Eric Paslay (album)
| Eric Paslay | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | February 4, 2014 | |||
| Recorded | 2011–14 | |||
| Genre | Country | |||
| Length | 40:36 | |||
| Label | Capitol Records Nashville | |||
| Producer |
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| Eric Paslay chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Eric Paslay | ||||
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Eric Paslay is the debut studio album by American country music artist of the same name. It was released on February 4, 2014 by Capitol Records Nashville.[1] The album includes the singles "Never Really Wanted", "Friday Night", "Song About a Girl" and "She Don't Love You".[2]
Critical reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [3] |
| Country Weekly | A[4] |
| The Oakland Press | [5] |
| Roughstock | [6] |
| USA Today | [7] |
The eponymously titled album Eric Paslay garnered critical acclaim from five music critics. At USA Today, Brian Mansfield rated the album three-and-a-half stars out of four, stating that he held back some excellent material for himself on which "His sweet-as-Southern-tea debut finds common ground between radio-friendly and flat-out brilliant, incorporating a sense of both spirituality and '80s pop."[7] Tammy Ragusa of Country Weekly graded the album an A, writing that the album "hosts a heap of winners." In addition, Ragusa says that "The gifted songwriter has done an incredible job of showcasing his ability to create a collection that leans away from lyrical trends and toward depth and texture [...] reveal[ing] the complexity of an accomplished artist, and retains the purity of solid country music."[4] At The Oakland Press, Gary Graff rated the album three out of four stars, calling this "A strong debut from an established name on the scene."[5] Steve Leggett of AllMusic rated the album three-and-a-half out of five stars, noting how Paslay on the release "keep[s] it simple and catchy", but this means that the music "doesn't change the landscape of contemporary country, but it sure recognizes it, and that's Paslay's songwriting strength."[3] At Roughstock, Matt Bjorke rated the album a perfect five stars, saying that the release "showcases an artist who deserves to be placed on the same songwriting field as singer/songwriters like Rodney Crowell, John Hiatt, Jackson Browne and JD Souther with a little bit of The Band thrown in for good measure."[6] Also, Bjorke states that "There isn’t a bad song to be found on Eric Paslay and it truly is an early contender for the best Country Album of 2014."[6]
Track listing
All tracks are written by Eric Paslay, with additional co-writers as noted
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Keep On Fallin'" |
| 3:19 |
| 2. | "Friday Night" | 2:47 | |
| 3. | "Less Than Whole" | Kenny Alphin | 4:45 |
| 4. | "Country Side of Heaven" |
| 4:15 |
| 5. | "Never Really Wanted" | Walt Aldridge | 3:27 |
| 6. | "Here Comes Love" | Anthony Cappolino | 3:05 |
| 7. | "Like a Song" | Jason Delkou | 2:48 |
| 8. | "Good with Wine" | 3:40 | |
| 9. | "She Don't Love You" | Jennifer Wayne | 4:27 |
| 10. | "Song About a Girl" |
| 3:49 |
| 11. | "Deep as It Is Wide" | 4:27 | |
| Total length: | 40:36 | ||
Personnel
- Jessi Alexander- background vocals
- Marshall Altman- Fender Rhodes, percussion, piano, programming, background vocals
- Bruce Bouton- steel guitar
- Tom Bukovac- electric guitar
- Jake Campbell- electric guitar
- Chad Cromwell- drums
- Karen Fairchild- background vocals
- Shannon Forrest- drums
- Tony Harrell- Hammond B-3 organ, piano
- Aubrey Haynie- mandolin
- Natalie Hemby- background vocals
- Daniel Hill- drums, percussion
- Jedd Hughes- electric guitar
- Troy Lancaster- acoustic guitar, electric guitar
- Tim Lauer- Hammond B-3 organ, keyboards, piano
- Tony Lucido- bass guitar
- Pat McGrath- banjo, acoustic guitar
- Rob McNelley- electric guitar
- Jerry McPherson- electric guitar
- Greg Morrow- drums
- Eric Paslay- acoustic guitar, electric guitar, hammer dulcimer, lead vocals, background vocals
- Dave Pomeroy- bass guitar
- Alison Prestwood- bass guitar
- Mike Rojas- keyboards
- Kimberly Schlapman- background vocals
- Adam Shoenfeld- electric guitar
- Phillip Sweet- background vocals
- Russell Terrell- background vocals
- Ilya Toshinsky- banjo, hi-string guitar, mandolin
- Jimi Westbrook- background vocals
- Jonathan Yudkin- fiddle, mandolin
Chart performance
Album
The album debuted on Billboard 200 at No. 31, and No. 4 in the Top Country Albums chart, selling 11,000 copies in the US.[8] As of February 2015, the album has sold 54,300 copies in the U.S.[9]
| Chart (2014) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard 200[10] | 31 |
| US Top Country Albums (Billboard)[11] | 4 |
Singles
| Year | Single | Peak chart positions | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Country | US Country Airplay | US | CAN Country [12] |
CAN | ||
| 2011 | "Never Really Wanted" | 48 | — | — | — | — |
| 2013 | "Friday Night" | 6 | 2 | 47 | 8 | 53 |
| 2014 | "Song About a Girl" | 18 | 12 | 85 | 25 | — |
| "She Don't Love You" | 15 | 14 | 77 | 28 | — | |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | ||||||
References
- ^ Parker, Eric T. (November 22, 2013). "Eric Paslay's Debut Album To Release in February". MusicRow. Retrieved November 24, 2013.
- ^ Bjorke, Matt (November 22, 2013). "Eric Paslay "Eric Paslay" Tracklist and Cover Art". Roughstock. Archived from the original on November 25, 2013. Retrieved November 24, 2013.
- ^ a b Leggett, Steve (February 4, 2014). "Eric Paslay - Eric Paslay". AllMusic. Retrieved February 5, 2014.
- ^ a b Ragusa, Tammy (January 30, 2014). "Eric Paslay (album)". Country Weekly. Retrieved February 5, 2014.
- ^ a b Graff, Gary (February 4, 2014). "The Listening Room: Broken Bells, Eric Paslay and more". The Oakland Press. Retrieved February 5, 2014.
- ^ a b c Bjorke, Matt (February 3, 2014). "Album Review: Eric Paslay - Eric Paslay". Roughstock. Archived from the original on February 9, 2014. Retrieved February 5, 2014.
- ^ a b Mansfield, Brian (February 3, 2014). "Listen Up: Notable new releases". USA Today. Retrieved February 5, 2014.
- ^ Bjorke, Matt (February 12, 2014). "Country Album Chart News: The Week of February 12, 2014: Florida Georgia Line #1, Eric Paslay Debuts Top 5; Whiskey Myers, Moonshine Bandits, Scotty McCreery". Roughstock. Archived from the original on February 21, 2014. Retrieved February 12, 2014.
- ^ Matt Bjorke (February 11, 2015). "Country Album Chart Report For February 11, 2015". Roughstock. Sales figure given here
- ^ "Eric Paslay Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard.
- ^ "Eric Paslay Chart History (Top Country Albums)". Billboard.
- ^ "Eric Paslay Album & Song Chart History - Canada Country". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved November 20, 2013.
