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Love and War (Brad Paisley album)

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Love and War
Studio album by
Brad Paisley
ReleasedApril 21, 2017 (2017-04-21)
GenreCountry
Length58:41
LabelArista Nashville
Producer
Brad Paisley chronology
Moonshine in the Trunk
(2014) 		Love and War
(2017) 		Son of the Mountains
(2024)
Singles from Love and War
  1. "Today"
    Released: October 6, 2016
  2. "Last Time for Everything"
    Released: April 24, 2017
  3. "Heaven South"
    Released: October 30, 2017

Love and War is the twelfth studio album by American country music singer Brad Paisley. It was released on April 21, 2017, and is his final album to be released through Arista Nashville. The album's lead single is "Today".

Content

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The album's originally intended lead single was "Without a Fight", a duet with Demi Lovato, which did not make the album's final track listing.[1] The first single to be included on the album is "Today".[2] Paisley co-produced the album with Luke Wooten.[1]

Included on the album are collaborations with Mick Jagger, John Fogerty, Timbaland, and Bill Anderson.[3] The song "Gold All Over the Ground" is based on a poem written by Johnny Cash in the collection Forever Words.[4]

In April 2017, Paisley released a "visual" version of the album, which features music videos for every song, worked into a singular narrative.[5]

It is Paisley's first album not to feature an instrumental track.

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic66/100[6]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[7]
Cleveland Plain DealerA–[8]
Paste6.7/10[9]
Rolling Stone[10]
Variety(favorable)[11]
Vice (Expert Witness)A[12]

The album has been met with positive critical reception, with most critics showing favor toward the collaborative tracks and Paisley's use of humor. Will Hermes of Rolling Stone rated the album 3 out of 5 stars. He praised the classic rock influences of the title track and "Drive of Shame", while also considering "selfie#theinternetisforever" "entertaining". He added that "Paisley's pro enough that even his apparent phone-ins are well-crafted. But over 16 tracks, you can't help but wish that one of country's greatest would shoot consistently higher than easy chuckles and sentimental homilies."[10] A review by Variety called the album "strong but uneven", praising Paisley's guitar solos and the collaborations with Mick Jagger, while also noting that "there is a lot of familiar thematic ground to cover in fresh ways".[11] Matt Bjorke of Roughstock was also favorable, saying that "After a little bit of time to work on his music outside of the spotlight, Brad Paisley has created, with Love and War, a project which rivals his best work, even if the album is more or less what fans would've wanted out of another Brad Paisley record."[13] Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic was less positive, rating the album 2.5 stars out of 5 and noting that "While he never pushes too hard -- even the Timbaland tracks don't call attention to the beats -- the shiny production, shopworn jokes, and eager melodies have the cumulative effect of seeming too ready to please any audience that comes his way. Since Paisley still has his skills, this is often enjoyable -- he knows how to craft songs and can play a mean guitar -- but it's hard not to hear Love and War and think Paisley would be a little bit better off if he learned a lesson from Jagger and Fogerty: sometimes, it's better not to try so hard."[7]

Commercial performance

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Love and War debuted at No. 1 on Billboard's Top Country Albums chart, and at No. 13 on the US Billboard 200, selling 26,000 in pure sales copies in the US, making a total of 29,000 equivalent album units including tracks and streams.[14] It has sold 71,200 copies in the US as of December 2017.[15]

Track listing

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All tracks are written by Brad Paisley, with additional co-writers as noted

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Heaven South"
4:15
2."Last Time for Everything"
3:50
3."One Beer Can"
  • Anderson
  • DuBois
3:46
4."Go to Bed Early"
  • Anderson
  • DuBois
  • Hannah Dasher
3:20
5."Drive of Shame" (featuring Mick Jagger)
  • Jagger
  • Matt Clifford
4:33
6."Contact High"
4:34
7."Love and War" (featuring John Fogerty)
  • Fogerty
3:51
8."Today"
3:49
9."selfie#theinternetisforever"
3:41
10."Grey Goose Chase" (featuring Timbaland)
3:05
11."Gold All Over the Ground"
3:33
12."Dying to See Her" (featuring Bill Anderson)
  • Anderson
3:45
13."Solar Power Girl" (featuring Timbaland)
  • Gutstadt
  • Mosley
3:44
14."The Devil Is Alive and Well"
  • Robert Arthur
  • Kenny Lewis
3:59
15."Meaning Again"
  • Lovelace
  • Miller
3:45
16."Heaven South (Reprise)"
  • Anderson
  • DuBois
1:11

Personnel

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[16]

Vocals
  • Jessi Alexander – Vocal harmony
  • Bill Anderson — Featured artist
  • Hannah Dasher – Vocal harmony
  • John Fogerty – Featured artist
  • Audrey Kate Geiger – Vocal harmony
  • Wes Hightower – Vocal harmony
  • Mick Jagger – Featured artist
  • Gale Mayes – Vocal harmony
  • Brad Paisley – Primary artist, vocal harmony
  • Angela Primm – Vocal harmony
  • Timbaland – Featured artist
  • Baylor Wilson – Vocal harmony
Musicians
Production
  • Matthew Berinato — Art direction
  • John Carter Cash – Producer
  • Scott Johnson – Production assistant
  • Bob Ludwig – Mastering
  • Kendall Marcy – Executive producer
  • Brad Paisley – Producer
  • Timothy Mosley – Producer, programming
  • Luke Wooten – Producer

Charts

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References

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  1. ^ a b Horton, Carrie (February 16, 2017). "Everything We Know About Brad Paisley's New Album, 'Love and War'". The Boot. Retrieved March 16, 2017.
  2. ^ Whitaker, Sterling (March 10, 2017). "Brad Paisley Unveils Track Listing for 'Love and War'". The Boot. Retrieved March 16, 2017.
  3. ^ Hollabaugh, Laurie (March 10, 2017). "Brad Paisley Teams With Jagger, Fogerty, Timbaland On 'Love And War'". MusicRow. Retrieved March 16, 2017.
  4. ^ Gage, Jeff (March 10, 2017). "Brad Paisley Reveals New Album Track List, Johnny Cash Collaboration". Rolling Stone. Retrieved March 16, 2017.
  5. ^ "Brad Paisley Releases Country Music's First Visual Album 'LOVE AND WAR'". MusicRow. April 28, 2017. Retrieved October 20, 2018.
  6. ^ "Love and War". Metacritic. Retrieved 26 May 2017.
  7. ^ a b Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Love and War review". Allmusic. Retrieved April 23, 2017.
  8. ^ Yarborough, Chuck (26 April 2017). "Brad Paisley's guest-laden 'Love and War' keys on vets' plight (CD review)". Cleveland Plain Dealer. Retrieved 30 April 2017.
  9. ^ Ham, Robert (5 May 2017). "Paste Review of the Day: Brad Paisley - Love and War". Paste. Retrieved 26 May 2017.
  10. ^ a b Hermes, Will (April 21, 2017). "Review: Brad Paisley's 'Love and War' Is a Defiant Classic Rock Rewind". Rolling Stone. Retrieved April 21, 2017.
  11. ^ a b Willman, Chris (April 21, 2017). "Review: Brad Paisley Swings for the Fences and (Mostly) Connects on 'Love and War'". Variety. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
  12. ^ Christgau, Robert (28 April 2017). "Brad Paisley Is Anti-War, Anti-Hater, and at His Best". Noisey. Vice. Retrieved 30 April 2017.
  13. ^ Bjorke, Matt (April 20, 2017). "Album Review: Brad Paisley - "Love and War"". Roughstock. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
  14. ^ Asker, Jim (May 2, 2017). "Brad Paisley's 'War' Breaks Out at No. 1; John Mayer Makes Country Chart Debut". Billboard.
  15. ^ Bjorke, Matt (December 17, 2017). "Top 10 Country Albums Chart: December 18, 2017". Roughstock.
  16. ^ "Brad Paisley – Love & War". All Music. Allmusic. Retrieved May 16, 2017.
  17. ^ "Australiancharts.com – Brad Paisley – Love and War". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 29, 2017.
  18. ^ "Ultratop.be – Brad Paisley – Love and War" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved April 28, 2017.
  19. ^ "Ultratop.be – Brad Paisley – Love and War" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved April 28, 2017.
  20. ^ "On The Charts: May 1, 2017". FYIMusicNews. Retrieved May 2, 2017.
  21. ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – Brad Paisley – Love and War". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 29, 2017.
  22. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 29, 2017.
  23. ^ "Swisscharts.com – Brad Paisley – Love and War". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 3, 2017.
  24. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 29, 2017.
  25. ^ "Brad Paisley Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved May 2, 2017.
  26. ^ "Brad Paisley Chart History (Top Country Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved May 2, 2017.
  27. ^ "Top Country Albums – Year-End 2017". Billboard. Retrieved July 17, 2020.
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