This Is Country Music
This Is Country Music is the ninth studio album by American country music artist Brad Paisley. The album was originally scheduled to be released April 19, but was pushed back to May 23, 2011, by recording label Arista Nashville.
For the song, see This Is Country Music (song).This Is Country Music
Content[edit]
Brad Paisley debuted the title track from the album on the 44th CMA Awards on November 10, 2010, and he received a standing ovation.[1] This performance got Brad's fans excited for the release of his new album.
Brad Paisley wrote this album to pay tribute to various artists that have shaped his career. This includes Dick Dale for the song "Working on a Tan" and Ennio Morricone for the song "Eastwood".[2] The majority of the songs were written or co-written by Brad Paisley, and are based on the themes of love, loss, hope, and heartache.[3] The title track, This Is Country Music, starts off the album, and small verses of that song, that were not included in the original track, act as interludes between some of the songs. This ties the album to a common theme.[4]
The album contains numerous collaborations with other artists, including Don Henley, Sheryl Crow, Blake Shelton, and Marty Stuart.[5] Carrie Underwood also performs a duet titled "Remind Me", which is about a couple trying to regain their spark.[6] Clint Eastwood contributes by whistling during an instrumental track called "Eastwood", which is named after him. Comedian Larry the Cable Guy uses his catchphrase "Git-R-Done" several times in the background, during the song "Camouflage". It was announced at Sony's annual boat show Country Radio Seminar that Brad would collaborate with Alabama for the song titled "Old Alabama" The song was the second single from the album. "Old Alabama" became the 19th #1 single for Brad[7][8] The song was released to country radio on March 14, 2011. The third single, "Remind Me", is a duet with fellow country singer Carrie Underwood. The song hit number one and also became Paisley's biggest crossover hit, reaching number 17 on the all genres Billboard Hot 100 chart. "Camouflage" was released as the album fourth single. The song peaked at number 15 on Hot Country Songs chart, becoming Paisley's first single to miss the top 10 since Me Neither peaked at number 18 in mid 2000.
Reception[edit]
Commercial[edit]
This Is Country Music debuted at number two on the U.S. Billboard 200, and sold 153,000 copies in the first week of release.[9] Keith Caulfield with Billboard magazine noted that Paisley was at a disadvantage releasing the album the same week as Lady Gaga's Born This Way, which was expected to sell up to one million copies. Cualfield stated, "With all this talk about Gaga, you've got to feel a little bad for country superstar Brad Paisley, whose This Is Country Music album will likely debut in the runner-up slot next week with maybe 150,000 copies sold. Paisley has yet to earn a No. 1 album -- after six top 10s, two of which hit No. 2. (Had his new album come a week earlier, perhaps he could have secured his first No. 1.)"[10] As of November 23, 2011, the album has sold 561,000 copies in the US.[11]