The Living Room Sessions | |
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Studio album by | |
Released | April 2, 2013 |
Recorded | 2012 |
Genre | Country pop, soft rock |
Length | 42:32 |
Label | Wrinkled Records |
Producer | Kyle Lehning |
Singles from The Living Room Sessions | |
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The Living Room Sessions (2013) is B.J. Thomas' first "unplugged" album, celebrating fifty years in the recording industry and forty-seven years since his first gold record (a cover of the Hank Williams song, "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry"). The Living Room Sessions offers many of Thomas' most recognizable hits, the album was produced to instill the atmosphere of an intimate setting and includes duet performances from some of Thomas' favorite artists. [2]
Billboard has ranked B.J. Thomas in the fifty most played artists in the last fifty years. [3] Thomas became the 60th member of The Grand Ole Opry on August 7, 1981, his 39th birthday. [4] Thomas was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, Walkway of Stars in 1983. [5]
"(Hey Won't You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song" (1975), written by Larry Butler and Chips Moman, had the distinction of achieving No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and the Hot Country Songs charts. The song was also nominated Single of the Year, by the Academy of Country Music in 1975. [6]
"Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head" was featured in the 1969 film, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and won an Academy Award for Best Original Song. Written by Hal David and Burt Bacharach, the song was a No. 1 hit for Thomas and earned him an appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show . [4] [7] Movie goers became re-acquainted with "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head" when it was included in the film Spider-Man 2 (2004). [3] The 1969 recording was inducted into the 2014 Grammy Hall of Fame. [8]
Two time Academy of Country Music Award nominee Kyle Lehning [6] : 79 produced The Living Room Sessions at Sound Stage Studio, Nashville, Tennessee, in 2012. Lehning and Thomas kept the pre-production details simple, realizing that the songs would naturally lend themselves to the acoustic format and trusted the musicians (Lehning and the Nashville "cats") to deliver the acoustic interpretations with minimal melodic adjustments to the songs. [3]
Lehning and the Nashville "cats"
Vince Gill first hit the Billboard Magazine charts as the front man for Pure Prairie League; the album Can't Hold Back (1979) hit No. 124 on the Billboard 200. Since that time, Gill has had a successful solo career with twenty Grammy and eleven Country Music Association awards, five of those for Male Vocalist of the Year and two for Entertainer of the Year (1993-1994). [14] Gill is the only artist to win the Male Vocalist award for five consecutive years (1991-1995). [15]
Well, that's just incredible, isn't it? What's her name? Sara? Boy, she can really sing. [...] She is so cute, how old is she? Four ... and who taught her the words? ... she knows the words to all my songs? I don't know what to say. [24]
B.J. Thomas, March 29, 1997
Track | Title [36] | Year | Hot 100 | AC | Country singles |
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1 | "Don't Worry Baby" | 1977 | No. 17 | No. 2 | — |
2 | "I Just Can't Help Believing" | 1970 | No. 9 | No. 1 | — |
3 | "Most of All" | 1971 | No. 38 | No. 2 | — |
4 | "Eyes of a New York Woman" | 1968 | No. 28 | — | — |
5 | "(Hey Won't You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song" | 1975 | No. 1 | No. 1 | No. 1 |
6 | "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry" | 1966 | No. 8 | — | — |
7 | "Rock and Roll Lullaby" | 1972 | No. 15 | No. 1 | — |
8 | "New Looks from an Old Lover" | 1983 | — | — | No. 1 |
9 | "Whatever Happened Old Fashioned Love" | 1983 | No. 93 | No. 13 | No. 1 |
10 | "Hooked on a Feeling" | 1969 | No. 5 | — | — |
11 | "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head" | 1969-70 | No. 1 | No. 1 | — |
12 | "Everybody's Out of Town" | 1970 | No. 26 | No. 3 | — |
Chart (2013) | Peak position |
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U.S. Billboard Top Country Albums [37] | 39 |
Randy Bruce Traywick, known professionally as Randy Travis, is an American country music and gospel music singer and songwriter, as well as a film and television actor. Active since 1979, he has recorded over 20 studio albums and charted over 50 singles on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts, including sixteen that reached the number-one position.
Billy Joe Thomas was an American singer widely known for his country, contemporary Christian, and pop hits of the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s.
Kevin Roosevelt Moore, known as Keb' Mo', is an American blues musician. He is a singer, guitarist and songwriter, living in Nashville, Tennessee. He has been described as "a living link to the seminal Delta blues that travelled up the Mississippi River and across the expanse of America." His post-modern blues style is influenced by many eras and genres, including folk, rock, jazz, pop and country. The moniker "Keb Mo" was coined by his original drummer, Quentin Dennard, and picked up by his record label as a "street talk" abbreviation of his given name.
Lincoln Wayne "Chips" Moman was an American record producer, guitarist, and songwriter. He is known for working in R&B, pop music and country music, operating American Sound Studios and producing hit albums like Elvis Presley's 1969 From Elvis in Memphis and the 1985 debut album for The Highwaymen. Moman won a Grammy Award for co-writing "(Hey Won't You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song", a 1975 hit for B.J. Thomas.
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"(Hey Won't You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song" is an American country and pop song made famous by B. J. Thomas. It won the 1976 Grammy for Best Country Song, awarded to its songwriters Larry Butler and Chips Moman.
"New Looks from an Old Lover" is a song recorded by American country music artist B. J. Thomas. It was released in July 1983 as the second single from the album New Looks. "New Looks from an Old Lover" was Thomas' third number one on the country chart. The single went to number one for one week and spent a total of thirteen weeks on the country chart. It was Thomas' final number one hit on the U.S. charts. The song was written by Thomas' wife Gloria, along with Red Lane and Lathan Hudson.
"Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head" is a song written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David for the 1969 film Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. The uplifting lyrics describe somebody who overcomes his troubles and worries by realising that "it won't be long till happiness steps up to greet me."
Sara Anne Niemietz is an American singer-songwriter and actress based in Los Angeles, California. She has performed on Broadway, at Radio City Music Hall, and the Grand Ole Opry. A substantial portion of her YouTube offerings are live performance music-videos and her channel has surpassed 25 million views. Her regular co-writer and long-time accompanist is W. G. Snuffy Walden, and she has also co-written with Melissa Manchester. Niemietz is a regular cast-member with Postmodern Jukebox, appearing on a dozen albums, a PBS television special, and an MTV music video. She is a featured artist on Richard Marx's A Night Out with Friends (2012) (PBS), Christmas Spirit (2012), and B. J. Thomas's The Living Room Sessions (2013).
Thomas Jay Hambridge is an American rock, country, and blues, producer, songwriter, musician and vocalist. Hambridge has received two Grammy Awards, an ASCAP award, seven Grammy nominations, seven Boston Music Awards, and has been inducted into the Buffalo Hall of Fame. In December 2015, Hambridge was given the key to his hometown of Buffalo, New York with Mayor Byron Brown declaring December 28 "Tom Hambridge Day." Hambridge's songs have been recorded by several notable artists and have been featured in movie productions, commercials and television programs. He has been referred to as "The White Willie Dixon" by Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductee Buddy Guy and Susan Tedeschi's "Secret Weapon".
Sara Niemietz is a vocalist, actress, musician, and composer with Broadway theatrical, soundtrack and live performance experience. She has co-produced music videos and albums with W. G. Snuffy Walden in his Taylor Made Studios since 2010. Niemietz became a featured cast member with Postmodern Jukebox in 2015. Musical influences include gospel, children's and family, stage musical, pop, rock, blues and jazz.
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The discography for American musician B. J. Thomas includes releases from five decades, between the 1960s and the 2010s. Thomas is best remembered for his hit songs during the 1960s and 1970s, which appeared on the pop, country and Christian music charts. His popular recordings include the Burt Bacharach and Hal David song "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head", the Larry Butler and Chips Moman song "(Hey Won't You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song", and the original version of the Mark James song "Hooked on a Feeling".
The singer, a five-time Grammy and two-time Dove Award winner who has sold more than 70 million records and is ranked in Billboard's Top 50 most played artists over the past 50 years, invites longtime fans and newcomers alike into his "living room" for never-heard-before arrangements of his legendary classics
Photos: Sandy Campbell
Nominated 1975 Single of the Year
On January 25th 1970, 24-year-old B.J. Thomas appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show for the first time.
With what she calls a "cool groove record" – her first album for the Wrinkled Records label – Etta stakes her claim as one of the most versatile singers working today.
Melissa Prewitt (aka Etta Britt), of Garrard County, was part of the 1970s popstyled country band, Dave & Sugar. The band recorded multiple number one hits and made it to the Billboard country music charts sixteen times.
Gill is the only songwriter to win Song of the Year four times. His wins came for "When I Call Your Name" (1991), "Look at Us" (1992), "I Still Believe in You" (1993), and "Go Rest High on That Mountain" (1996).
Among winners at the 46th annual Grammy awards: Song of the year: Dance With My Father, Richard Marx and Luther Vandross
In this concert, Marx takes us through his legendary career and brings along a few friends including Hugh Jackman, Matt Scannell, and Sara Niemietz.
GROUP MEMBERS: Joe King, Ben Wysocki, Isaac Slade, Caleb Slade, Dave Welsh, Dan Battenhouse, Mike Ayars