02.08.08 The Washington Post Stephen Simmons isn't related to anyone famous, but he sounds so much like Steve Earle that they could be nephew and uncle. That's not a bad thing, for not many singers achieve such a confident, full-bodied sound while delivering conversational confessions. Simmons's songwriting on his fourth album, Something in Between, differs from Earle's in its emphasis on such classic country fare as broken marriages and drunken regrets. It's odd to hear those themes set against the Dylanesque folk-rock arrangements fueled by producer David Briggs's organ and Simmons's harmonica, but it works. The Nashville singer-songwriter never whines and always offers a clear-eyed assessment of his own failures and lingering hopes. Those hopes come to the fore on "New Scratches," a boast that he's sticking out a new relationship despite all the cuts and bruises. — Geoffrey Himes