The Slide Area

The Slide Area
Studio album by Ry Cooder
Released	1982
Studio	Ocean Way, Hollywood
Genre	Blues rock, country rock, roots rock [1]
Length	39:11
Label	Warner Bros. [2]
Producer	Ry Cooder
Ry Cooder chronology
Borderline (1980) The Slide Area (1982) Get Rhythm (1987)

The Slide Area is the tenth studio album by Ry Cooder. It was released in 1982 and peaked at No. 105 on the Billboard 200. ^{[3] [4]}

Reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[5]
Robert Christgau	C+ [6]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide	[7]

Reviewing the album for AllMusic, Bob Gottlieb said:

Yes, it is a rhythm & blues, bordering at times on funk album, and rap is one direction R&B took, but..... The two gems on this are the phenomenal treatments of both "Blue Suede Shoes" and Bob Dylan's "I Need a Woman." Two songs as different in the original forms as pigs and gerbils are converted to R&B hit status. Both contain some memorable slide guitar work, but isn't that what we expect from this master of the guitar family. The album is very good but those two songs make it a gem. ^[1]

Track listing

Side A

1. "UFO Has Landed in the Ghetto" (Ry Cooder, Jim Keltner)
2. "I Need a Woman" (Bob Dylan)
3. "Gypsy Woman" (Curtis Mayfield)
4. "Blue Suede Shoes" (Carl Perkins)

Side B

1. "Mama, Don't Treat Your Daughter Mean" (Ry Cooder)
2. "I'm Drinking Again" (Ry Cooder, Jim Keltner)
3. "Which Came First" (Ry Cooder, Willie Dixon)
4. "That's the Way Love Turned Out for Me" (Quinton Claunch, Ry Cooder, Dave Hall)

Personnel

Musicians ^[8]

• Ry Cooder – guitar, vocals
• Jim Keltner – drums
• Jim Dickinson – keyboards (A1 – A3, B2, B4); piano (A4); electric piano (B1); organ (B3)
• William D. Smith – keyboards (A1 – A3, B2, B4)
• Tim Drummond – bass guitar (A1–A2, A4, B1, B3)
• Reggie McBride – bass guitar (B2, B4)
• Chuck Rainey – bass guitar (A3)
• Ras Baboo Pierre – percussion (A3)
• Bobby King – backing vocals (A1 – B1, B3, B4)
• Willie Greene – background vocals (A1 – B1, B3, B4)
• Herman Johnson – backing vocals (A1 – B1, B3, B4)
• John Hiatt – backing vocals (A1 – B1, B3, B4); guitar (B4)
• George McFadden – backing vocals (A4, B1)
• Kazu Matsui – Shakuhachi flute (B1, B3)

Technical

• Mark Ettel – engineer assistant
• Mark Linett – engineer (Santa Monica) (A1, A2, A4, B1, B3)
• Bernie Grundman – mastering
• Allen Sides – mixing (A3, B2, B4)
• Masuru Mera – cover photography
• Ry Cooder – producer
• Leslie Morris – assistant producer

References

1. "The Slide Area – Ry Cooder – Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved February 23, 2019.
2. Larkin, Colin (September 30, 2013). The Virgin Encyclopedia of The Blues. Random House. ISBN   9781448132744 – via Google Books.
3. Prown, Pete; Newquist, Harvey P. (December 31, 1997). Legends of Rock Guitar: The Essential Reference of Rock's Greatest Guitarists. Hal Leonard Corporation. ISBN   9780793540426 – via Google Books.
4. "Ry Cooder The Slide Area Chart History". Billboard.
5. "The Slide Area - Ry Cooder | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic.
6. "Robert Christgau: CG: Ry Cooder". www.robertchristgau.com.
7. The Rolling Stone Album Guide. Random House. 1992. pp. 158, 159.
8. Liner notes from Warner Bros. Records – BSK 3651, 1982 LP