| I Lived to Tell It All | ||||
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | August 13, 1996 | |||
| Genre | Country | |||
| Length | 32:22 | |||
| Label | MCA Nashville | |||
| Producer | Norro Wilson | |||
| George Jones chronology | ||||
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I Lived to Tell It All is an album by country music artist George Jones, released on August 13, 1996, on the MCA Nashville Records label. It was also a companion piece to his best-selling autobiography of the same name, I Lived to Tell It All.
Coming off his successful reunion tour with ex-wife Tammy Wynette, Jones reunited with producer Norro Wilson to record his fifth album with MCA Nashville. While Jones remained committed to "pure country", he worked with the top musicians and songwriters of the day and the quality of his work remained high, even though his age kept him off mainstream country radio. Earlier in the year, Jones released his autobiography I Lived To Tell It All with Tom Carter and the irony of his long career was not lost on him, with the singer writing in its preface, "I also know that a lot of my show-business peers are going to be angry after reading this book. So many have worked so hard to maintain their careers. I never took my career seriously, and yet it's flourishing." He also pulled no punches about his disappointment in the direction country music had taken, devoting a full chapter to the changes in the country music scene of the 1990s that saw him removed from radio playlists in favor of a younger generation of pop-influenced country stars. Despite his absence from the country charts during this time, latter-day country superstars such as George Strait, Randy Travis, Alan Jackson, and many others often paid tribute to Jones while expressing their love and respect for his legacy as a true country legend who paved the way for their own success.
Jones promoted the album heavily and it rose to 26 on the Billboard country albums chart, a respectable showing considering his lack of radio support. He also made a music video for "Honky Tonk Song" which lampooned the infamous episode when Jones rode a lawn mower eight miles to the liquor store after his wife had hidden his car keys (Jones also performed the song on The Late Show with David Letterman). The album contains the novelty single "Billy B. Bad", a sarcastic jab at country music establishment trendsetters (unsurprisingly, it did not chart), and "Hello Heart", which was co-written by Jones's former 1960s duet partner Melba Montgomery.
AllMusic calls I Lived To Tell It All "a surprising return to form" for Jones, enthusing, "There are honky tonk raveups, there are heart-tugging barroom weepers, and, best of all, there are several novelties that rank among the most clever and self-deprecating that Jones has ever recorded." In a Rolling Stone article at the time of the album's release, Chuck Dean wrote that Jones was "...blessed with the best set of lungs this side of the cosmos..." Alana Nash of Amazon.com writes that, even when going through the motions, "Jones remains the kind of singer who inspires awe and wonder..."
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   link |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Honky Tonk Song" | Frank J. Myers, Billy Yates | 2:46 |
| 2. | "Back Down to Hung Up on You" | Larry Butler, Dean Dillon | 3:37 |
| 3. | "Billy B. Bad" | Bobby Braddock | 3:01 |
| 4. | "Hundred Proof Memories" | Keith Stegall, Zack Turner | 3:56 |
| 5. | "It Ain't Gonna Worry My Mind" | Richard Leigh | 2:55 |
| 6. | "The Lone Ranger" | Yates, Gerald Smith, John Northrup | 2:38 |
| 7. | "Tied to a Stone" | Max D. Barnes | 4:06 |
| 8. | "I'll Give You Something to Drink About" | Hank Cochran, Mack Vickery, Jerry Laseter | 3:19 |
| 9. | "I Must Have Done Something Bad" | Red Lane | 3:19 |
| 10. | "Hello Heart" | Melba Montgomery, Yates | 2:45 |
My Kind of Country is the eighth studio album by American country music singer Reba McEntire, released October 15, 1984. It was her second studio album for MCA Records. My Kind of Country peaked at No. 13 on Billboard's Country Music Albums chart. Two tracks from the album rose to No. 1 on the Country Singles chart: "How Blue" and "Somebody Should Leave".
Strait Country is the debut studio album by American country music artist George Strait, released on September 4, 1981, by MCA Records. The album's traditional country music approach—a mix of Texas honky tonk and the Bakersfield sound—presented a sharp contrast to the dominating trends within country music at that time. The album includes the singles "Unwound", "Down and Out", and "If You're Thinking You Want a Stranger ". The album peaked at number 26 on the US Billboard Top Country Albums chart. Strait Country has been certified platinum by the RIAA. The album was one of the first to be recorded and mixed digitally.
Strait from the Heart is the second studio album by American country music artist George Strait, released on June 3, 1982, by MCA Records. The album includes Strait's first No. 1 single, "Fool Hearted Memory", as well as follow-up singles "Marina del Rey", "Amarillo by Morning" and "A Fire I Can't Put Out", reaching No. 6, No. 4, and No. 1 respectively on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart. The album peaked at No. 18 on the US Billboard Top Country Albums chart. Strait from the Heart is certified platinum by the RIAA.
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Honkytonkville is the twenty-second studio album by American country music singer George Strait, released in June 10, 2003 by MCA Nashville. One of only a few albums of his career not to produce a Number One single, the album was certified platinum by the RIAA. It produced the singles "Tell Me Something Bad About Tulsa", "Cowboys Like Us" and "Desperately", at #11, #2 and #6 respectively on the country charts. "Honk If You Honky Tonk" also charted at #45 based on unsolicited airplay.
Cold Hard Truth is the 56th studio album by American country music singer George Jones. The album was released on June 22, 1999, on the Asylum label.
High-Tech Redneck is an album by American country music singer George Jones. It was released in 1993 on the MCA Nashville Records label and went Gold in 1994.
It Don't Get Any Better Than This is an album by American country music singer George Jones released on April 7, 1998, on the MCA Nashville label.
Hungry Again is the thirty-fifth solo studio album by American singer-songwriter Dolly Parton. It was released on August 25, 1998, by Decca Records and Blue Eye Records. The album was produced by Parton and her cousin, Richie Owens. It is seen as a predecessor to Parton's critically acclaimed bluegrass trilogy, The Grass Is Blue, Little Sparrow, and Halos & Horns.
And Along Came Jones is an album by American country music singer George Jones released in 1991 on the MCA Nashville Records label.
One is the ninth and final studio album by American country music artists George Jones and Tammy Wynette. This album was released on June 20, 1995, on the MCA Nashville Records label. It was Jones and Wynette's first album together in 15 years; it would also turn out to be their last album together. The album was Wynette's last studio album she would record before her death in 1998.
The Bradley Barn Sessions is a duet album released in 1994 by American country music artist George Jones.
Walls Can Fall is an album by American country music artist George Jones. This album was released in 1992 on the MCA Nashville Records. It peaked at number 24 on the Billboard Country Albums chart and number 77 on The Billboard 200 chart. Walls Can Fall went Gold in 1994.
Songs About Me is the sixth studio album by American country music artist Trace Adkins. It was released on March 22, 2005, via Capitol Records Nashville. His highest-selling album to date, it has been certified 2× Platinum by the RIAA and had sold 1.5 million copies. Singles from this album include the title track, "Arlington", and "Honky Tonk Badonkadonk". The title track and "Honky Tonk Badonkadonk" both went to No.2 and "Arlington" went to No.16 on the U.S. BillboardHot Country Songs charts. "Honky Tonk Badonkadonk" was also a Top 40 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 and Pop 100 charts as well.
Troubadour is the twenty-fifth studio album by American country music singer George Strait. It was released on April 1, 2008 on MCA Nashville Records. The album comprises twelve tracks, including two duets. The lead-off single, "I Saw God Today", was the highest-debuting single of Strait's career, and his forty-third Number One on the Billboard country charts. The album has been certified platinum by the RIAA. At the 51st Grammy Awards, Troubadour earned the Grammy Award for Best Country Album, the first Grammy win of Strait's career. The album was intended to include the song "Everybody Wants to Go to Heaven", but after Strait decided not to include it on the album, it was later recorded by Kenny Chesney, and was released as the first single from his album Lucky Old Sun. "It Was Me" was originally recorded by Jamey Johnson on his 2006 album, The Dollar.
"Why Baby Why" is a country music song co-written and originally recorded by George Jones. Released in late 1955 on Starday Records and produced by Starday co-founder and Jones' manager Pappy Daily, it peaked at 4 on the Billboard country charts that year. It was Jones' first chart single, following several unsuccessful singles released during the prior year on Starday.
Honky Tonk Boots is an album released in 2006 by American country music artist Sammy Kershaw. His only release for the Category 5 Records album, it was also his first studio release since 2003's I Want My Money Back. The album's lead-off single, "Tennessee Girl", peaked at number 43 on the Billboard country charts in 2006. Honky Tonk Boots also reunited him with producers Buddy Cannon and Norro Wilson, who co-produced his first four albums.
Ace in the Hole Band is the backup band for American country music performer George Strait, who was the band's lead singer before beginning his solo career in the early 1980s. The band formed at San Marcos, Texas in the 1970s, and recorded several singles for "D Records" including the Strait-penned "I Just Can't Go On Dying Like This" and "I Don't Want To Talk It Over Anymore". After Strait attained status as the "King of Country", the group released an album of its own in 1995 featuring vocals from Darrell McCall and Mel Tillis.
"There's a Honky Tonk Angel (Who'll Take Me Back In)" is a song best known for the 1974 recording by American country music artist Conway Twitty, who took it to number 1 on the Hot Country Singles chart. The song was written by Troy Seals and Denny Rice and originally released on Troy Seals' 1973 debut album Now Presenting Troy Seals.
Honky Tonk Time Machine is the thirtieth studio album by American country music artist George Strait. It was released on March 29, 2019, via MCA Nashville. The album's first single, "Every Little Honky Tonk Bar", was released to radio on February 11, 2019.
