Play, also known as
Play: The Guitar Album, is the seventh studio album by American
country musicCountry music is a blend of popular musical forms originally found in the Southern United States and the Appalachian Mountains...
artist
Brad PaisleyBrad Douglas Paisley is a Grammy Award-winning American country music singer-songwriter and virtuoso country guitarist...
. It was released on November 4, 2008 (see
2008 in country musicThis is a list of notable events in country music that took place in the year 2008.-Events:* April 27 — A story in the New York Daily News reported a possible long-term relationship between Mindy McCready and baseball star Roger Clemens that began when she was 15 years old...
). Like all of his previous albums,
Play was released on
Arista NashvilleArista Nashville is an American record label that is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment, operated under the RCA Records Group. It is the Nashville, Tennessee based branch of Arista Records. Founded in 1989, the label specializes in country music artists, including Alan Jackson,...
and produced by
Frank RogersFrank Mandeville Rogers V is an award-winning American record producer, songwriter and session musician. In the music business since 1995, Rogers has produced hits for several prominent country music performers since 1999, including Trace Adkins, Brad Paisley, Josh Turner, Hootie & the Blowfish...
. The album is largely instrumental in nature, except for five vocal tracks. One of these tracks, "
Start a Band"Start a Band" is the title of a country music song written by Dallas Davidson, Ashley Gorley and Kelley Lovelace. It was recorded as a duet between Brad Paisley and Keith Urban for Paisley's sixth studio album, Play. Released as the only single from that album, it is also one of only four...
" (a duet with
Keith UrbanKeith Lionel Urban is an Australian country music singer, songwriter and guitarist whose commercial success has been mainly in the United States and Australia. Urban began his career in Brisbane having moved to Caboolture, Australia at an early age...
), has been released as a single and has become Paisley's ninth consecutive Number One country hit, and his thirteenth overall.
Play, also known as
Play: The Guitar Album, is the seventh studio album by American
country musicCountry music is a blend of popular musical forms originally found in the Southern United States and the Appalachian Mountains...
artist
Brad PaisleyBrad Douglas Paisley is a Grammy Award-winning American country music singer-songwriter and virtuoso country guitarist...
. It was released on November 4, 2008 (see
2008 in country musicThis is a list of notable events in country music that took place in the year 2008.-Events:* April 27 — A story in the New York Daily News reported a possible long-term relationship between Mindy McCready and baseball star Roger Clemens that began when she was 15 years old...
). Like all of his previous albums,
Play was released on
Arista NashvilleArista Nashville is an American record label that is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment, operated under the RCA Records Group. It is the Nashville, Tennessee based branch of Arista Records. Founded in 1989, the label specializes in country music artists, including Alan Jackson,...
and produced by
Frank RogersFrank Mandeville Rogers V is an award-winning American record producer, songwriter and session musician. In the music business since 1995, Rogers has produced hits for several prominent country music performers since 1999, including Trace Adkins, Brad Paisley, Josh Turner, Hootie & the Blowfish...
. The album is largely instrumental in nature, except for five vocal tracks. One of these tracks, "
Start a Band"Start a Band" is the title of a country music song written by Dallas Davidson, Ashley Gorley and Kelley Lovelace. It was recorded as a duet between Brad Paisley and Keith Urban for Paisley's sixth studio album, Play. Released as the only single from that album, it is also one of only four...
" (a duet with
Keith UrbanKeith Lionel Urban is an Australian country music singer, songwriter and guitarist whose commercial success has been mainly in the United States and Australia. Urban began his career in Brisbane having moved to Caboolture, Australia at an early age...
), has been released as a single and has become Paisley's ninth consecutive Number One country hit, and his thirteenth overall. The album cover photograph was taken at Bristow Run Elementary School (http://bristowrunes.schools.pwcs.edu/), in
Bristow, VirginiaBristow is an unincorporated town in Prince William County, Virginia, United States. The population was 8,910 in the 2000 census, and the 2009 estimate of 15,137....
.
Content
Play is largely an album of instrumentals, though Paisley sings five duets with other vocalists, including B.B. King,
Buck OwensAlvis Edgar Owens, Jr. , better known as Buck Owens, was an American singer and guitarist who had 21 number one hits on the Billboard country music charts with his band, the Buckaroos...
, and
Keith UrbanKeith Lionel Urban is an Australian country music singer, songwriter and guitarist whose commercial success has been mainly in the United States and Australia. Urban began his career in Brisbane having moved to Caboolture, Australia at an early age...
. King and Urban both play guitar on their respective duet tracks. Another track, "Cluster Pluck", features
James BurtonJames Burton is an American guitarist. A member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame since 2001 , Burton has also been recognized by the Rockabilly Hall of Fame...
,
Vince GillVincent Grant "Vince" Gill is an American neotraditional country singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He has achieved commercial success and fame both as frontman to the country rock band Pure Prairie League in the 1970s, and as a solo artist beginning in 1983, where his talents as a...
,
Albert LeeFor the city in Minnesota, see Albert Lea, MinnesotaAlbert Lee, born 21 December 1943 in Leominster, Herefordshire England is a Grammy Award-winning English guitarist known for his finger-style and hybrid picking technique.-Early life:...
,
John JorgensonJohn Jorgenson is an American musician. Although most well-known for his guitar work with bands such as the Desert Rose Band and The Hellecasters, Jorgenson is also proficient in the mandolin, mandocello, Dobro, pedal steel, piano, upright bass, clarinet, bassoon and saxophone...
,
Brent MasonBrent Mason is an American session guitarist and occasional songwriter. He is known primarily for his work in the field of country music. In addition to releasing two instrumental studio albums, he holds several credits as a songwriter...
,
Redd VolkaertRedd Volkaert was a successor to Roy Nichols in Merle Haggard's backing band, and is "among the country’s top Telecaster guitar slingers.". Volkaert won a 2009 Grammy for Best Country Instrumental Performance.-External links:*...
and
Steve WarinerSteven Noel "Steve" Wariner is an American country music singer, songwriter and guitarist. He has released eighteen studio albums, including six on MCA Records, and three each on RCA Records, Arista Records and Capitol Records...
. The Buck Owens duet is a song which Owens co-wrote. It is not strictly a country music record, featuring
jazz guitarThe term jazz guitar may refer to either a type of guitar or to the variety of playing styles used in the various genres which are commonly termed "jazz." The guitar has a long history in jazz music, as both an ensemble and solo instrument...
and a song described by Paisley as "very
heavy metalHeavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in England and the United States...
." The final track, "Waitin' on a Woman", was first included on Paisley's 2005 album
Time Well WastedTime Well Wasted is the title of the fourth studio album released by American country music artist Brad Paisley. It was released on August 16, 2005 on Arista Nashville. It was the Country Music Association's Album of the Year for 2006....
, and was later re-recorded as a bonus track to 2007's
5th Gear5th Gear is the fifth studio album by country singer Brad Paisley. It was released June 19, 2007 and debuted at number three on the Billboard 200, with first week sales of about 197,000 copies...
, from which it was released as a single. The version featured here includes guest vocals from
Andy GriffithAndy Samuel Griffith is an American actor, director, producer, Grammy Award-winning Southern-gospel singer, and writer....
, and is the version used in the song's
music videoA music video is a short film or video that accompanies a complete piece of music/song. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings. Although the origins of music videos go back much further, they came into their own in the...
.
"Start a Band", the only single from the album, was released in September 2008. It is a collaboration with
Keith UrbanKeith Lionel Urban is an Australian country music singer, songwriter and guitarist whose commercial success has been mainly in the United States and Australia. Urban began his career in Brisbane having moved to Caboolture, Australia at an early age...
, who sings duet vocals and plays second lead guitar on it, and it reached Number One on the
Billboard country singles charts in January 2009. At the
51st Grammy AwardsThe 51st Annual Grammy Awards took place at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, CA on February 8, 2009. Robert Plant and Alison Krauss were the biggest winners of the night, with five wins, including Album of the Year and Record of the Year. Lil Wayne won four awards, including Best Rap Album....
, "Cluster Pluck" won the Grammy for Best Country Instrumental Performance, which was awarded to all of the guitarists featured.
Reception
The album has received mostly favorable reviews. Chris Neal of
Country WeeklyCountry Weekly is an American weekly magazine established in 1994. The magazine focuses on country music stars and events, and regularly features exclusive interviews with recording artists and country music news...
magazine gave
Play four stars out of five, calling it "as indispensable as any album Brad has recorded to date—not to mention one of his best", also noting the "sharp melodies and constantly shifting musical terrain".
Play received three-and-a-half stars out of five from Allmusic critic
Stephen Thomas ErlewineStephen Thomas Erlewine is a senior editor for allmusic.com. He is the author of many of artist biographies and record reviews for allmusic, as well as a freelance writer, occasionally contributing liner notes. He is also frontman and guitarist for the Ann Arbor-based band Who Dat?Erlewine is the...
, who referred to most songs as "fall[ing] within the realm of the expected", but cited others as "pure '80s
shredShred guitar or shred refers to lead electric guitar playing that relies heavily on fast passages; the act of playing fast passages on an electric guitar is termed "shredding". While one critic argues that shred guitar is associated with ".....
[…]revealing a side he's previously camoflauged." Erlewine also said that, like Paisley's other albums,
Play was "among the most adventurous and best country music of this decade." Ken Tucker of
Billboard called the album "both outstanding and diverse" and made note of the Buck Owens duet, which he referred to as "bring[ing] an old friend back to life with the utmost respect."
Whitney Pastorek, reviewing the album for
Entertainment WeeklyEntertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books and popular culture. Unlike celebrity-focused publications US Weekly, People, and In Touch Weekly, EWs primary concentration is on entertainment...
, gave the album a B- rating. She referred to the duets as "a welcome respite from all the noodling", but said that as a whole, the album was "an indulgence he's earned but doesn't quite pull off." The 9513 critic Ben Cisneros, however, gave
Play a one-star rating out of five. Cisneros said of Paisley's guitar playing, "Brad has all the notes under his fingers, he just doesn’t have any spirit in his hands." He also criticized the album for not being explicitly instrumental, ultimately saying "It wasn’t good. It wasn’t even bold when all was said and done."
Track listing
- "Huckleberry Jam" (Brad Paisley, Frank Rogers) – 2:52
- "Turf's Up" (Paisley, Rogers) – 3:30
- "Start a Band
"Start a Band" is the title of a country music song written by Dallas Davidson, Ashley Gorley and Kelley Lovelace. It was recorded as a duet between Brad Paisley and Keith Urban for Paisley's sixth studio album, Play. Released as the only single from that album, it is also one of only four...
" (Dallas DavidsonDallas Davidson is an American country music songwriter. His credits include the Number One hit "Start a Band" by Brad Paisley and Keith Urban, as well as Top Ten country hits for Brooks & Dunn, Jack Ingram and Trace Adkins....
, Ashley Gorley, Kelley Lovelace) – 5:26
- featuring Keith Urban
Keith Lionel Urban is an Australian country music singer, songwriter and guitarist whose commercial success has been mainly in the United States and Australia. Urban began his career in Brisbane having moved to Caboolture, Australia at an early age...
- "Kim" (Paisley) – 3:58
- "Departure" (Paisley, Rogers) – 4:28
- "Come On In" (Buck Owens) – 3:53
- featuring Buck Owens
Alvis Edgar Owens, Jr. , better known as Buck Owens, was an American singer and guitarist who had 21 number one hits on the Billboard country music charts with his band, the Buckaroos...
- "Kentucky Jelly" (Paisley, Rogers, Mac McAnally
Lyman Corbitt "Mac" McAnally, Jr. is an American country music singer-songwriter, session musician and record producer. In his career, he has recorded ten studio albums and eight singles. Two of his singles were hits on the Billboard Hot 100, and six more on the Hot Country Songs charts...
) – 2:43
- "Playing with Fire" (Robert Arthur, Paisley) – 4:51
- "More Than Just This Song" (Paisley, Steve Wariner) – 5:14
- featuring Steve Wariner
Steven Noel "Steve" Wariner is an American country music singer, songwriter and guitarist. He has released eighteen studio albums, including six on MCA Records, and three each on RCA Records, Arista Records and Capitol Records...
- "Les Is More" (Paisley, Rogers) – 3:18
- "Pre-Cluster Cluster Pluck Prequel" (Paisley, Rogers, Kevin "Swine" Grantt) – 1:34
- A.K.A. "From Uncle Jimmy to Justin"
- "Cluster Pluck" (Paisley, Rogers, Grantt) – 3:31
- featuring James Burton
James Burton is an American guitarist. A member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame since 2001 , Burton has also been recognized by the Rockabilly Hall of Fame...
, Vince GillVincent Grant "Vince" Gill is an American neotraditional country singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He has achieved commercial success and fame both as frontman to the country rock band Pure Prairie League in the 1970s, and as a solo artist beginning in 1983, where his talents as a...
, Albert LeeFor the city in Minnesota, see Albert Lea, MinnesotaAlbert Lee, born 21 December 1943 in Leominster, Herefordshire England is a Grammy Award-winning English guitarist known for his finger-style and hybrid picking technique.-Early life:...
, John JorgensonJohn Jorgenson is an American musician. Although most well-known for his guitar work with bands such as the Desert Rose Band and The Hellecasters, Jorgenson is also proficient in the mandolin, mandocello, Dobro, pedal steel, piano, upright bass, clarinet, bassoon and saxophone...
, Brent MasonBrent Mason is an American session guitarist and occasional songwriter. He is known primarily for his work in the field of country music. In addition to releasing two instrumental studio albums, he holds several credits as a songwriter...
, Redd VolkaertRedd Volkaert was a successor to Roy Nichols in Merle Haggard's backing band, and is "among the country’s top Telecaster guitar slingers.". Volkaert won a 2009 Grammy for Best Country Instrumental Performance.-External links:*...
, Steve WarinerSteven Noel "Steve" Wariner is an American country music singer, songwriter and guitarist. He has released eighteen studio albums, including six on MCA Records, and three each on RCA Records, Arista Records and Capitol Records...
- "Cliffs of Rock City" (Paisley, Arthur) – 3:44
- "Let the Good Times Roll
"Let the Good Times Roll" is a song was recorded in 1946 by Louis Jordan and his Tympany Five, and became a # 2 hit on the R&B chart in the United States....
" (Fleecie Moore, Sam Theard) – 5:30
- featuring B. B. King
Riley B. King , known by the stage name B.B. King, is an American blues guitarist and singer-songwriter acclaimed for his expressive singing and guitar playing....
- "What a Friend We Have in Jesus" (Traditional) – 2:31
- "Waitin' on a Woman
"Waitin' on a Woman" is the title of a song written by Don Sampson and Wynn Varble, and recorded twice by American country music artist Brad Paisley. His first recording of the song was included on his 2005 album Time Well Wasted. Three years later, Paisley re-recorded the song for inclusion on a...
" (Don Sampson, Wynn Varble) – 5:02
- featuring Andy Griffith
Andy Samuel Griffith is an American actor, director, producer, Grammy Award-winning Southern-gospel singer, and writer....