Country Things

Country Things is the tenth studio album by American country musician Granger Smith, released on September 25, 2020. Work on the album began in early 2019, but the death of Smith's 3-year-old son put the album on hold. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Smith was able to focus on writing songs again and completing the album. The first single from the album, "That's Why I Love Dirt Roads", was released in October 2019. The album was initially released as two individual discs, Country Things, Vol. 1 and Country Things, Vol. 2.

Country Things
Studio album by
Granger Smith
ReleasedSeptember 25, 2020 (2020-09-25)
GenreCountry
Length26:00
LabelWheelhouse
Producer
Granger Smith chronology
When the Good Guys Win
(2017)		 Country Things
(2020)		 Moonrise
(2022)

Background

Granger Smith had begun writing songs for the album in the beginning of 2019.[1] He was half-way done when tragedy struck. His 3-year-old son, River, died on June 6, 2019, after accidentally falling into the pool at their home, and everything was put on hold.[2][1] It took nearly ten months before Smith started writing songs again, and when the COVID-19 pandemic further delayed the new album, he continued to write more songs. Instead of overloading the songs onto one album, the decision was made to split them up, eight songs on each album.[3] Country Things Vol. 1 was released on September 25, 2020, with volume 2 released in November.[4]

Inspiration

Country Things Vol. 1 is a personal album for Smith, who after dealing with the tragedy of his son's death, said "it became about appreciating the gratefulness in the day without being overweighed by the worries of tomorrow."[1] He wanted to focus on "the things you want to raise your kids with and find joy in. The country things."[5] Songs on the album reflect not only his family values and deep introspection, but also Smith's penchant for fun.[6] The track, "Country and Ya Know It", features an appearance by his alter ego, Earl Dibbles Jr.[3]

Singles

"That's Why I Love Dirt Roads" was released as a single on October 25, 2019, peaking at No. 50 on the Billboard Country Airplay chart in July 2020.[7][8] The second single, "Hate You Like I Love You", was released February 8, 2021.

Track listing
Volume 1

All tracks are written by Granger Smith

No.TitleLength
1."Country Things"3:38
2."Hate You Like I Love You"2:55
3."I Kill Spiders"3:34
4."That's Why I Love Dirt Roads"3:39
5."Mexico"3:40
6."Chevys, Hemis, Yodas, and Fords"3:09
7."Heroes"3:36
8."Country and Ya Know It" (featuring Earl Dibbles Jr.)2:45
Total length:26:00
Volume 2

All tracks are written by Granger Smith

No.TitleLength
1."Man Made"3:13
2."Buy a Boy a Baseball"2:32
3."Anything Like Me"2:50
4."That's What Love Looks Like"3:25
5."Where I Get It From"3:06
6."6 String Stories"3:40
7."Workaholic"3:12
8."Diesel"3:02
Total length:25:08

Personnel

Adapted from AllMusic[9]

  • Geoff Ashcroft – electric guitar
  • Eric Belz – keyboards, programming
  • Tyler Chiarelli – electric guitar
  • Dave Cohen – keyboards
  • Corey Crowder – programming, background vocals
  • Eric Darken – drums, percussion
  • Earl Dibbles Jr. – featured vocals on "Country and Ya Know It"
  • Kris Donegan – acoustic guitar
  • Kyle Fishman – keyboards, programming
  • Shannon Forrest – drums
  • Wes Hightower – background vocals
  • Mark Hill – bass guitar
  • Chad Jeffers – banjo
  • Mike Johnson – pedal steel guitar
  • Todd Lombardo – banjo, acoustic guitar, mandolin
  • Rachel Loy – bass guitar
  • Devin Malone – acoustic guitar, electric guitar, mandolin
  • John Marlin – acoustic guitar, electric guitar, mandolin, programming, synthesizer
  • Miles McPherson – drums, percussion
  • Katlin Owen – acoustic guitar, electric guitar
  • Hunter Phelps – background vocals
  • Jerry Roe – drums, percussion
  • Jason Kyle Saetveit – background vocals
  • Jordan Schmidt – percussion, background vocals
  • Jimmie Lee Sloas – bass guitar
  • Ernestine Smith – background vocals
  • Granger Smith – lead vocals, background vocals
  • London Smith – additional vocals
  • Bryan Sutton – acoustic guitar, ukulele
  • Lars Thorson – fiddle
  • Derek Wells – banjo, acoustic guitar, bass guitar, electric guitar, Hammond B-3 organ, mandolin, programming, slide guitar
  • Bryan David Willis – background vocals
  • Trent Willmon – electric guitar
  • Brad Winters – programming
  • Alex Wright – Hammond B-3 organ, keyboards, piano, programming, synthesizer

Charts
Chart performance for Country Things Vol. 1
Charts (2020) Peak
position
US Top Album Sales (Billboard)[10] 35
US Top Country Albums (Billboard)[11] 25
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[12] 46

References
  1. Despres, Tricia (September 24, 2020). "Granger Smith Confronts a Mix of Grief and Gratefulness On New Album 'Country Things, Vol. 1'". American Songwriter. Retrieved October 1, 2020.
  2. Parton, Chris (June 20, 2019). "Amber and Granger Smith Give Vulnerable First Update Since Son's River's Tragic Death". Sounds Like Nashville. Retrieved October 1, 2020.
  3. Parton, Chris (September 25, 2020). "Granger Smith Stays the Course with 10th Album, 'Country Things, Vol. 1'". Sounds Like Nashville. Retrieved October 1, 2020.
  4. Ellwood-Hughes, Pip (October 12, 2020). "Interview: Granger Smith Opens Up About His Two-Part Album 'Country Things'". Entertainment Focus. Retrieved October 14, 2020.
  5. Parton, Chris (August 28, 2020). "Granger Smith Plans Part One of Double Album, 'Country Things, Vol. 1'". Sounds Like Nashville. Retrieved October 1, 2020.
  6. Liptak, Carena (September 25, 2020). "Granger Smith's 'Country Things Vol. 1' is here: "I really believe it's my best album yet"". ABC News Radio. Retrieved October 1, 2020.
  7. Gazibara, Steve (October 28, 2019). "Granger Smith Releases New Single, "That's Why I Love Dirt Roads," Look Closely, That's River's Face In The Mountains". Retrieved October 2, 2020.
  8. "Granger Smith Chart History (Country Airplay)". Billboard. July 18, 2020. Retrieved October 2, 2020.
  9. "Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved October 19, 2020.
  10. "Granger Smith Chart History (Top Album Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
  11. "Granger Smith Chart History (Top Country Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
  12. "Granger Smith Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved October 16, 2020.
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