Billie Jo | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | October 1975 | |||
Recorded | July 1975 | |||
Studio | Jack Clement Recording Studio | |||
Genre | Country [1] | |||
Label | United Artists | |||
Producer | Larry Butler | |||
Billie Jo Spears chronology | ||||
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Singles from Billie Jo | ||||
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Billie Jo is a studio album by American country artist, Billie Jo Spears. It was released in October 1975 via United Artists Records and contained ten tracks. A mixture of new recordings and cover tunes were featured on the disc. Among them were the singles, "Stay Away from the Apple Tree" and "Silver Wings and Golden Rings". Both singles reached the top 20 of the North American country charts in 1975. The album itself reached the top 50 of the American country albums chart. It was the eighth studio album of Spears's career and her second with the United Artists label.
In 1975, Billie Jo Spears had a comeback with the number one country single "Blanket on the Ground". The song set forth a series of singles and albums that were issued by United Artists Records during the seventies decade. [2] Billie Jo was the first studio album that immediately followed "Blanket on the Ground" and its subsequent album. [3] The project was recorded at the Jack Clement Recording Studio in Nashville, Tennessee. It was produced by Larry Butler in July 1975. [4]
Billie Jo consisted of ten tracks. [1] It mixed both original recordings with covers of previously recorded material. Several of the new tracks featured writing credits from producer Larry Butler. This included "Stay Away from the Apple Tree" and Spears's cover of "(Hey Won't You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song". [1] [3] Other new songs included "We Love Each Other", "Enough for You" and "But I Do". [4] Also included is the song "Every Time Two Fools Collide", which was first cut by Spears for this project. [4] In 1978, it would be recorded as a duet by Kenny Rogers and Dottie West. Their version would top the Billboard country chart. [5] Other covers included the American pop single "Hurt" [6] and Tanya Tucker's number one Billboard country single "Lizzie and the Rainman". [5]
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Allmusic |
Billie Jo was released by United Artists Records in October 1975. It was Spears's second studio album with United Artists and her eighth studio album overall. The label originally distributed it as a vinyl LP, with five songs on each side of the disc. [4] The album was met with mixed reviews. James Chrispell of AllMusic gave Billie Jo four out of five stars and called it "another fine effort". [1] Alan Cackett of Country Music People magazine called it "a disappointment". Cackett further commented, "As a country album, indeed, it rates pretty average. Billie Jo sounds very disenchanted with life if the content of these songs is anything to go by." [3] Billie Jo entered the American Billboard Top Country Albums chart in November 1975. After seven weeks, it only reached number 45 on the chart. [7]
Two singles were included on the disc. The first single released was "Stay Away from the Apple Tree", which United Artists first issued in May 1975. [8] It reached number 20 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart by the time its corresponding album was issued in October 1975. [9] On the Canadian RPM Country Tracks survey, it reached the number 17 position. [10] "Silver Wings and Golden Rings" was then spawned from the album as a single in September 1975. [11] It also reached the number 20 position on the Billboard country chart, peaking at the position in January 1976. [9] On the RPM Country Tracks chart, it climber to number 12. [10]
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Stay Away from the Apple Tree" | 2:46 | |
2. | "Lizzie and the Rainman" | 3:30 | |
3. | "Hurt" |
| 3:14 |
4. | "We Still Love in Mind" |
| 3:03 |
5. | "Enough for You" | K. Kristofferson | 2:45 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Silver Wings and Golden Rings" |
| 3:25 |
2. | "We Love Each Other" | B. Killen | 2:48 |
3. | "But I Do" |
| 3:01 |
4. | "(Hey Won't You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song" |
| 3:24 |
5. | "Every Time Two Fools Collide" |
| 2:52 |
All credits are adapted from the liner notes of Billie Jo. [4]
Musical personnel
Technical personnel
Chart (1975) | Peak position |
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US Top Country Albums (Billboard) [12] | 45 |
Region | Date | Format | Label | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
Netherlands | October 1975 | United Artists Records | Vinyl | [13] |
Germany | [14] | |||
Japan | Liberty Records | [15] | ||
North America | United Artists Records | [4] | ||
Saudi Arabia | IMD | Cassette | [16] | |
United Kingdom | United Artists Records | Vinyl | [17] | |
Billie Jo Spears was an American country music singer. She was known for a series of singles whose characters often represented women in assertive positions. Among these recordings was a song about sexual harassment, and a song about rekindling sexual desire ".
"Blanket on the Ground" is a song written by Roger Bowling and recorded by American country music singer Billie Jo Spears. It was released in February 1975 as the second single and title track from the album Blanket on the Ground. Irish born singer Philomena Begley covered the song as the lead single from her 1975 LP of the same name. The single was released on August 4, 1975, in Ireland and August 6, 1975, in the United Kingdom reaching number 1 and number 4 in Ireland and the UK respectively.
Blanket on the Ground is a studio album by American country artist, Billie Jo Spears. It was released in February 1975 via United Artists Records and contained ten tracks. It was the seventh studio album of Spears's music career and her first with the United Artists label. The disc featured mostly ballads, many of which were cover tunes. The album was anchored by its title track, which topped the American country chart and became a pop commercial success in several countries. The disc itself reached the top five of the American country albums chart as well. AllMusic later gave the disc four out of five stars.
I Will Survive is a studio album by American country artist Billie Jo Spears. It was released in May 1979 via United Artists Records and contained ten tracks. It was the fifteenth studio album of her career. The album project was contained new recordings, along with several cover tunes. Among these covers was Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive". Spears's version was released as the album's lead single, reaching the top 50 of the UK pop chart, the top 30 of the American country chart and the top ten of the Canadian country chart. It was followed by two more singles that year. The album was given positive reviews by critics.
Mr. Walker, It's All Over! is a studio album by American country artist, Billie Jo Spears. It was released in May 1969 on Capitol Records. It was the second studio album of Spears's career and her second with Capitol. The disc contained 11 tracks that mixed both original material with cover tunes. The title track was the only single featured on the disc. The song reached the top ten of the North American country charts, while also climbing to minor chart positions on the pop charts. The album itself reached charting positions on the American country survey. AllMusic gave the disc four of five stars in its review of the album.
"Silver Wings and Golden Rings" is a song recorded by American country artist, Billie Jo Spears. It was written by Roger Bowling and Larry Butler. Released as a single, the track reached the top 20 of the North American country charts in 1975. It was also released on Spears's 1975 album titled Billie Jo.
"Silver Wings and Golden Rings" is a song recorded by American country artist, Billie Jo Spears. It was composed by Molly Ann Leikin and Gloria Sklerov. It was released as a single and reached the top 20 of the North American country charts in 1975. The song was included on Spears's 1975 studio album titled Billie Jo.
Miss Sincerity is a studio album by American country artist, Billie Jo Spears. It was released in November 1969 via Capitol Records and contained ten tracks. The disc featured several covers of popular songs of the era, along with several songs about social issues. Among the latter was the track "Stepchild", which was the only single included. Miss Sincerity was Spears's second to make the American country albums chart and was reviewed favorably by critics.
Country Girl is a studio album by American country artist, Billie Jo Spears. It was released on Capitol Records in August 1970 and contained ten tracks. It was the fifth studio album of Spears's career and featured original material along with cover tunes. Among its new recordings was the top 20 country single, "Marty Gray". The album received positive reviews from critics following its release.
Just Singin is a studio album by American country artist, Billie Jo Spears. It was released in February 1971 via Capitol Records and contained ten tracks. The album featured mostly cover recordings of popular country songs from the time period. Just Singin' was met with mixed reviews from critics following its release. It was her final album with the Capitol label.
What I've Got in Mind is a studio album by American country artist Billie Jo Spears. It was released in June 1976 via United Artists Records and was the ninth studio album of her career. The disc contained a total of ten tracks, mixing both original recordings with cover tunes. Among its tracks were three singles: the title track, "Misty Blue" and "Sing Me an Old Fashioned Song". Both the title song and "Misty Blue" reached the top five of the North American country charts. "Sing Me an Old Fashioned Song" was released overseas where it made chart positions internationally. The album itself reached the top ten on the American country albums chart and the top 50 of the UK Albums chart. Country Music People gave the disc a positive review.
"Never Did Like Whiskey" is a song written by Kenny O'Dell that was originally recorded by American country artist Billie Jo Spears. It was released as a single in 1976 and reached the top 20 of the American country chart and the top 30 of the Canadian country chart. The song was included on Spears's 1976 studio album titled I'm Not Easy.
"I'm Not Easy" is a song first recorded by American country artist Billie Jo Spears. Written by David Chamberlain and Jim Vest, it was released as a single in 1977 and became top 20 charting country single in the United States. The song also served as the title track to Spears's 1976 studio album.
I'm Not Easy is a studio album by American country artist Billie Jo Spears. It was released in November 1976 via United Artists Records and contained 11 tracks. The disc featured many ballads, along with some uptempo tracks. Of its tracks, two singles were spawned: "Never Did Like Whiskey" and the title track. Both reached top 20 positions on the American country charts between 1976 and 1977. The disc itself charted on the American country albums chart and received mainly positive reviews from music publications.
If You Want Me is a studio album by American country artist Billie Jo Spears. In the United Kingdom, the album was titled as Every Time I Sing a Love Song It was released on United Artists Records in June 1977 and contained ten tracks. Most of the album's material were new recordings, along with some cover tunes. It was the twelfth studio album of her career. Two singles were included on the disc: the title track and "Too Much Is Not Enough". Both reached the top ten and top 20 of the North American country charts in 1977. The album itself also charted on the American country albums survey. It received mixed reviews from critics.
"Lonely Hearts Club" is a song originally recorded by American country artist Billie Jo Spears. It was composed by Gene Simmons, Roger Bowling and Larry Butler. It was released as a single via United Artists Records in 1977, reaching the top 20 of the American country chart and the top ten of the Canadian country chart. It served as the title track of Spears's 1978 studio album.
"'57 Chevrolet" is a song written by Roger Bowling that was originally recorded by American country artist Billie Jo Spears. It was released as a single by United Artists Records in 1978 and reached the top 20 of the American and Canadian country songs charts. It was also included on Spears's 1978 studio album titled Lonely Hearts Club. It was reviewed positively by critics following its release.
Lonely Hearts Club is a studio album by American country artist Billie Jo Spears. It was released in February 1978 via United Artists Records and contained 11 tracks. The album featured mostly new recordings, which included three singles: the title track, "I've Got to Go" "'57 Chevrolet". All three recordings reached the top 20 of the American country chart, while also reaching top positions in Canada. The album itself reached the American country albums chart. Lonely Hearts Club was met with positive reviews from critics.
"Livin' Our Love Together" is a song written by Ben Peters that was originally recorded by American country artist, Billie Jo Spears. It was released as a single by United Artists Records in 1979 and reached the top 40 of the North American country charts. It was included on Spears's 1979 studio album I Will Survive. The track was given favorable reviews following its release.
Standing Tall is a studio album by American country artist Billie Jo Spears. It was released in February 1980 via United Artists Records and contained ten tracks. The collection contained cover songs along with new material. Of its new recordings were two singles: the title track and "Natural Attraction". The title tune was a top 20 single on the American country chart and a top ten single on the Canadian country chart. The album reached the top 70 of the American country albums chart and received positive reviews from critics.