Carolyn's Boy

Carolyn's Boy is the eighth studio album and sixth in the country genre by American singer Darius Rucker, released on October 6, 2023. The album is dedicated to Rucker's mother Carolyn, who raised him and his siblings as a single mother and died before her son experienced success in the music industry.[2] The album was preceded by the singles "Beers and Sunshine" and "Fires Don't Start Themselves"; the former topped the country charts and the latter reached the top 30.[2] It also includes a collaboration with Chapel Hart on "Ol' Church Hymn"[3] and cover of Rihanna's "Lift Me Up".[4]

Carolyn's Boy
A black-and-white photo of Carolyn Rucker's face
Studio album by
Darius Rucker
ReleasedOctober 6, 2023 (2023-10-06)
GenreCountry
LanguageEnglish
LabelCapitol Nashville
Producer
Darius Rucker chronology
When Was the Last Time
(2017)		 Carolyn's Boy
(2023)
Singles from Carolyn's Boy
  1. "Beers and Sunshine"
    Released: August 6, 2020
  2. "Fires Don't Start Themselves"
    Released: April 3, 2023

"It was during the pandemic and we were writing the record, and I was having a bad day/ I just said to myself, 'At the end of the day, I'm just my mama's boy,' so I decided I was going to name it Carolyn's Boy after that. She was such a big influence on me and she was so important in my life. It was time for me to do something special like that."

—Rucker on writing and recording Carolyn's Boy[1]

Recording

Rucker set out to record new music and encountered an emotionally difficult day writing and he realized that he was a "mama's boy" and began to focus on writing in memory of his dead mother, Carolyn.[5] He enlisted several co-writers to help him explore his personal life and experience, including British pop musician Ed Sheeran, who helped him co-write a song about a childhood girlfriend.[6]

Reception

Editors at AllMusic rated this album 3 out of 5 stars, with critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine writing that the songs have a "funny, cheerful, and just clever enough not to be dull" quality.[7]

Track listing
  1. "Beers and Sunshine" (Ross Copperman, JT Harding, Josh Osborne, Darius Rucker) – 2:58
  2. "In This Together" (Derek George, Bobby Hamrick, Rucker, Joy Williams) – 3:01
  3. "Never Been Over" (Lee Thomas Miller, Osborne, Rucker) – 3:25
  4. "Fires Don't Start Themselves" (Ben Hayslip, Dan Isbell, Jacob Rice) – 3:46
  5. "Ol' Church Hymn" (Hayslip, Greylan James, Josh Miller, Rucker) – 3:30
  6. "7 Days" (Copperman, Ashley Gorley, Charles Kelley, Rucker) – 3:20
  7. "Same Beer Different Problem" (Topher Brown, Sarah Buxton, Rucker, Brad Tursi) – 3:01
  8. "Sara" (Joel Crouse, Kyle Rife, Rucker, Ed Sheeran) – 3:39
  9. "Have a Good Time" (Monty Criswell, George, Hamrick, Rucker) – 3:31
  10. "Sure Would Have Loved Her" (Wyatt Durrette, Levi Lowrey, Rucker) – 3:08
  11. "Southern Comfort" (Chris LaCorte, Osborne, Matt Rogers) – 3:10
  12. "3am in Carolina" (Copperman, Michael Hardy, Rucker) – 3:19
  13. "Lift Me Up" (Ryan Coogler, Robyn Fenty, Ludwig Goransson, and Temilade Openiyi) – 3:11
  14. "Stargazing" (Brinley Addington, Jess Cayne, Matt Morrisey, Rucker) – 2:58

Personnel

Musicians

  • Darius Rucker – vocals
  • Ilya Toshinskiy – acoustic guitar (tracks 1, 3, 8, 10, 12), banjo (1, 3), electric guitar (1, 8, 12); Dobro, ukulele (1); baritone guitar (10), mandolin (10)
  • Ross Copperman – programming (1, 5–7, 12); background vocals, keyboards (1, 6, 7, 12); acoustic guitar (1, 6, 10, 12), electric guitar (12)
  • Tony Lucido – bass guitar (1, 3, 5–8, 10, 12, 14)
  • Aaron Sterling – drums (1, 4, 11, 13), percussion (4, 11)
  • Charles Kelley – background vocals (1)
  • Hillary Scott – background vocals (1)
  • Dave Haywood – background vocals (1)
  • Lee Turner – keyboards (1)
  • Mark Hill – bass guitar (2, 4, 9, 11, 13)
  • Charlie Worsham – acoustic guitar (2, 9, 14)
  • Jerry Roe – drums (2, 9, 14), percussion (2, 9)
  • Derek Wells – electric guitar (2, 9, 14)
  • Gordon Mote – Hammond B3 (2, 9), piano (9, 14), keyboards (14)
  • Wes Hightower – background vocals (2, 9)
  • Aubrey Haynie – mandolin (2, 3), fiddle (9, 10, 12, 14)
  • Frank Rogers –percussion, programming (2, 9)
  • Mike Johnson – Dobro (2)
  • Dan Dugmore – pedal steel (3, 5–8, 10, 12)
  • Dave Cohen – keyboards (3, 8, 10, 12); Hammond B3, piano (6)
  • John Osborne – acoustic guitar (3)
  • Danny Radar – acoustic guitar (4, 6, 11, 13), electric guitar (6), banjo (11)
  • Kris Donegan – electric guitar (4, 5, 11), acoustic guitar (7)
  • Josh Reedy – background vocals (4, 11, 13)
  • Rob McNelley – electric guitar (4, 11)
  • Stuart Duncan – fiddle (4, 11)
  • David Dorn – Hammond B3, piano (4); keyboards (11, 13)
  • Chapel Hart – vocals, background vocals (5)
  • Carolyn Dawn Johnson – background vocals (5)
  • Nir Z – drums (5, 7)
  • Kenny Greenberg – electric guitar (5, 7)
  • Jeff Roach – keyboards (5, 7)
  • Fred Eltringham – drums (6, 8, 10, 12), percussion (12)
  • Tofer Brown – background vocals (7)
  • Micah Wilshire – background vocals (8)
  • Bobby Hamrick – background vocals (9)
  • Derek George – background vocals (9)
  • Monty Criswell – background vocals (9)
  • Dann Huff – electric guitar (11), programming (13)
  • David Huff – fiddle (11), programming (13)
  • Paul Franklin – steel guitar (11, 13)
  • Everett Drake – choir (13)
  • Kyla Harris – choir (13)
  • Michael Mishaw – choir (13)
  • Robert Bailey – choir (13)
  • Vicki Hampton – choir (13)
  • Wendy Moten – choir (13)
  • Charlie Judge – strings (13)
  • Jess Cayne – background vocals (14)
  • Matt Morrisey – background vocals (14)

Technical

  • Ross Copperman – production, engineering (1, 3, 5–8, 10, 12)
  • Frank Rogers – production, engineering (2, 9, 14)
  • Dann Huff – production (4, 11, 13)
  • Pete Lyman – mastering
  • F. Reid Shippen – mixing, engineering (1, 3, 5–8, 10, 12)
  • Justin Niebank – mixing (2, 4, 9, 11, 14), engineering (2, 4, 9, 11, 13, 14)
  • Sean Moffitt – mixing (13)
  • Lee Turner – engineering (1, 3, 5–8, 10, 12), editing (1)
  • Aaron Sterling – engineering (1)
  • Ilya Toshinskiy – engineering (1)
  • Julian King – engineering (2, 9, 14)
  • Josh Reedy – engineering (4, 11)
  • Brian David Willis – editing (3, 5–8, 10, 12)
  • David Huff – editing (4, 13)
  • Drew Bollman – additional mixing (4), additional engineering (2, 9, 14)
  • Michael Mechling – engineering assistance (1, 3, 5–8, 10, 12)
  • Jordan Reed – engineering assistance (2, 9, 14)
  • Kam Luchterhand – engineering assistance (2, 9, 14)
  • Joel McKenney – engineering assistance (4, 11, 13)
  • Sean Badum – engineering assistance (13)

Sales and chart performance

The album debuted at No. 27 on the Top Country Albums and on the Billboard 200 at No. 153, with 9,000 first week equivalent units.[8]

Chart performance for Carolyn's Boy
Chart (2023) Peak
position
US Billboard 200[9] 153
US Top Country Albums (Billboard)[10] 27

See also

References
  1. Nicholson, Jessica (September 26, 2023). "Darius Rucker Announces 'Carolyn's Boy' Release Date". Country. Billboard. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
  2. Houghton, Cillea (August 4, 2023). "Darius Rucker Announces 'Carolyn's Boy' Release Date". Latest Music News & Stories. American Songwriter. ISSN 0896-8993. OCLC 17342741. Retrieved September 2, 2023.
  3. Jess (October 19, 2022). "Darius Rucker + Chapel Hart Take Fans to Church on New Song". Taste of Country. Retrieved October 16, 2023.
  4. Sexton, Paul (February 11, 2023). "Darius Rucker Releases Version Of Rihanna's 'Beautifully Written' 'Lift Me Up'". u discover music. Retrieved October 16, 2023.
  5. Sherman, Maria (October 9, 2023). "On 'Carolyn's Boy,' Darius Rucker pays loving tribute to his greatest inspiration: his late mother". Entertainment. Associated Press. Retrieved October 11, 2023.
  6. DeSantis, Rachel (October 5, 2023). "Darius Rucker Reveals Ed Sheeran Helped Him Write a Song for an Ex He Hasn't Seen in 40 Years". Entertainment > Music > Country. People. ISSN 0093-7673. OCLC 794712888. Retrieved October 11, 2023.
  7. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas (n.d.). "Darius Rucker – Carolyn's Boy". AllMusic. RhythmOne. Retrieved October 11, 2023.
  8. "Billboard Country Update" (PDF). Billboard. October 16, 2023. Retrieved October 16, 2023.
  9. "Darius Rucker Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard.
  10. "Darius Rucker Chart History (Top Country Albums)". Billboard.
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