Sheryl Crow's sixth studio album, "Wildflower," is for the most part a throwback to the days when a singer-songwriter could be exactly what that name suggested. Crow has struggled throughout her career to achieve and maintain the perfect balance-that precise mixture of substance and radio friendliness. Crow has always managed to straddle both sides of the spectrum, but after the success of 2003's "The First Cut is the Deepest," a cover of Cat Stevens' 1970s single, Crow decided that perhaps she was at a point in her incredibly successful career where making each song of each album a potential radio hit was no longer necessary. That's not to say that "Wildflower" doesn't have any hits; Crow produces a cornucopia of beautiful songs and even throws us a genuine rocker to satisfy our appetite for a foot-tapper.

"Wildflower" is a mostly smooth and mellow album infused with melodies inspired by both country music and George Harrison. Love is definitely in the air-there are a fair deal of love songs on the album-but this time, Crow's all about reflecting, contemplating and questioning love rather than shallowly singing its praises. Along with love and friendship, Crow throws religion and even politics into the mix. "Wildflower" opens with "I Know Why," a twangy western love song that nicely sets the tone of the album. Crow uses drums, strings and both acoustic and electric guitars in this song and throughout the album, which blend to produce a great sound. Crow knows how to highlight her songs with instruments without making a single interlude seem randomly positioned; each note seems perfectly placed and without doubt part of her grand scheme.

Next up is "Perfect Lie," a slightly more scornful-but still reflective-love song which is also topped off with a beautiful string orchestration. Sensing a potential lull in the album, Crow wisely places the slightly more upbeat "Good is Good" next. "Good is Good," a George Harrison-influenced piece that is slated to be Crow's first single, has a catchy and introspective chorus, making it a true radio gem: "Every time you hear the rolling thunder / You turn around before the lightening strikes / And does it ever make you stop and wonder / That all your good times passed you by." In track four, "Chances Are," Crow may be "lost inside a daydream," but unfortunately, listeners get lost in the song's slow, monotonous beat. The music and lyrics are gorgeous, but the pace and sound are simply too droning. The eponymous fifth track, "Wildflower," is another poised and insightful song with an elegant yet folksy orchestration. Things pick up again with "Lifetimes," the album's next song, and although it has a fun beat and breezy vocals, it doesn't shine as much as it would have if it weren't surrounded by an album full of great and much more credible songs. Still, it's classic Crow, and it's immensely enjoyable.

Next is "Letter to God," an introspective song on religion and likely to be another hit for Crow. Track eight, "Live it Up," is Crow's only legitimate rock song. It's upbeat, and even if it does have a clichéd message, it's one that any listener can't help but embrace. I'd be surprised if this song did not become another hit for Crow. The next track, "I Don't Wanna Know," like "Lifetimes," doesn't stand out in an album full of great songs, especially because it comes before Crow's two closing tracks, "Always on Your Side" and "Where Has All the Love Gone." While "Where Has All the Love Gone," another Harrison-esque and quasi-protest track, has a similar sound to the rest of the album, "Always on Your Side" truly stands out because it's a stunning piano ballad. Both songs have amazing lyrics and exemplify Crow's songwriting talent hands-down.

What really stops "Wildflower" from becoming a great album, however, are Crow's vocals. Throughout the album, Crow desperately struggles to reach high notes that are simply not in her range. Upon listening to the album for the first time, her searching voice almost interferes with one's enjoyment of the album. Nonetheless, one becomes accustomed to Crow's new style, for better or for worse. Whatever missteps Crow takes are more than compensated for by her album's lyrics and orchestrations.

Crow wasn't looking to make a catchy and non-stop hit album, and it shows. What she might not have foreseen-but perhaps hoped for-is that good music will always be in demand and appreciated, and if people are discerning enough, they'll realize that one beautifully written and composed song is often worth an entire album of catchy, empty nonsense.