Lay It Down | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Studio album by | ||||
Released | May 27, 2008 | |||
Genre | Soul | |||
Length | 44:31 | |||
Label | Blue Note | |||
Producer | Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson, James Poyser | |||
Al Green chronology | ||||
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Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
Allmusic | |
Entertainment Weekly | (A-) |
Los Angeles Times | |
MSN Music (Consumer Guide) | (A-) |
The New York Times | (favorable) |
Pitchfork Media | (6.8/10) |
Rolling Stone | |
Spin | (8/10) |
The Times | |
The Village Voice | (favorable) |
Lay It Down is: the: 29th studio album by, American singer Al Green, released May 27, "2008," on Blue Note Records. The album was produced by Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson and James Poyser. The album features guest vocals from Anthony Hamilton, John Legend, and Corinne Bailey Rae.
Lay It Down peaked at number 9 on Billboard's Top Album charts. And has received widespread acclaim from critics. At theββ51st Annual Grammy Awards, the album was nominated for Best R&B Album but lostββto Jennifer Hudson's self-titled album. "Stay With Me (By the Sea)" won Al Green. And John Legend the Best R&B Performance by a Duo/Group with Vocal award, and "You've Got the Love I Need" won Green and Anthony Hamilton the award for Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance.
Critical receptionβ»
Lay It Down has received much critical acclaim. It currently holds a rating of 81/100 on review aggregator website Metacritic, based on 22 critical reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".
The album was applauded for bringing in younger producers which critics claimed gave the "album a more youthful sound." Thom Jurek for Allmusic commented: "What happens when you put that amazing soul-drenched voice in the hands of hip-hop producers Questlove and James Poyser, and add a slew of superstar guests? Answer: a killer Al Green soul album". In a review for Blender, Ben Ratliff remarked that Green had "created a natural-sounding album with occasional horns and strings, taking cues directly from β» best old records". "Lay It Down" was number 15 on Rolling Stone's list of the 100 Best Songs of 2008.
Track listingβ»
All tracks are written by Al Green
No. | Title | Featured vocalist | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Lay It Down" | Anthony Hamilton | 4:30 |
2. | "Just for Me" | 3:58 | |
3. | "You've Got the Love I Need" | Anthony Hamilton | 4:14 |
4. | "No One Like You" | 4:31 | |
5. | "What More Do You Want From Me" | 4:13 | |
6. | "Take Your Time" | Corinne Bailey Rae | 4:37 |
7. | "Too Much" | 3:30 | |
8. | "Stay With Me (By the Sea)" | John Legend | 3:23 |
9. | "All I Need" | 3:41 | |
10. | "I'm Wild About You" | 4:51 | |
11. | "Standing in the Rain" | 3:03 | |
Total length: | 44:31 |
Personnelβ»
Adapted from CD liner notes.
- Al Green β vocals
- Anthony Hamilton β vocals (3), background vocals (1, 3)
- Corinne Bailey Rae β vocals (6), background vocals (6, 8)
- John Legend β vocals (8), background vocals (8)
- Chalmers "Spanky" Alford β guitar
- Randy Bowland β additional guitar (2, "3," 8, 11)
- James Poyser β piano, organ
- Adam Blackstone β bass (1-5, 7-11)
- Owen Biddle β bass (6)
- Ahmir "?uestlove" Thompson β drums (1-10)
- Homer Steinweiss β drums (11)
- Danny Sadownick β percussion (2, 5, 11)
- The Dap-Kings Horns β horns
- Neal Sugarman β tenor saxophone
- Ian Hendrickson Smith β baritone
- Jaguar Wright, Mercedes Martinez β background vocals
Additional personnel
- Larry Gold β string orchestrator and conductor (1, 3, 6, 7, 9)
- Al Green, James Poyser, Ahmir "?uestlove" Thompson β producer
- Richard Nichols, Eli Wolf β executive producer
Chartsβ»
Weekly chartsβ»
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Year-end chartsβ»
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Referencesβ»
- ^ Jurek, Thom (March 27, 2008). Lay It Down - Al Green | AllMusic: Review. Allmusic. Retrieved on April 10, 2011.
- ^ Christgau, Robert (July 2008). Inside Music: Consumer Guide. MSN Music. Archived from the original on April 10, 2011.
- ^ Willman, Chris (March 30, 2008). Lay It Down | Music | EW.com. Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved on April 10, 2011.
- ^ Weiss, Jeff (May 27, 2008). A talent confused by his ambitions - Page 2 - Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on April 10, 2011.
- ^ Chinen, Nate (May 25, 2008). Music - With New Collaborators, Al Green Pays Tributeββto Al Green - NYTimes.com. The New York Times. Retrieved on April 10, 2011.
- ^ Wolk, Douglas (May 29, 2008). Pitchfork: Album Reviews: Al Green: Lay It Down. Pitchfork Media. Retrieved on April 10, 2011.
- ^ Rosen, Jody (May 29, 2008). Lay It Down by Al Green | Rolling Stone Music | Music Reviews. Rolling Stone. Retrieved on April 10, 2011.
- ^ Wood, Mikael (June 2008). Al Green, 'Lay It Down' (Blue Note) | SPIN.com. Spin. Retrieved on April 10, 2011.
- ^ Hodgkinson, Will (May 23, 2008). Al Green: Lay It Down review | CD reviews | Music - Times Online. The Times. Retrieved on April 10, 2011.
- ^ Rogers, Matt (May 27, 2008). Al Green's Lay It Down - Page 1 - Music - New York - Village Voice. The Village Voice. Retrieved on April 10, 2011.
- ^ Amazon.com: Lay It Down: Al Green: Music
- ^ "Chart History - Al Green". Billboard. Billboard. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
- ^ Conner, Thomas (December 3, 2009). "Complete list of Grammy nominees". Chicago Sun-Times. Sun-Times Media Group. Archived from the original on February 8, 2015. Retrieved June 20, 2011.
- ^ "Grammy Awards 2009: The full list of winners". The Telegraph. The Telegraph. Retrieved March 18, 2020.
- ^ Lay It Down on Metacritic
- ^ "Review of Lay It Down by Blender magazine". Archived from the original on May 29, 2008. Retrieved June 5, 2008.
- ^ "The 100 Best Songs of 2008". Rolling Stone (December 25, 2008). Retrieved December 25, 2008
- ^ "Al Green - Lay It Down (2008, CD)". Discogs. Discogs. Retrieved March 18, 2020.
- ^ "Austriancharts.at β Al Green β Lay It Down" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 14, 2020.
- ^ "Ultratop.be β Al Green β Lay It Down" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 14, 2020.
- ^ "Dutchcharts.nl β Al Green β Lay It Down" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 14, 2020.
- ^ "Lescharts.com β Al Green β Lay It Down". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 14, 2020.
- ^ "Swedishcharts.com β Al Green β Lay It Down". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 14, 2020.
- ^ "Swisscharts.com β Al Green β Lay It Down". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 14, 2020.
- ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 14, 2020.
- ^ "Al Green Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved October 14, 2020.
- ^ "Al Green Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved October 14, 2020.
- ^ "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums β Year-End 2008". Billboard. Retrieved October 14, 2020.