Billy Dean (1991)

Earlier this year, his first time out of the chute, Billy Dean bagged a No. 1 hit, ''Somewhere in My Broken Heart,'' a sentimental country-folk ballad in which he sounded more like Dan Fogelberg than a Nashville wannabe. Now, on his follow-up album, Dean wastes his solid, commanding baritone on material so full of straight-backed advice about home, family, and country that it's a wonder George Bush didn't nab it and burst into song on the Country Music Association awards. Only one tune breaks out of this predictable pack, the fast-pick rhythm number, ''Gone but Not Forgotten,'' which pays homage to hobos, cowboys, and Daddy without turning maudlin. If Dean doesn't cut the schmaltz, he's likely to become the Al Jolson of the '90s. C+