The Way I'm Livin'

The Way I'm Livin' is the eighth studio album by American country music recording artist Lee Ann Womack. The album was released via Sugar Hill Records on September 23, 2014. Her first album in six years, following 2008's Call Me Crazy, this album sees Womack embrace roots music and americana alongside neotraditional country rather than the country pop sound that was prevalent in several previous releases.

The Way I'm Livin'
Studio album by
Lee Ann Womack
ReleasedSeptember 23, 2014 (2014-09-23)
GenreCountry, Americana, Roots
Length46:20
LabelSugar Hill
ProducerChuck Ainlay
Frank Liddell
Glenn Worf
Lee Ann Womack chronology
Call Me Crazy
(2008)		 The Way I'm Livin'
(2014)		 Trouble in Mind
(2015)
Singles from The Way I'm Livin'
  1. "The Way I'm Livin'"
    Released: June 23, 2014
  2. "Send It On Down"
    Released: January 26, 2015[1]
  3. "Chances Are"
    Released: October 5, 2015

Production

The Way I'm Livin was recorded and mixed by Chuck Ainlay at Sound Stage Studios in Nashville, Tennessee.[2] Additional recording was done by Brandon Schexnayder and Christian Best at Dogtown Studios in Nashville, and Monique Studios in Cork, Ireland.[2]

Critical reception and accolades
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic84/100[3]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[4]
American Songwriter[5]
Billboard[6]
The Daily Telegraph[7]
USA Today[8]

According to Metacritic, The Way I'm Livin' received a weighted average of 84 out of 100, based on 7 mainstream critic reviews, indicating "Universal Acclaim".[3] In his review for USA Today, Brian Mansfield compares the album, which is "rooted in gospel and hymns", to "Dolly Parton's finest". Mansfield noted, "Her run-ins with the devil may seem uncomfortably specific, but the swelling steel guitars carry her as if on angels' wings."[8]

In his review for AllMusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine observes that The Way I'm Livin' "plays like a classic album: it's a record where the sum is greater than the individual parts".[4] Hal Horowitz, in his review in American Songwriter, writes, "The resulting comeback doesn't always click but when it does, the artist can rebound with some of their best work".[5] Horowitz goes on to write, "This is a triumph for country music that's never musty yet still harkens back to a simpler, less glitzy time when emotions drove songs, not simplistic clichés."[5]

In his review in Billboard magazine, Chuck Dauphin writes, "Was it worth the wait or has Womack stayed away from music-making too long? The answer is a very definitive one, as the Texas native reclaims her spot as one of country's most expressive and distinctive vocalists."[6] Writing for The Daily Telegraph, Martin Chilton writes, "She succeeds admirably with The Way I'm Livin', a moving and powerful set of songs, right from the gorgeous opening prelude Fly ... It's great to have Lee Ann Womack back with such a sad and lovely album, which has an eye-catching cover."[7]

YearAssociationCategoryResult
2015British Country Music AssociationInternational Album of the YearNominated
2015Americana Music AssociationAlbum of the YearNominated
2015Grammy AwardsBest Country AlbumNominated
2016Grammy AwardsBest Country Solo Performance - "Chances Are"Nominated

Commercial performance

The album debuted on the Billboard 200 at No. 99 and on the Top Country Albums at No. 18, selling 4,300 copies for the week.[9] As of February 2015, the album has sold 14,600 copies in the US.[10]

Track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Prelude: Fly"Brent Cobb, Reed Foehl2:31
2."All His Saints"Mindy Smith3:22
3."Chances Are"Hayes Carll3:41
4."The Way I'm Livin'"Adam Wright3:43
5."Send It on Down"Chris Knight, David Leone4:06
6."Don't Listen to the Wind"Julie Miller4:00
7."Same Kind of Different"Natalie Hemby, Adam Hood2:55
8."Out on the Weekend"Neil Young4:33
9."Nightwind"Bruce Robison3:34
10."Sleeping with the Devil"Brennen Leigh3:18
11."Not Forgotten You"Robison3:19
12."Tomorrow Night in Baltimore"Kenny Price3:23
13."When I Come Around"Mando Saenz3:55
Total length:46:20
Walmart Deluxe edition
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
14."Satisfied Mind"Joe "Red" Hayes, Jack Rhodes3:28
15."Cup of Loneliness"George Jones, Burl Stevens2:18

Personnel
Music
Production
  • Frank Liddell – producer
  • Chuck Ainlay – producer, recording, mixing
  • Glenn Worf – producer
  • Brandon Schexnayder – additional recording
  • Christian Best – additional recording
  • Gavin Lurssen – mastering
  • Brittany Hamlin – production coordinator
  • John Scarpati – art direction and photography
  • Jon Krop – design[2]

Chart performance
Chart (2014) Peak
position
UK Country Albums (OCC)[11] 5
US Billboard 200[12] 99
US Top Country Albums (Billboard)[13] 18
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[14] 22
gollark: What?
gollark: Moving communities is painful even with an obviously bad person nobody likes. You were ambiguously bad, so it's harder.
gollark: Oops.
gollark: Moving communities is painful even with
gollark: Really? Interesting.

References
  1. "R&R :: Going For Adds :: Country". Radio & Records. Retrieved January 19, 2015.
  2. The Way I'm Livin' (booklet). Lee Ann Womack. Franklin, TN: Sugar Hill Records. 2014. pp. 2–3. SUG-CD-4107.CS1 maint: others (link)
  3. Metacritic. "Critic Reviews for The Way I'm Livin'". CBS Interactive. Retrieved September 24, 2014.
  4. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "The Way I'm Livin' – Lee Ann Womack". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved September 24, 2014.
  5. Horowitz, Hal (September 23, 2014). "Lee Ann Womack: The Way I'm Livin'". American Songwriter. ForASong Media, LLC. ISSN 0896-8993. Retrieved September 24, 2014.
  6. Dauphin, Chuck (September 23, 2014). "Lee Ann Womack, 'The Way I'm Livin': Track-by-Track Review". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved September 24, 2014.
  7. Chilton, Martin (September 17, 2014). "Lee Ann Womack, The Way I'm Living, album review". The Daily Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved September 24, 2014.
  8. Mansfield, Brian (September 23, 2014). "Listen Up: Lee Ann Womack, Leonard Cohen and alt-J". USA Today. Gannett Company, Inc. ISSN 0734-7456. Retrieved September 24, 2014.
  9. Matt Bjorke on October 1, 2014 (October 1, 2014). "Country Album Sales Report: October 1, 2014". Roughstock. Sales figure give here
  10. Matt Bjorke (February 4, 2015). "Country Album Chart Report For February 4, 2015". Roughstock. Sales figure give here
  11. "Official Country Artists Albums Chart Top 20". Official Charts Company.
  12. "Lee Ann Womack Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard.
  13. "Lee Ann Womack Chart History (Top Country Albums)". Billboard.
  14. "Lee Ann Womack Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard.
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