Younger country fans who kick themselves for missing the glory days of Lefty Frizzell and Merle Haggard should thank their lucky stars that they"re living through the glory days of George Strait, one of the field"s true giants. After a dangerous flirtation with pop compromise on the Pure Country soundtrack, Strait bounces back with a terrific album that sounds as if it came straight from a south Texas dance hall. Nearly every song boasts the kind of slippery swing and straight-up singing that makes this Texas rancher"s son the latest link in a chain that stretches back through Willie Nelson and Bob Wills. --Geoffrey Himes