Stepping Stone is the fourth studio album by American country music artist Lari White. It was released on July 28, 1998 via Lyric Street Records, her first album for the label and the then-new label's first release officially.[4] Dann Huff produced this album. This was White's last album to primarily feature a country sound as later projects would infuse multiple different genres besides country music. Unlike her previous albums, Stepping Stone primarily features songs written by songwriters, with White only co-writing two of the album's songs.
| Stepping Stone | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | July 28, 1998 | |||
| Genre | Country | |||
| Length | 44:41 | |||
| Label | Lyric Street | |||
| Producer | Dann Huff | |||
| Lari White chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Stepping Stone | ||||
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Commercially, it was a flop, hitting number 50 on the US Top Country Albums chart. It spawned three official singles. The title track became a US top-20 hit while also becoming White's only top-ten single on the Canada RPM Country Tracks chart. "Take Me" was her final top-forty on the US Hot Country Songs chart while "John Wayne Walking Away" failed to reach the top-fifty and became her final entry on the chart. After this record, White would be freed from her label due to them not being satisfied with the material from what would become her fifth studio album Green Eyed Soul (2004).[5]
The track "Only God Could Stop Me Loving You" was originally recorded by Billy Ray Cyrus on his 1994 album Storm in the Heartland. Canadian country music band Emerson Drive would later record the song for their 2002 debut album Emerson Drive and release it as a single. "You Can't Go Home Again (Flies on the Butter)" was later recorded as "Flies on the Butter (You Can't Go Home Again)" by Wynonna and Naomi Judd on Wynonna's 2003 album What the World Needs Now Is Love, from which it was released as a single.
Background
editLyric Street senior vice president of A&R Doug Howard said of White's decision to work with Huff quote, "When it came to producers, I had a short-list of one. It was Dann [Huff]. Then Lari agreed to meet with Dann and came back and said, 'I don't have to talk to anyone else.'"[6]
Critical reception
edit| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [7] |
| Lakeland Ledger | [8] |
| Country Standard Time | (positive)[9] |
Stepping Stone received mostly favorable reviews from music critics. The book Contemporary Country gave the album a favorable review, saying that although most of the songs are "not worthy of her talent", she still made a fine body of work.[10]
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "John Wayne Walking Away" |
| 4:47 |
| 2. | "Stepping Stone" |
| 3:29 |
| 3. | "That's What You Do" |
| 2:47 |
| 4. | "You Can't Go Home Again (Flies on the Butter)" |
| 4:37 |
| 5. | "Only God Could Stop Me Loving You" (duet with Toby Keith) | Robert John "Mutt" Lange | 4:17 |
| 6. | "On a Night Like This" |
| 3:56 |
| 7. | "You Can't Take That from Me" | 3:24 | |
| 8. | "This Is Love" |
| 3:08 |
| 9. | "Take Me" |
| 3:33 |
| 10. | "Tired" |
| 4:41 |
| 11. | "Look Homeward Angel" |
| 6:03 |
| Total length: | 44:41 | ||
Personnel
edit- Lari White — vocals
- Paul Leim — drums
- Mike Brignardello — bass
- Biff Watson, Chuck Cannon — acoustic guitar
- Dann Huff, Jeff King — electric guitar
- Matt Rollings, John Hobbs, Steve Nathan — keyboards
- Dan Dugmore, Paul Franklin — steel guitar
- Aubrey Haynie — fiddle, mandolin
- Terry McMillan — percussion
- Steve Gibson — mandolin
- Chris Rodriguez, Lisa Cochran, Mary Ann Kennedy, Pam Rose — background vocals[11]
Charts
edit| Chart (1998) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Top Country Albums (Billboard)[12] | 50 |
| US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[13] | 38 |
References
edit- ^ "Going for Adds: Country". Radio & Records. No. 1246. May 1, 1998. p. 69.
- ^ "Going for Adds: Country". Radio & Records. No. 1266. September 18, 1998. p. 65.
- ^ "Country Highlights: On Your Desk". Airplay Monitor. Vol. 7, no. 13. March 26, 1999. p. 1.
- ^ Evans Price, Deborah (December 6, 1997). "Lyric Street Looking To The Future". Billboard. Vol. 109, no. 49. Nielsen Business Media. pp. 30, 32. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved September 27, 2024 – via Google Books.
- ^ Catlin, Roger (April 21, 2002). "White puts country days behind her, bares her soul". The Daily Gazette, republished from The Hartford Courant. p. G5. Retrieved September 27, 2024 – via Google Books.
- ^ Evans Price, Deborah (June 20, 1998). "White Steps Out On Disney's New Lyric Street Label". Billboard. Vol. 110, no. 25. Nielsen Business Media. p. 32. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved September 27, 2024 – via Google Books.
- ^ Stepping Stone at AllMusic
- ^ "Take a Listen to Some New Releases". Lakeland Ledger. September 22, 1998. p. D5. Retrieved September 27, 2024 – via Google Books.
- ^ "Lari White - Stepping Stone". Country Standard Time. Retrieved September 27, 2024.
- ^ Contemporary Country. Backbeat Books. 2008. p. 137. ISBN 9780879309183.
- ^ Stepping Stone (liner credits). Lari White. Lyric Street Records. 1998. HL-65001-2.
{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ "Lari White Chart History (Top Country Albums)". Billboard.
- ^ "Lari White Chart History (Heatseekers Albums)". Billboard.