Whoever had “po po” on their Weird Country Uses of Hip-Hop Slang bingo card, cross it off now.
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[5.67]
Anthony Easton: Would you really call the cops if you were going crazy? Would there not be some kind of community mental health support worker which would be a better choice? Tight, well done, interesting use of the word “po-po,” but still the question persists.
[9]
Alfred Soto: In attitude Bentley’s like Channing Tatum: a beefcake who knows when to make silly and when it’s time to record a song in honor of Gabrielle Giffords. Putting front and center an acoustic riff that John Mellencamp would steal back from Chevy, “5-1 5-0” falls short in the lyrical department: Bentley does little with the title metaphor except repeat it in case we’ve forgotten how clever it looks on paper. But damn he’s charming.
[6]
Brad Shoup: This is a restraining-order warrant just waiting to be executed.
[4]
Iain Mew: Goes along at enough of a pace and with enough melodic twists that ten listens later it still passes the basic requirements to enjoy listening to it while it’s on. I just don’t believe in its story enough or find the word “po-po” funny enough for it to be anything other than totally disposable.
[6]
Jonathan Bogart: Only the memory of better songs keeps its shambling corpse upright.
[5]
Edward Okulicz: I feel gross saying this, but after listening to this track’s eager-to-please energy, channeled through gruff verses, I find Bentley’s voice highly erotic. The stilted chorus means that I probably wouldn’t want the rest of it playing while my imagination runs wild.
[4]