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Unchained Melody: The Early Years

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Unchained Melody: The Early Years
Studio album (reissue) by
LeAnn Rimes
ReleasedFebruary 11, 1997
Recorded1994–1995
StudioNorman Petty (Clovis, N.M.), Rosewood (Tyler, Tex.), Masterfonics (Nashville)
GenreCountry
Length32:36
LabelCurb Records
Producer
  • Greg Walker
  • Johnny Mulhair
  • Wilbur C. Rimes
LeAnn Rimes chronology
Blue
(1996) 		Unchained Melody: The Early Years
(1997) 		You Light Up My Life: Inspirational Songs
(1997)
Singles from Unchained Melody: The Early Years
  1. "Unchained Melody"
    Released: December 17, 1996

Unchained Melody: The Early Years or simply The Early Years[1][2] is the major label reissue of American country singer LeAnn Rimes's second studio album, All That (1994). The album was released in the United States on February 11, 1997 by Curb Records. The album contains seven tracks from All That alongside three new tracks. All That was originally released independently, and Unchained Melody: The Early Years was issued due to the sales success of her debut major label album, Blue (1996). "Unchained Melody" (originally by The Righteous Brothers) was released as the sole single from the album.

Unchained Melody: The Early Years contains several cover versions alongside original material. The album was certified 2× Platinum for shipments of two million copies in the United States. It debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, making her the fourth solo artist under the age of 18 to achieve this feat.[3] Despite its commercial success, the album received generally negative reviews from music critics, who criticized its production and deemed the release premature.

Background

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All That was originally released independently on July 22, 1994 on the Nor Va Jak label.[4] The album sold 15,000 copies upon its release locally in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex.[5] All That led to Rimes being signed to Curb Records when the album was obtained by label head Mike Curb, who was impressed her vocal ability.[5] Its reissue under Curb Records was quickly conceived following the surprise success of the single "Unchained Melody", which was released as the sole single from the album on December 17, 1996.[6][7][8] "Unchained Melody" was first included as the b-side to the single "One Way Ticket (Because I Can)" and on the promotional single "Put a Little Holiday in Your Heart".[9] The song was not originally intended to be a single, but unsolicited airplay of the song led to Curb officially releasing it to radio; Curb then began promoting it as a single from Unchained Melody: The Early Years.[8][10] Hoping to capitalize on the release of the single and the sales performance of her debut major label album, Blue (1996), Curb announced the release of Unchained Melody: The Early Years on December 28, 1996.[2][11][5] The album was released on February 11, 1997.[12]

Following the release of the album, "Unchained Melody" peaked at number three on the Country Songs chart in March 1997.[13] Other tracks new to the release were Rimes's cover of Bill Monroe's "Blue Moon of Kentucky" and the song "River of Love". All of the songs first included on All That were recorded when Rimes was eleven years old between April and June 1994, while the three new tracks were recorded when she was twelve.[4][14] "Put a Little Holiday in Your Heart" was initially reported to be included on the album, but did not make the final track listing.[2] Cover songs on the album include "I Want to Be a Cowboy's Sweetheart" by Patsy Montana, "Blue Moon of Kentucky" by Bill Monroe, "I Will Always Love You" by Dolly Parton, and "Yesterday" by The Beatles.

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[12]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[15]

The album received generally negative reviews from music critics. Jose F. Promis of AllMusic stated that the album's title was "a tad bizarre" due to Rimes only being 13 when Blue (1996) became a hit record. He wrote that it was "a record without any sort of real emotion or depth" but also wrote that "the vocal chops, considering the source, are nothing less than astounding."[12] Ken Tucker from Entertainment Weekly felt that the album was premature and that the material with emotional "grown-up lyrics" was inappropriate for Rimes.[16] Richard Harringon from the The Washington Post described the album as unimpressive, writing: "The vocal mannerisms aren't developed yet and the production is dreadful."[5] The Rolling Stone Album Guide criticized the album and Wilbur Rimes's production skills, describing it as a cash-grab.[15]

Commercial performance

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Unchained Melody: The Early Years debuted at number 1 on Billboard 200 with 166,000 copies sold in the week ending of March 1, 1997.[17] It dropped to number 2 its second week with 133,500 copies sold.[18]

Track listing

[edit]
Unchained Melody: The Early Years track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Cowboy's Sweetheart"Patsy Montana2:32
2."I Will Always Love You"Dolly Parton4:38
3."Blue Moon of Kentucky"Bill Monroe3:17
4."River of Love"
  • Buddy Blackmon
  • Vip Vipperman
3:19
5."The Rest Is History"
3:09
6."Broken Wing"David Nowlen3:20
7."Yesterday"Lennon-McCartney3:09
8."Sure Thing"Joyce Harrison2:41
9."Share My Love"
  • Rimes
  • Blake Vickers
2:40
10."Unchained Melody"
3:51
Total length:32:36

Personnel

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Credits for Unchained Melody: The Early Years were adapted from liner notes of All That.[19] Additional credits adapted from liner notes of the album.[1]

Charts

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Certifications and sales

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[30] Gold 35,000^
Canada (Music Canada)[31] Platinum 100,000^
United States (RIAA)[32] 2× Platinum 2,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

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  1. ^ a b Unchained Melody: The Early Years (CD). LeAnn Rimes. Curb Records. 1997. D2-77856.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  2. ^ a b c Jessen, Wade (December 28, 1996). "Country Corner". Billboard. Vol. 108, no. 52. p. 38.
  3. ^ Lynch, Joe. "Solo Artists Who Scored a No. 1 Album Before Turning 18". Billboard. Retrieved May 23, 2021.
  4. ^ a b Rendleman, Marty (2010). Singing Your Way to Stardom. Tate Pub. & Enterprises. ISBN 9781617394249.
  5. ^ a b c d Harrington, Richard (March 29, 1997). "Young Country Voices". The Washington Post. Retrieved December 20, 2024.
  6. ^ Verna, Paul (March 8, 1997). "Reviews & Previews". Billboard. Vol. 109, no. 10. p. 55.
  7. ^ Jessen, Wade (February 8, 1997). "Country Corner". Billboard. Vol. 109, no. 6. p. 28.
  8. ^ a b Jessen, Wade (January 11, 1997). "Country Corner". Billboard. Vol. 109, no. 2. p. 28.
  9. ^ "Billboard - Google 圖書". 23 November 1996. Retrieved 2012-06-02.
  10. ^ Unchained Melody (Promotional single). Curb Records. 1997. D-1346. From the Curb Records release Unchained Melody: The Early Years
  11. ^ Wolff, Kurt (2000). Duane, Orla (ed.). Country Music: The Rough Guide. Rough Guides. p. 541. ISBN 9781858285344. The album sold more than three million copies, leading Curb to reissue All That under the new title Unchained Melody: The Early Years.
  12. ^ a b c Promis, Jose F. (1997-02-11). "Unchained Melody: The Early Years - LeAnn Rimes". AllMusic. Retrieved 2011-10-28.
  13. ^ "Unchained Melody – LeAnn Rimes". Billboard.com. Retrieved 2012-05-06.
  14. ^ Catalano, Grace (1997). LeAnn Rimes: Teen Country Queen. Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group, Inc. p. 103. ISBN 9780440227373.
  15. ^ a b Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian, eds. (2004). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. Simon & Schuster. p. 692. ISBN 9780743201698.
  16. ^ Tucker, Ken (March 21, 1997). "Unchained Melody/The Early Years". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2024-09-11.
  17. ^ "Billboard - Google 도서". March 1997. Retrieved 2011-10-07.
  18. ^ "Billboard - Google 圖書". 8 March 1997. Retrieved 2012-06-02.
  19. ^ All That (CD). LeAnn Rimes. Nor Va Jak. 1994. 98081-1234-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  20. ^ "Australiancharts.com – LeAnn Rimes – Unchained Melody: The Early Years". Hung Medien. Retrieved December 29, 2024.
  21. ^ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 1980". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved December 29, 2024.
  22. ^ "RPM Country Albums for March 17, 1997". RPM. Retrieved December 29, 2024.
  23. ^ "Official Country Artists Albums Chart Top 20". Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 29, 2024.
  24. ^ "LeAnn Rimes Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved December 29, 2024.
  25. ^ "LeAnn Rimes Chart History (Top Country Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved December 29, 2024.
  26. ^ "ARIA Charts - End of Year Charts - Top 100 Albums 1997". Aria.com.au. Retrieved 2011-10-07.
  27. ^ "Top 50 Country Albums". RPM. December 15, 1997. Retrieved December 29, 2024.
  28. ^ a b [1]. google.com. Retrieved 7 August 2011.
  29. ^ [2]. google.com. Retrieved 4 August 2011.
  30. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1997 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association.
  31. ^ "Canadian album certifications – LeAnn Rimes – Unchained Melody-The Early Years". Music Canada.
  32. ^ "American album certifications – LeAnn Rimes – The Early Years". Recording Industry Association of America.
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