A Real Fine Place to Start

Last updated
"A Real Fine Place to Start"
Sara Evans - Real Fine Place.jpg
Single by Sara Evans
from the album Real Fine Place
ReleasedMay 9, 2005 (2005-05-09) [1]
Recorded2005
Genre
Length4:00
Label RCA Nashville
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Sara Evans singles chronology
"Tonight"
(2004)
"A Real Fine Place to Start"
(2005)
"Cheatin'"
(2005)
Music video
"A Real Fine Place to Start" at CMT.com

"A Real Fine Place to Start" is a song co-written and originally recorded by American country music artist Radney Foster, taken from his fifth studio album Another Way to Go (2002). [3] Foster wrote the track with George Ducas and produced it as well.

Contents

The track was then recorded by singer Sara Evans, released on May 9, 2005, as the lead single and title track to her fifth studio album Real Fine Place (2005) by RCA Nashville Records. Evans's version was produced by she and Mark Bright. It received positive reception and became her fourth number one single on the US Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, spending two weeks atop the chart. The track has been certified Gold by the RIAA for digital sales of 500,000 copies.

Content

Foster's version is played in the key of A-flat major. [4] "A Real Fine Place to Start" is an up-tempo contemporary country song, with prominent electric guitar and steel guitar fills. The song's narrator tells about being in love and getting to know a person from the beginning, describing this as "a real fine place to start."

Critical reception

Deborah Evans Price of Billboard magazine gave the song a positive review, saying "the lyric has a joyful, buoyant take on love, and Evans' voice soars with every celebratory note [...] The last couple of years have seen her hit her stride as a hitmaker, and this gorgeous single should continue that momentum." [5]

Chart performance

"A Real Fine Place to Start" debuted on the US Billboard Hot Country Songs chart the week of May 7, 2005 at number 57, the third highest debut of the week. It rose quickly and was one of the biggest hits that summer. [6] It entered the top-ten of the chart the week of August 13, 2005, becoming her eighth top-ten single. [7] On September 24, 2005, the track would top the chart, displacing Brooks & Dunn's "Play Something Country", becoming her fourth number one single (her first since 2004's "Suds in the Bucket") and her fastest run to the top spot. [8] It spent two weeks atop and 25 weeks overall on the chart. In August 2005, the track would receive a Spin Award from Broadcast Data Systems for 50,000 confirmed spins. [9]

Music video

"A Real Fine Place to Start" was filmed at the Grand Canyon National Park. Grand Canyon (Arizona, USA), South Rim nahe Tusayan -- 2012 -- 6040.jpg
"A Real Fine Place to Start" was filmed at the Grand Canyon National Park.

Peter Zavadil directed the music video for "A Real Fine Place to Start", which was filmed at the Grand Canyon National Park in Flagstaff, Arizona. [10] It premiered to CMT on June 13, 2005. [11] It would reach the top spot of the network's Top Twenty Countdown for the week of October 6, 2005.

Synopsis

The music video is mainly set in a desert with Evans singing the song in various places around the desert. In the beginning of the video a motorcycle is shown driving along a road in the middle in the desert with a couple in it. The couple then stops on the roadside and the video then shows the two holding hands and sitting on rocks in the desert. The couple exemplifies what the song is talking about. The video regularly shifts between Evans and the couple in the music video. While the video isn't showing the couple, it is showing Evans singing in various places in the desert, including desert rocks and by a bonfire. Towards the middle of the song, the video shows Evans performing with a band at night. The video also shows Evans playing her rhythmic guitar for a brief period of time.

Charts

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sara Evans</span> American country singer-songwriter (born 1971)

Sara Lynn Evans is an American country music singer and songwriter. She is also credited as a record producer, actress, and author. She had five songs reach the number one spot on the Billboard country songs chart and has sold over six million albums. Nine additional singles have reached the top ten of the Billboard country chart, including "I Could Not Ask for More", "I Keep Looking", and "Cheatin'". Among her top 20 charting singles are "Saints & Angels", "Backseat of a Greyhound Bus", and "As If". She has won accolades from the Academy of Country Music and the Country Music Association. She has also been nominated for several more accolades from both associations, including Female Vocalist of the Year and Single of the Year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Radney Foster</span> American country singer-songwriter musician (born 1959)

Radney Muckleroy Foster is an American country music singer-songwriter, musician and music producer. Initially a songwriter in Nashville, Tennessee, Foster made his recording debut as part of the Foster & Lloyd duo, recording three studio albums and with nine singles on the country charts.

<i>Real Fine Place</i> 2005 studio album by Sara Evans

Real Fine Place is the fifth studio album by American country music artist Sara Evans. It was released in October 2005 via RCA Records Nashville. It is the follow-up album to the platinum Restless. It features Evans's fourth number one hit "A Real Fine Place to Start", the Top 10 hit "Cheatin'", the Top 20 hit "You'll Always Be My Baby", and the Top 40 hit "Coalmine". The album debuted at number 3 on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 124,720 copies in its first week. The album was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for U.S. shipments of a million copies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Ducas (singer)</span> American musician

George Ducas is an American country music singer and songwriter, and musician, known for his blend of modern-day and roots country music. He has released four studio albums: 1994's George Ducas, 1997's Where I Stand, 2013's 4340 and 2019's Yellow Rose Motel. His first two albums charted six consecutive singles on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart, the highest being his signature hit "Lipstick Promises" which reached No. 9 and was also a No. 1 CMT video. Ducas returned to the No. 1 spot on CMT with his 2019 single "Eastwood."

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The discography of American country music artist Sara Evans consists of 11 studio albums, three compilation albums, two extended plays, one video album, three additional albums, 44 singles, and four other charted songs. After briefly recording with "E and S Records", Evans reworked her musical direction and signed with RCA Nashville in 1997. Her debut album, Three Chords and the Truth, was released in July 1997. Although the singles were unsuccessful, it was critically acclaimed. Her second studio album was released in September 1998 entitled No Place That Far. The title track reached the top of the Billboard Hot Country Singles and Tracks chart. The success helped the album earn gold certification in the United States. Evans' third studio album, Born to Fly, was released in October 2000. Born to Fly reached number six on the Top Country Albums chart and the top-sixty of the Billboard 200. Its title track became her second number-one hit on the Hot Country Songs chart. The album also spawned the hits "I Could Not Ask for More", "Saints & Angels", and "I Keep Looking". It is the best-selling album of Evans' career, having been certified 2× platinum in the United States. In August 2003, she released the pop-inspired Restless, whose lead single "Perfect" reached the Top 5. Restless was certified platinum in the United States shortly after the success of its third single "Suds in the Bucket", which became Evans' third number one hit.

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  2. Contemporary Country. Backbeat Books. 2007. p. 47. ISBN   9780879309183. ...lead single "Real Fine Place to Start" is a breezy foot-tapper that shows off Evans' throaty vocal over steady pop percussion.
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