today's Jerry Shriver gave the album 3 out of 4 stars, stating: "Wielding a clear, insistent voice and a soft acoustic guitar, the folkie star tackles a host of weighty topics, including interracial marriage, capital punishment and the second Bush era.

But this is no tedious polemic: A crack backing group renders sweet country-inflected arrangements, and Griffith tosses in a couple of honky-tonkish weepers and a tender ode to Townes Van Zant [sic].

"Money Changes Everything", "Party Girl", "Tequila After Midnight", and "Pour Me a Drink" are covers of other artists' work.