In Search of a Song is a 1971 album by country

Country music

Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...

 singer and songwriter, Tom T. Hall

Tom T. Hall

Thomas "Tom T." Hall is an American country music singer-songwriter. He has written 11 #1 hit songs, with 26 more that reached the Top 10, including the pop crossover hit "I Love", which reached #12 on the Billboard Hot 100...

. The album includes eleven songs based on Hall's observations of rural life. It became a number eight top country album and the opening track, "The Year That Clayton Delaney Died" became a number one country single.

History

In Search of a Song was released amid Hall's years with Mercury Records

Mercury Records

Mercury Records is a record label operating as a standalone company in the UK and as part of the Island Def Jam Motown Music Group in the US; both are subsidiaries of Universal Music Group. There is also a Mercury Records in Australia, which is a local artist and repertoire division of Universal...

 (1969–1977) during which he released one or more albums each year (see Tom T. Hall discography

Tom T. Hall discography

-Studio albums:-Compilation albums:NOTE: This section only includes the major label releases.-Singles:-B-Sides:*A"I Love" also peaked at #2 on Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks and #7 on the RPM Adult Contemporary Tracks chart in Canada....

). It is the first full album to result from one of Hall's "song-hunting" trips to Kentucky. Hall was known to make periodic visits to rural Kentucky

Kentucky

The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...

. He didn't actually write songs on these trips so much as take notes and gather raw material that he would later write about. He typically traveled backroads by car, sometimes with a photographer, to find inspiration by observing and visiting with the common people of his home state.

Track listing

All songs by Tom T. Hall

1. "The Year That Clayton Delaney Died
   The Year That Clayton Delaney Died
   "The Year That Clayton Delaney Died" is the title of a song written and recorded by American country music artist Tom T. Hall. It was released in July 1971 as the only single from the album, In Search of a Song. "The Year That Clayton Delaney Died" would be Tom T. Hall's second number one on the...
   
   " - 2:42
2. "Who's Gonna Feed Them Hogs" - 2:35
3. "Trip to Hyden" - 2:52
4. "Tulsa Telephone Book" - 2:21
5. "It Sure Can Get Cold in Des Moines" - 2:53
6. "The Little Lady Preacher" - 2:53
7. "L.A. Blues" - 2:40
8. "Kentucky, February 27, 1971" - 3:16
9. "A Million Miles to the City" - 2:51
10. "Second Handed Flowers" - 2:55
11. "Ramona's Revenge" - 2:53

Musicians

• Tom T. Hall
  Tom T. Hall
  Thomas "Tom T." Hall is an American country music singer-songwriter. He has written 11 #1 hit songs, with 26 more that reached the Top 10, including the pop crossover hit "I Love", which reached #12 on the Billboard Hot 100...
  
   - guitar, vocals
• Jerry Kennedy - guitar, dobro, sitar
• Ray Edenton - guitar
• Chip Young - guitar
• Harold Bradley
  Harold Bradley
  Harold Bradley is a pop guitarist and an American country guitarist.Harold played banjo as a child but switched to guitar on the advice of his elder brother, Owen Bradley. Owen arranged for Harold to tour with Ernest Tubb while Harold was still in high school. After graduation, Harold joined the...
  
   - bass guitar, banjo
• Pete Drake
  Pete Drake
  Pete Drake , born Roddis Franklin Drake, was a major Nashville, Tennessee-based record producer and pedal steel guitar player....
  
   - pedal steel guitar, dobro
• Bob Moore
  Bob Moore
  Bob Loyce Moore is an American session musician, orchestra leader, and bassist who was a member of the legendary Nashville A-Team during the 1950s and 60s.-Biography:...
  
   - bass
• Buddy Harman
  Buddy Harman
  Buddy Harman was an American session musician.-Career:Born in Nashville, Tennessee, he played drums on over 18,000 sessions for artists such as Elvis Presley, Patsy Cline, Dolly Parton, Brenda Lee, Tammy Wynette, Loretta Lynn, Roy Orbison, Connie Francis, Chet Atkins, Marty Robbins, Roger Miller,...
  
   - drums
• Hargus "Pig" Robbins - piano
• George Tidwell - trumpet
• Charlie McCoy
  Charlie McCoy
  Charles "Charlie" Ray McCoy is an American musician noted for his harmonica playing. In his career, McCoy has backed several notable musicians including Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash, Tom Astor, Elvis Presley and Ween. He has also recorded thirty-seven studio albums, including fourteen for Monument Records...
  
   - harmonica, vibes

Production

• Jerry Kennedy - Producer
• Recorded May 1971, Mercury Custom Recording Studio, Nashville, Tennessee
  Nashville, Tennessee
  Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
  
  , except tracks 1 & 9, recorded March 26, 1971

Charts

year	chart	peak
1971	U.S. Top Country	8
1971	U.S. 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...	137

Releases

year	format	label	catalog #
1971	LP	Mercury	822500-1
		Mercury	SR-61350
	cassette	Mercury	822500-4
2005	reissue CD	Mercury
2005	compilation CD	Hux	71
2006	remastered CD	Hip-O Select	000424002