| It's Only Rock & Roll | ||||
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| Released | Monday, June 13th, 1983 | |||
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| Label | RCA Victor | |||
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| Waylon Jennings chronology | ||||
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| Singles from It's Only Rock & Roll | ||||
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It's Only Rock & Roll is an album by Waylon Jennings, released on RCA Victor in 1983.
Jennings, who had been a mainstay on at the top of the country charts for most of the previous decade, began a commercial slide with It's Only Rock & Roll. The LP, which Jennings produced with Randy Scruggs, did produce a number 1 hit: a cover of Little Richard's rock and roll classic "Lucille (You Won't Do Your Daddy's Will)," his twelfth number 1 since 1974. Jennings would not top the singles chart again until 1987. The single "Breakin' Down" also made the Top 10. Jennings contributed two songs for the LP: "Let Her Do the Walking," which he wrote himself, and the reflective "No Middle Ground," which he composed with Gary Scruggs. Songwriter Rodney Crowell, who had written Jennings' number 1 song "I Ain't Living Long Like This" and had become one of the singer's favorite writers, has two songwriting credits, including the title track and the ballad "Angel Eyes". Jennings' wife Jessi Colter, Marcia Beverly, and Jerry Gropp provide harmony vocals on the LP.
Understandably, considering his condition at the time, Jennings was not fond of his work during this period: "I was doing bad records. Missing shows due to laryngitis. Not picking up the guitar unless I was getting paid. Not caring." [1]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [2] |
It's Only Rock & Roll peaked at number 10 on the Billboard country albums chart, Jennings' worst showing since Honky Tonk Heroes in 1973.
Crispin Sartwell of Record was dismissive of the album's closing medley, saying that all of its material had been done far better on other albums, but asserted that every other track on It's Only Rock & Roll is "old-fashioned, kick-butt country and rock." He especially praised Jennings's rendition of "Lucille" for its simplicity and straightforwardness. [3]
Jim Worbois of AllMusic's brief retrospective review read: "While many labels were raiding their vaults to create "medley" records of artists no longer signed with them ... Jennings seems to have done it to himself. There are a couple nice songs on here, but it's not one of his best." [2]
| Chart (1983) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Top Country Albums | 10 |
| U.S. Billboard 200 | 109 |
Heroes is a duet studio by American country music singers Johnny Cash and Waylon Jennings, released on Columbia Records in 1986.
Only the Greatest is a studio album by American country music artist Waylon Jennings, released in 1968 on RCA Victor. It includes the single "Only Daddy That'll Walk the Line," which Jennings took to #2 on the country music charts that year.
The Best of Waylon Jennings is a compilation album by American country music artist Waylon Jennings, released in 1970 on RCA Nashville.
Lonesome, On'ry and Mean is a studio album by American country music artist Waylon Jennings, released on RCA Victor in 1973. It was, after Good Hearted Woman and Ladies Love Outlaws, the third in a series of albums which were to establish Jennings as one of the most prominent representatives of the outlaw country movement. Photographer Mick Rock shot the album's cover.
Honky Tonk Heroes is a country music album by Waylon Jennings, released in 1973 on RCA Victor. With the exception of "We Had It All", all of the songs on the album were written or co-written by Billy Joe Shaver. The album is considered an important piece in the development of the outlaw sub-genre in country music as it revived the honky tonk music of Nashville and added elements of rock and roll to it.
Wanted! The Outlaws is a compilation album by Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, Jessi Colter, and Tompall Glaser, released by RCA Records in 1976. The album consists of previously released material with four new songs. Released to capitalize on the new outlaw country movement, Wanted! The Outlaws earned its place in music history by becoming the first country album to be platinum-certified, reaching sales of one million.
Waylon & Willie is a duet studio album by American singers Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson, released by RCA Records in 1978. In the US, it stayed at #1 album on the country album charts for ten weeks and would spend a total of 126 weeks on the country charts.
Greatest Hits is a compilation album by American country music artist Waylon Jennings, released in 1979 by RCA Records.
Take It to the Limit is an album by Willie Nelson with Waylon Jennings, released in 1983 on Columbia Records.
Waylon Live is a live album by Waylon Jennings, released on RCA Victor in 1976.
Ol' Waylon is a studio album by American country music artist Waylon Jennings, released on RCA Victor in 1977. It eventually became one of Jennings' highest-selling albums, due in no small part to the phenomenal success of the chart-topping "Luckenbach, Texas ." It was also the singer's fourth solo album in a row to reach the top of the country charts, remaining there for thirteen weeks and becoming country music's first platinum album by any single solo artist.
I've Always Been Crazy is a studio album by American country music artist Waylon Jennings, released on RCA Victor in 1978.
What Goes Around Comes Around is a studio album by American country music artist Waylon Jennings, released on RCA Victor in 1979.
Music Man is a studio album by American country music artist Waylon Jennings, released in 1980 on RCA Victor.
Black on Black is a studio album by American country music artist Waylon Jennings, released on RCA Victor in 1982.
Will the Wolf Survive is a studio album by American country music artist Waylon Jennings. It was released in 1986 as his debut for MCA Records.
A Man Called Hoss is a concept album by American country music artist Waylon Jennings, released on MCA in 1987.
Nashville Rebel is a box set by Waylon Jennings, released on RCA Nashville through Legacy Recordings in 2006. According to Allmusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine, it is "the first comprehensive, multi-label Waylon Jennings retrospective ever assembled," comprising ninety-two songs recorded between 1958 and 1994, with selections from the majority of the singer's recording career. The first track of the box set is the Buddy Holly-produced "Jole Blon," released in 1958, while the last is "I Do Believe," a song produced by Don Was that was included on The Highwaymen's 1995 release, The Road Goes on Forever. The other material on the box set covers Jennings' career chronologically, with songs ranging from his years on RCA's roster to later compositions from his short-lived stay at Epic Records; it ignores, however, the tracks from Jennings albums released on independent labels. The majority of the singer's charting singles are included in the package, as are collaborations such as "Mamas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys" with Willie Nelson and "Highwayman" with The Highwaymen. A notable addition is the previously unreleased "The Greatest Cowboy of Them All," a 1978 duet with Johnny Cash which was later recorded by Cash alone for A Believer Sings the Truth (1979) and The Mystery of Life (1991); two others, "It's Sure Been Fun" and "People in Dallas Got Hair," had never been released in the United States. Nashville Rebel was released on four CDs, with a 140-page booklet and liner notes by Rich Kienzle and Lenny Kaye.
But What Will the Neighbors Think is the second studio album by American country music artist Rodney Crowell. It was released in 1980 by Warner Bros. Records. It reached #64 on the Top Country Albums chart and #155 on the Billboard 200 albums chart. The songs, "Ashes by Now", "Ain't No Money" and "Here Come the 80's" were released as singles. "Ashes by Now" only reached #78 on the country charts and #37 on the Billboard Hot 100 while the other two singles failed to chart. This album has more of a rock & roll influence than Crowell's debut, Ain't Living Long Like This. The album was rereleased on compact disc in 2005.
Son of the South is an album released by country musician David Allan Coe. It was released in 1986 on Columbia.