The Road Less Traveled (George Strait Album)
Encyclopedia
The Road Less Traveled is an album by country artist George Strait
released by MCA Nashville in 2001. Certified platinum for sales of one million copies, the album produced the hits "Run", "She'll Leave You with a Smile" and "Living and Living Well", the latter two of which were #1 hits on the Billboard country charts. "Stars on the Water" and "The Real Thing" also charted at #50 and #60 from unsolicited airplay.
Four of this album's songs are covers:
Strings
performed by the Nashville String Machine
under the conduction and arrangement of Steve Dorff.
George Strait
George Harvey Strait is an American country music singer, actor, and music producer. Strait is referred to as the "King of Country," and critics call Strait a living legend. He is known for his unique style of western swing music, bar-room ballads, honky-tonk style, and fresh yet traditional...
released by MCA Nashville in 2001. Certified platinum for sales of one million copies, the album produced the hits "Run", "She'll Leave You with a Smile" and "Living and Living Well", the latter two of which were #1 hits on the Billboard country charts. "Stars on the Water" and "The Real Thing" also charted at #50 and #60 from unsolicited airplay.
Four of this album's songs are covers:
- "Stars on the Water" — Rodney CrowellRodney CrowellRodney Crowell is a Grammy Award-winning musician, known primarily for his work as a singer and songwriter in country music....
on his 1981 album Rodney Crowell - "The Real Thing" — Chip TaylorChip TaylorJames Wesley Voight , better known by his stage name as Chip Taylor, is an American songwriter, who is noted for writing the songs "Angel of the Morning" and "Wild Thing." He is the brother of actor Jon Voight and geologist Barry Voight...
(as "(I Want) The Real Thing") on his 1973 album Chip Taylor's Last Chance - "Good Time Charley's" — Jim ReevesJim ReevesJames Travis Reeves , better known as Jim Reeves, was an American country and popular music singer-songwriter. With records charting from the 1950s to the 1980s, he became well-known for being a practitioner of the Nashville sound...
on his 1969 album Down at Good Time Charlie's - "My Life's Been Grand" — Merle HaggardMerle HaggardMerle Ronald Haggard is an American country music singer, guitarist, fiddler, instrumentalist, and songwriter. Along with Buck Owens, Haggard and his band The Strangers helped create the Bakersfield sound, which is characterized by the unique twang of Fender Telecaster guitars, vocal harmonies,...
on his 1986 album Out Among the Stars
Track listing
- "She'll Leave You with a SmileShe'll Leave You with a Smile"She'll Leave You with a Smile" is the title of a song written by Odie Blackmon and Jay Knowles, and recorded by American country music artist George Strait. It was released in September 2002 as the last single from his 2001 album The Road Less Traveled. It was his 38th Number One hit on the...
" (Odie Blackmon, Jay Knowles) - 2:58 - "RunRun (George Strait song)Run is a song recorded by American country music artist George Strait. It was the lead single released in October 2001 from George Strait's 2001 album The Road Less Traveled. The song reached #2 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts in December 2001, where it was blocked by Toby Keith's song, I...
" (Tony Lane, Anthony SmithAnthony Smith (songwriter)Ralph Anthony Smith is an American country music singer, songwriter, and record producer. As a musician, Smith recorded his first album, If That Ain't Country, on Mercury Nashville Records in 2003. The album produced three Top 40 singles on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks charts...
) - 4:05 - "Stars on the Water" (Rodney CrowellRodney CrowellRodney Crowell is a Grammy Award-winning musician, known primarily for his work as a singer and songwriter in country music....
) - 3:43 - "Living and Living WellLiving and Living Well"Living and Living Well" is a song written by Tony Martin, Mark Nesler and Tom Shapiro, and recorded by American country music artist George Strait. released in February 2002 as the second single from his 2001 album, The Road Less Traveled. The song reached number one on the U.S. Billboard Hot...
" (Tony MartinTony Martin (songwriter)Tony Martin is a country music songwriter who has had twelve Number One hits as a songwriter. Among his compositions are "Third Rock from the Sun" by Joe Diffie and "Just to See You Smile" by Tim McGraw....
, Mark NeslerMark NeslerMark Nesler is an American country music artist. Signed to Elektra Records as a recording artist in 1998, Nesler charted three singles on the U.S. Billboard country charts...
, Tom ShapiroTom ShapiroTom Shapiro is an American songwriter and occasional record producer, known primarily for his work in country music. To date, he holds four Country Songwriter of the Year awards from Broadcast Music Incorporated, as well as the Songwriter of the Decade award from the Nashville Songwriters...
) - 3:38 - "The Real Thing" (Chip TaylorChip TaylorJames Wesley Voight , better known by his stage name as Chip Taylor, is an American songwriter, who is noted for writing the songs "Angel of the Morning" and "Wild Thing." He is the brother of actor Jon Voight and geologist Barry Voight...
) - 3:33 - "Don't Tell Me You're Not in Love" (Tony Colton, Kim Williams, Bobby Wood) - 3:32
- "The Road Less Traveled" (Buddy Brock, Dean DillonDean DillonDean Dillon is an American country music artist. Between 1982 and 1993, Dillon recorded six studio albums on various labels, and charted several singles on the Billboard country charts. Although he has not charted since 1993, Dillon has continued to write several hit songs for other artists, most...
) - 3:54 - "The Middle of Nowhere" (Shawn Camp, John Scott SherrillJohn Scott SherrillJohn Scott Sherrill is an American songwriter whose work is primarily in the field of country music. He has written songs for such artists as John Anderson, Brooks & Dunn, Jimmy Buffett , Johnny Lee, George Strait, Steve Wariner, Patty Loveless, Josh Turner, Waylon Jennings, Alison Krauss, Peter...
) - 3:14 - "Good Time Charley's" (Jerry ChesnutJerry ChesnutJerry Donald Chesnut is an American country music songwriter. His hits include "A Good Year for the Roses" and "T-R-O-U-B-L-E" ....
) - 2:31 - "My Life's Been Grand" (Merle HaggardMerle HaggardMerle Ronald Haggard is an American country music singer, guitarist, fiddler, instrumentalist, and songwriter. Along with Buck Owens, Haggard and his band The Strangers helped create the Bakersfield sound, which is characterized by the unique twang of Fender Telecaster guitars, vocal harmonies,...
, Terry Gordon) - 2:38
Musicians
- Eddie BayersEddie BayersEddie Bayers is an American session drummer who has played on 150 gold and platinum albums. He received the Academy of Country Music 'Drummer of the Year Award' for eight straight years, and has three times won the Nashville Music Awards 'Drummer of the Year'...
– drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person .... - Steve Conn – accordionAccordionThe accordion is a box-shaped musical instrument of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone family, sometimes referred to as a squeezebox. A person who plays the accordion is called an accordionist....
- Stuart DuncanStuart DuncanStuart Duncan is a bluegrass musician who plays the fiddle, mandolin, guitar and banjo. Born in Quantico, Virginia and raised in Santa Paula, California, where he played in the school band, he has been a member of the Nashville Bluegrass Band since 1985, and is a much-in-demand session musician...
– fiddleFiddleThe term fiddle may refer to any bowed string musical instrument, most often the violin. It is also a colloquial term for the instrument used by players in all genres, including classical music...
, mandolinMandolinA mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single... - Paul FranklinPaul Franklin (musician)Paul Franklin is an American multi-instrumentalist, known mainly for his work as a steel guitarist. He began his career in the 1970s as a member of Barbara Mandrell's road band; in addition he toured with Mel Tillis and Jerry Reed. He has since become a prolific session musician in Nashville,...
– steel guitarSteel guitarSteel guitar is a type of guitar or the method of playing the instrument. Developed in Hawaii in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, a steel guitar is usually positioned horizontally; strings are plucked with one hand, while the other hand changes the pitch of one or more strings with the use... - Steve Gibson – electric guitarElectric guitarAn electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
- Wes Hightower – background vocals
- Chris Leuzinger – electric guitar
- Liana Manis – background vocals
- Brent MasonBrent MasonBrent Mason is an American session guitarist and occasional songwriter. He is known primarily for his work in the field of country music. In addition to releasing two instrumental studio albums, he holds several credits as a songwriter...
– electric guitar - Steve Nathan – keyboardsKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
- Michael Rhodes – bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
- Randy ScruggsRandy ScruggsRandy Scruggs is a music producer, songwriter and guitarist. He had his first recording at the age of 13...
– acoustic guitarAcoustic guitarAn acoustic guitar is a guitar that uses only an acoustic sound board. The air in this cavity resonates with the vibrational modes of the string and at low frequencies, which depend on the size of the box, the chamber acts like a Helmholtz resonator, increasing or decreasing the volume of the sound...
Strings
String section
The string section is the largest body of the standard orchestra and consists of bowed string instruments of the violin family.It normally comprises five sections: the first violins, the second violins, the violas, the cellos, and the double basses...
performed by the Nashville String Machine
Nashville String Machine
Nashville String Machine is a musical collective comprising session musicians and has been credited on recordings as far back as 1974. The Nashville String Machine's composition varies from project to project. It has appeared as large as an orchestra, or as small as a duo.-Notable members:Being a...
under the conduction and arrangement of Steve Dorff.
Production
- Chuck Ainlay - engineer, mixing (& additional overdubs)
- David Bryant - 2nd engineer (& overdubs)
- Eric Conn - digital editing
- Tony Green - 2nd engineer (overdubs)
- Carlos Grier - digital editing
- Russ Martin - 2nd engineer (overdubs)
- Justin Niebank - engineer (overdubs)
- Jessie Noble - project coordinator
- Denny Purcell - mastering
- Jeff Socher - 2nd engineer (mixing)
Art
- Photography: Tony Baker
- Art Direction & additional photography: Virginia Team
- Design: Chris Ferrara
Chart performance
| Chart (2001) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Top Country Albums | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard 200 | 9 |