Love, Shelby

Love, Shelby is the seventh studio album by American country artist Shelby Lynne. Released on November 13, 2001 through Island Records, the album serves as a follow-up to her critically acclaimed I Am Shelby Lynne which came out a year before in the US. Producer Glen Ballard, mostly known for producing Alanis Morissette’s breakthrough album Jagged Little Pill, as well as recordings by the Dave Matthews Band, worked with Shelby on the album. Shifting from what was established by its predecessor, the album brings mostly a pop-rock oriented sound, but maintains the personal lyrics from I Am. Critically, it struggled to make an impact, receiving mostly mixed to positive reviews.^[1] As of sales, the album charted very moderately peaking at no. 109^[2] on the Billboard 200 chart.

For the second time in Lynne’s career, she appears as the main songwriter,^[3] receiving credits on nine out of the ten tracks. Co-writers ^[4] include Glen Ballard, Bill Payne, Sonny Landreth, Michael Landau, Matt Chamberlain and Mike Elizondo, noted for his work on Nelly Furtado’s debut record Whoa, Nelly!.John Lennon also appears as a writer for his top 20 hit Mother, covered by Shelby for the album as well as during a special performance^[5] after the 9/11 attacks in New York City. Additionally, 3 extra tracks appear on the album’s UK version: Star Broker, Close To You and Break Me Open, featured on a different track listing.

Background and composition

After nearly thirteen years as a mostly unknown country vocalist, Shelby Lynne rose to prominence with the release of her sixth album. Following her Best New Artist win ^[6] at the 43rd Grammy Awards, Lynne quickly started working on new material. Glen Ballard stepped in as the record’s producer, much to the creation of a diverse and new sound.^[7] Impressed by Lynne’s versatility and music style,^[8] Ballard praised her by stating: "(…) She has a tremendous stylistic range, from old-school, almost Barry White R&B, to hardcore punk, rockabilly and everything in between." ^[9]

Around the same time, the album’s first single Wall In Your Heart was released. Promoted by several performances, including one on David Letterman's show.^[10] The song went as high as no. 22^[11] on the Adult Contemporary chart. The album’s release announcement^[12] came shortly after, arriving at stores on November 13. Mostly a pop-rock record,^[13] the album was a drastic change from the singer’s previous work. Similar to her previous effort, the album saw Lynne as the record’s main songwriter, being responsible for most of the lyrics. It also featured various contributions including Mike Elizondo. Elizondo was then known for his work with Canadian pop star Nelly Furtado.

Critical Reception and commercial performance

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[14]
The Austin Chronicle	[15]
Metacritic	53 (out of 100) [16]

Shelby’s new style and sound were poorly received by critics. Receiving mostly mixed reviews, the album holds a score of 53^[17] on Metacritic, based on 12 reviews. Critics noted that: “The edges have all been sawed off of Lynne's sound (…)” as well as seeing the record as “slickly over-produced and a little forced.” Nevertheless, positive reviews came from Billboard and Blender.

Commercially, the album performed slightly better than I Am Shelby Lynne but had lackluster sales. The album debuted and peaked at no. 109 in the US Billboard 200,^[18] and failing to enter the UK Album Charts. Additionally, Killin’ Kind met a single release, peaking at no.30^[19] in the Adult Pop Songs chart. The track was included in the soundtrack for the film adaptation of Bridget Jones's Diary. The music video for the song was notable for being the first country music video directed by hip hop video director Hype Williams.^[20][21]

Track listing

1. "Trust Me" – 3:44
2. "Bend" – 4:05
3. "Jesus on a Greyhound" – 5:05
4. "Wall in Your Heart" – 3:35
5. "Ain't It the Truth" – 4:19
6. "I Can't Wait" – 3:36
7. "Tarpoleon Napoleon" – 4:40
8. "Killin' Kind" – 4:27
9. "All of a Sudden You Disappeared" – 3:39
10. "Mother" – 5:03

Singles

• "Wall in Your Heart" - Release Date: January 15, 2002
• "Killin' Kind"

References