Neck and Neck

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Neck and Neck
Neck and Neck.jpg
Studio album by
ReleasedOctober 9, 1990 (1990-10-09)
RecordedCA Workshop, Nashville,
Sound Emporium, Nashville,
Hillbilly Heaven, London,
1990 [1]
Genre Country, country rock, western swing
Length38:26
Label Columbia
Producer Mark Knopfler
Chet Atkins Collaborations chronology
Standard Brands
(1981)
Neck and Neck
(1990)
Sneakin' Around
(1991)
Mark Knopfler chronology
Missing... Presumed Having a Good Time
(1989)
Neck and Neck
(1990)
Screenplaying
(1993)

Neck to Neck is a collaborative album by American guitarist Chet Atkins and British singer-songwriter and guitarist Mark Knopfler, released on October 9, 1990, by Columbia Records. "Poor Boy Blues" was released as a single.

Contents

At the 33rd Annual Grammy Awards in 1991, the track "Poor Boy Blues" won Best Country Vocal Collaboration, while the track "So Soft Your Goodbye" won Best Country Instrumental Performance. [2]

Atkins originally recorded "Yakety Axe", a parody of Boots' Randolph's "Yakety Sax", on his 1965 album More of That Guitar Country . This new recording features lyrics and a new arrangement that were composed by Merle Travis. Atkins also previously recorded "I'll See You in My Dreams" on an album with Travis.

The track "There'll Be Some Changes Made" was later included as track 10 of the 15-track 1996 Rolls-Royce Sound System Demonstration Disc and accompanying cassette. [3]

Critical reception

In his review for AllMusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine gave the album four out of five stars, calling it "the most focused and arguably the most rewarding record Atkins has released." [2] Erlewine singled out Knopfler's influence on the legendary guitarist:

Working with Dire Straits guitarist Mark Knopfler had a rejuvenating influence on Chet Atkins. Knopfler has Atkins moving toward his country roots, but both guitarists still play with a tasteful, jazzy sensibility—however, Atkins has abandoned the overt jazz fusion pretensions that sank most of his '80s records. [2]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [2]

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Poor Boy Blues" Paul Kennerley 4:01
2."Sweet Dreams" Don Gibson 3:24
3."There'll Be Some Changes Made"William Blackstone, Benton Overstreet [Note 1] 6:28
4."Just One Time"Don Gibson4:11
5."So Soft, Your Goodbye" Randy Goodrum 3:16
6."Yakety Axe" Boots Randolph, James Rich, Merle Travis 3:24
7."Tears" Stéphane Grappelli, Django Reinhardt 3:54
8."Tahitian Skies" Ray Flacke 3:18
9."I'll See You in My Dreams" Isham Jones, Gus Kahn 2:59
10."The Next Time I'm in Town" Mark Knopfler 3:21
Total length:38:26

Personnel

Music
Production

Charts

Albums

Chart (1990)Peak
Canadian Albums Chart71
Norway Albums Chart5
Sweden Albums Chart8
Swiss Albums Chart3
UK Albums Chart41
US Billboard 200 Chart [2] 127
US Billboard Top Country Chart [2] 27

Singles

YearSinglePeak positions
CAN Country
1990"Poor Boy Blues"92

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References

Notes
  1. Parody lyrics were written by Margaret Archer, Chet Atkins, and Mark Knopfler.
Citations
  1. "Neck and Neck". Discogs. Retrieved 27 November 2012.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Neck and Neck". AllMusic. Retrieved 24 November 2012.
  3. Doug DeMuro (9 May 2017), Here's What a $300,000 Rolls-Royce Was Like... in 1996, archived from the original on 15 December 2021, retrieved 13 July 2017
  4. Neck and Neck (booklet). Chet Atkins and Mark Knopfler. New York: Columbia Records. 1990. pp. 1–3. CK 45307.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)