With Dirt, Mark Selby stretches beyond the fairly direct blues-rock boundaries of his 2000 debut More Storms Comin’. Selby has had a lucrative run penning songs for such radio-friendly folks as Trisha Yearwood, the Dixie Chicks, Jo Dee Messina and Kenny Wayne Shepherd. On his own, however, he adheres to more rugged principles, letting his muscular blues-guitar playing and rich voice, which calls to mind the bruised soulfulness of The Band’s Richard Manuel, carry the day...
... Dirt is an apt title, for on this sophomore outing, Selby isn’t afraid to skirt the safety and polish of his chart-topping compositions for some earthy work that merges diverse passions, from ruminative prettiness to straight-up rock to the blues accents he rode in on. ~ Erik Hage, archives.nodepression.com

    Broadening his sound and deepening his lyrics, Selby moves beyond the bluesy orientation of his first album with this strong sophomore effort. Several tracks reflect the influence of assorted other artists, but rather than being derivative, these performances are nods of appreciation from an artist whose own sound is already establishing itself...
... Elsewhere, as on the title cut, Selby turns a deft phrase, going from an evocation of the mythic American ties to both dirt and sky -- a WPA mural in sound -- to a fatalistic reminder that "I'm gonna be dirt someday." From intimate confession to heroic speculation, Selby covers a lot of bases on Dirt, and demands greater recognition in the front ranks of Nashville singer/songwriters. ~ Robert L. Doerschuk, cduniverse.com