Fireflies (Faith Hill album)

Last updated
Fireflies
Faithhillfireflies.jpg
Studio album by
ReleasedAugust 2, 2005
RecordedMarch–November 2004
Studio
  • Blackbird (Nashville, Tennessee)
  • Capitol (Hollywood, California)
  • Emerald Sound (Nashville, Tennessee)
  • Essential Sound (Houston, Texas)
  • Henson (Hollywood, California)
  • Jane's Place (Nashville, Tennessee)
  • Ocean Way (Nashville, Tennessee)
  • Premium Recording (Austin, Texas)
  • Starstruck (Nashville, Tennessee)
  • The Castle (Nashville, Tennessee)
  • Sound Kitchen (Franklin, Tennessee)
Genre Country
Length54:36
Label Warner Bros. Nashville
Producer
Faith Hill chronology
Cry
(2002)
Fireflies
(2005)
The Hits
(2007)
Singles from Fireflies
  1. "Mississippi Girl"
    Released: May 16, 2005
  2. "Like We Never Loved at All"
    Released: August 1, 2005
  3. "The Lucky One"
    Released: February 13, 2006
  4. "Sunshine and Summertime"
    Released: June 12, 2006
  5. "Stealing Kisses"
    Released: October 14, 2006

Fireflies is the sixth studio album by American country music singer Faith Hill. The album was released on August 2, 2005 via Warner Bros. Records Nashville. Her first album since her 2002 crossover album Cry, Fireflies marked a return to traditional country music for Hill. Hill co-produced the album with Byron Gallimore and Dann Huff. Husband Tim McGraw is featured on the single "Like We Never Loved at All".

Contents

Five singles in total were released from the album. The lead single, "Mississippi Girl", marked Hill's ninth and final country number one hit and her first since 2000's "The Way You Love Me"'; it spent two weeks atop the Hot Country Songs chart. Follow-up singles "Like We Never Loved at All", "The Lucky One", and "Sunshine and Summertime" (which was her last solo top ten hit at country radio) all peaked within the top ten, with the first two peaking within the top five. "Stealing Kisses" was also a top 40 hit.

In its first week, Fireflies debuted atop both the all-genre Billboard 200 and Top Country Albums, selling 329,000 copies. Fireflies marked Hill's third consecutive album to top both of the charts simultaneously after 1999's Breathe and 2002's Cry. The album has been certified two times platinum by the RIAA for selling two million copies. Despite the commercial success, it was met with mixed reviews with many complaining that the album was bland. "Like We Never Loved at All" won the Grammy for Best Country Collaboration at the 48th Grammy Awards in 2006 while "Mississippi Girl" and Fireflies were nominated for Best Female Country Vocal Performance and Best Country Album.

Content

Singles from the album include, in order of release: "Mississippi Girl", "Like We Never Loved at All", "The Lucky One", "Sunshine and Summertime" and "Stealing Kisses". Of these, "Mississippi Girl" was a Number One on the US Billboard country charts. The other singles peaked at numbers 5, 5, 7 and 36 on that chart, respectively. Of the singles, "Mississippi Girl", "Like We Never Loved at All" and "Sunshine and Summertime" were co-written by John Rich of Big & Rich, while The Warren Brothers (Brad and Brett) co-wrote "The Lucky One", a song on which Brett also sings backing vocals. Other backing vocalists on this album include Hill's husband, Tim McGraw (on "Like We Never Loved at All"), Bekka Bramlett, Rhonda Vincent, and Kelly Willis.

Hill produced the entire album, with co-production from Byron Gallimore on tracks 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 9, 10, and 12, Dann Huff on 7, 8, 13, and 14, and both Gallimore and Huff on 2 and 11.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic 57/100 [1]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [2]
Billboard favorable [1]
Blender Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [3]
E! Online B+ [1]
Entertainment Weekly C+ [4]
Los Angeles Times Star full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [5]
The New York Times mixed [6]
Rolling Stone Star full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [1]
Slant Magazine Star empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [7]
Stylus Magazine C [8]

At Metacritic, the album has an average score of 57, indicating "mixed or average reviews".

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Sunshine and Summertime"
3:27
2."Mississippi Girl"3:52
3."Dearly Beloved"
2:22
4."I Ain't Gonna Take It Anymore"
  • Kevin Brandt
  • Bobby Terry
4:00
5."Stealing Kisses" Lori McKenna 4:23
6."Fireflies"McKenna4:28
7."Like We Never Loved at All" (with Tim McGraw)
4:22
8."I Want You"
4:06
9."The Lucky One"3:37
10."If You Ask"McKenna4:15
11."We've Got Nothing But Love to Prove" (North American release only) Darrell Scott 4:35
12."You Stay with Me"
  • John Kennedy
  • Andrea Stolpe
4:23
13."Wish for You"3:28
14."Paris"5:20
Total length:54:36

Personnel

As listed in liner notes. [9]

Musicians
String section on "Paris"
Production

Release history

CountryDate
United States August 2, 2005
Italy August 26, 2005

Charts

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada) [22] Platinum100,000^
United States (RIAA) [23] 2× Platinum2,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

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