Hat Trick (America album)

Last updated

Hat Trick
AmericaHatTrick.jpg
Studio album by
America
ReleasedOctober 26, 1973 [1]
Recorded29 May – 12 July 1973
Studio The Record Plant, Los Angeles
Genre Country rock [2]
Length41:39
Label Warner Bros. [3]
Producer
America chronology
Homecoming
(1972)		Hat Trick
(1973)		 Holiday
(1974)
Singles from Hat Trick
  1. "Muskrat Love"
    Released: August 1973 [4]
  2. "Rainbow Song"
    Released: November 1973
  3. "Green Monkey"
    Released: February 1974

Hat Trick is the third studio album by the American folk rock trio America, released on Warner Bros. Records in 1973. [5] It peaked at number 28 on the Billboard album chart; it failed to go gold, whereas the group's first two releases had platinum sales. The album produced the single, "Muskrat Love", which reached number 67 on the Billboard singles chart and number 11 on the adult contemporary chart. That song would become a much bigger hit for Captain & Tennille three years later.

Contents

Production

America employed string arrangements for the first time on an album, with the assistance of Jim Ed Norman. [6]

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [7]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music Star full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [8]
MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide Star full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [9]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide Star full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [10]

In his AllMusic review, Mike DeGagne wrote that the album faltered "mainly because the songs lacked the cordial folk-rock melodies and mindful songwriting that prevailed on the earlier releases. "She's Gonna Let You Down" and "Rainbow Song" are the album's best cuts, but banal offerings such as "Green Monkey", "Willow Tree Lullaby", and "Molten Love" have Bunnell and Peek straying off course, sounding stale and musically feeble." [7] The Rough Guide to Rock called Hat Trick "one of country-rock's great lost albums." [2] The Rolling Stone Album Guide deemed "Muskrat Love" "an early nadir in cuteness." [10]

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Muskrat Love" Willis Alan Ramsey 3:06
2."Wind Wave" Dewey Bunnell 2:55
3."She's Gonna Let You Down" Gerry Beckley 3:41
4."Rainbow Song"Bunnell3:53
5."Submarine Ladies"Beckley3:13
6."It's Life" Dan Peek 4:00
7."Hat Trick"Beckley, Bunnell, Peek8:29
8."Molten Love"Bunnell3:10
9."Green Monkey"Bunnell3:38
10."Willow Tree Lullaby"Peek2:34
11."Goodbye"Beckley3:10

Personnel

Performance

America

with:

Production

Charts

Chart (1973–1974)Peak
position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report) [11] 24
Canada Top Albums/CDs ( RPM ) [12] 45
Spain (AFYVE) [13] 24
UK Albums (OCC) [14] 41
US Billboard 200 [15] 28

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI) [16] Silver60,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

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References

  1. ↑ "BPI".
  2. 1 2 Nixon, Neil (2003). "America". In Buckley, Peter (ed.). The Rough Guide to Rock (3rd ed.). London: Rough Guides. p. 24. ISBN   978-1-84353-105-0.
  3. ↑ "Top Album Picks". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. 10 November 1973 – via Google Books.
  4. ↑ "Great Rock Discography". p. 16.
  5. ↑ "America | Biography & History". AllMusic.
  6. ↑ Warne, Jude (15 May 2020). America, the Band: An Authorized Biography. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN   9781538120965 – via Google Books.
  7. 1 2 DeGagne, Mike. "Hat Trick > Review". AllMusic . Retrieved 15 August 2011.
  8. ↑ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 1. MUZE. p. 157.
  9. ↑ MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1999. p. 25.
  10. 1 2 The Rolling Stone Album Guide. Random House. 1992. p. 14.
  11. ↑ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. ISBN   0-646-11917-6.
  12. ↑ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 4969". RPM . Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 6 February 2021.
  13. ↑ Salaverri, Fernando (2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (in Spanish) (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN   84-8048-639-2.
  14. ↑ "America | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 23 February 2016.
  15. ↑ "America Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 23 February 2016.
  16. ↑ "British album certifications – America – Hat Trick". British Phonographic Industry.
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