Blanket on the Ground | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | February 1975 | |||
Recorded | August–November 1974 | |||
Studio | America Studios | |||
Genre | Country [1] | |||
Label | United Artists | |||
Producer | Larry Butler | |||
Billie Jo Spears chronology | ||||
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Singles from Blanket on the Ground | ||||
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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.
Billie Jo Spears had been previously known for 1969 single, "Mr. Walker, It's All Over". The song reached the top five of the country charts and was followed by several more releases on Capitol Records. In 1972, Spears underwent vocal chord surgery and her voice was nearly destroyed. However, she recovered from the surgery and signed with United Artists Records. [2] She then began recording her first United Artists album in 1974 under the direction of producer Larry Butler. Sessions for the album were held between August and 1974 at America Studios, located in Nashville, Tennessee. [3] After finishing the project, Spears did not think Butler would include "Blanket on the Ground" on the track listing. However, Butler surprised Spears by including it and releasing it as a single. [4]
Blanket on the Ground consisted of ten tracks. Along with the title track, other new recordings included "Come on Home", "Then Give Him Back to Me", "All I Want Is You" and "Before Your Time". [3] Remaining tracks were covers of popular American country and pop songs of the era. Among them was Charlie Rich's top ten country single, "Since I Fell for You" and Lynn Anderson's top 20 single, "I've Never Loved Anyone More". Also included is Bobby Goldsboro's top ten pop song, "See the Funny Little Clown". The lesser-known pop song, "Permanently Lonely" (originally recorded by Timi Yuro) is also featured. [5] [6]
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Allmusic |
Blanket on the Ground was released in February 1975 on United Artists Records. It was Spears's seventh studio album and her first with the label. It was distributed as both a vinyl LP and as a cassette. Track listings were identical, with five songs appearing on either side of the discs. [3] The album debuted on the American Billboard Top Country Albums chart in March 1975, peaking at the number four position in May 1975. It was Spears's third album to place on the country albums chart and her first to reach the top ten. [7]
It was later reviewed favorably by Greg Adams of AllMusic, who gave the disc four out of five stars. Adams found that the album's "best cuts" are on "side two". He highlighted tracks like "See the Funny Little Clown" and "Come on Home". He concluded by commenting, "The remaining songs, mostly ballads, are never less than acceptable, but Spears' voice is always a joy to hear and her performances are consistently fine." [1]
Two singles were included on the album. The first was Spears's interpretation of "See the Funny Little Clown" (released by United Artists as a single in September 1974). [8] The song only peaked at number 80 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. [9] The title track was the second single included (first issued by United Artists in January 1975). [10] It became Spears's first (and only) number one song on the Billboard country chart, [9] while also reaching number 78 on the Billboard Hot 100. [11] It also became a pop commercial success in Australia, [12] Ireland [13] and the United Kingdom. [14]
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Blanket on the Ground" | R. Bowling | 2:32 |
2. | "I Can Only Judge Your Future by His Past" | E. Bruce | 2:56 |
3. | "Then Give Him Back to Me" |
| 2:43 |
4. | "Permanently Lonely" | W. Nelson | 2:56 |
5. | "Since I Fell for You" | B. Johnson | 3:00 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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1. | "See the Funny Little Clown" | B. Goldsboro | 3:10 |
2. | "Come on Home" | R. Mainegra | 2:25 |
3. | "All I Want Is You" | L. Butler | 2:39 |
4. | "Before Your Time" | J. Chesnut | 2:49 |
5. | "I've Never Loved Anyone More" | 3:30 |
All credits are adapted from the liner notes of Blanket on the Ground. [3]
Musical personnel
| Technical personnel
|
Chart (1975) | Peak position |
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US Top Country Albums (Billboard) [15] | 4 |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
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United Kingdom (BPI) [16] | Silver | 60,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
Region | Date | Format | Label | Ref. |
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Australia | February 1975 | Vinyl | United Artists Records | [17] |
Europe |
| [18] | ||
Germany | Vinyl | [19] | ||
Japan | Liberty Records | [20] | ||
North America |
| United Artists Records | [3] | |
United Kingdom | Cassette | Liberty Records | [21] | |
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 the UK and Ireland respectively.
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.
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.
"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.
"What I've Got in Mind" 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 became a top single in the United States, the United Kingdom and Ireland. It was one of top ten singles Spears had during the decade. It was issued on Spears's studio album of the same name in 1976.
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.
"I've Got to Go" is a song originally recorded by American country artist Billie Jo Spears. It was written by Roger Bowling and Larry Butler. Released as a single in 1978 by United Artists Records, the song reached the top 20 of the American country chart and the top 30 of the Canadian country chart. It was spawned from Spears's 1978 studio album titled Lonely Hearts Club.
"'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.
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Love Ain't Gonna Wait for Us is a studio album by American country artist Billie Jo Spears. It was released in October 1978 via United Artists Records and contained ten tracks. The disc featured mostly new recordings, along with several cover tunes. It featured a country pop production, overseen by Larry Butler. Two singles were spawned from the album: the title track and a cover of "Yesterday". It received a positive reception from Cashbox magazine.
"Natural Attraction" is a song originally recorded by American country artist Billie Jo Spears. It was composed by Dennis Linde and Alan Rush. Released as a single via United Artists Records, it reached the top 40 of the American country chart in 1980. It was the second single spawned from Spears's 1980 album Standing Tall.
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.