''Castles in the Sand'' is an album released by

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...

musician

David Allan Coe David Allan Coe (born September 6, 1939) is an American singer and songwriter. Coe took up music after spending much of his early life in reform schools and prisons, and first became notable for busking in Nashville. He initially played mostly i ...

. It was released in 1983 on Columbia.

Recording

''Castles in the Sand'' would be a huge comeback for Coe, peaking at #8 on the country albums chart, his highest showing since ''Once Upon a Rhyme'' hit the same mark eight years earlier. Its success was spurred on by “The Ride,” which was released in February 1983 as the lead single from the album and spent 19 weeks on the ''Billboard'' country singles charts, reaching a peak of #4 and hitting #2 on the Canadian ''RPM'' Country Tracks chart. The

ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or ''ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...

tells the first-person story of a hitchhiker's encounter with the ghost of

Hank Williams Hank Williams (born Hiram Williams; September 17, 1923 – January 1, 1953) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician. Regarded as one of the most significant and influential American singers and songwriters of the 20th century, he reco ...

in a ride from

Montgomery, Alabama Montgomery is the capital city of the U.S. state of Alabama and the county seat of Montgomery County. Named for the Irish soldier Richard Montgomery, it stands beside the Alabama River, on the coastal Plain of the Gulf of Mexico. In the 202 ...

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...

.''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'', March 19, 1983 The mysterious driver, "dressed like 1950, half drunk and hollow-eyed", questions the narrator whether he has the musical talent and dedication to become a star in the

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

industry. The song's lyrics place the events on

U.S. Route 31 U.S. Route 31 or U.S. Highway 31 (US 31) is a major north–south U.S. highway connecting southern Alabama to northern Michigan. Its southern terminus is at an intersection with US 90/ US 98 in Spanish Fort, Alabama. It ...

or the largely parallel

Interstate 65 Interstate 65 (I-65) is a major north–south Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates ending in 5, it is a major crosscountry, north–south route, connecting between the Great Lakes and the Gulf ...

. Buoyed by the single, ''Castles in the Sand'' became the mainstream breakthrough Coe and producer

Billy Sherrill Billy Norris Sherrill (November 5, 1936 – August 4, 2015) was an American record producer, songwriter, and arranger best known for his association with country artists, notably Tammy Wynette and George Jones. Sherrill and business partner Gle ...

had been trying for since the decade began. A second single, the bawdy “Cheap Thrills,” was released as a second single and nearly made the country Top 40, peaking at #45. The title track is a tribute to

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

, with Coe affecting Dylan’s half-baked beat poet drawl from the ''

Blonde on Blonde ''Blonde on Blonde'' is the seventh studio album by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released as a double album on June 20, 1966, by Columbia Records. Recording sessions began in New York in October 1965 with numerous backing musicians, ...

'' era and disparaging the obsessive fans and critics “searching through your lyric sheets for hidden meanings…” This is followed by a cover of Dylan’s “

Gotta Serve Somebody "Gotta Serve Somebody" is a song written and performed by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released as the opening track on his 1979 studio album '' Slow Train Coming''. It won the Grammy Award for Best Rock Vocal Performance by a Male in 1 ...

,” sung with

Lacy J. Dalton Lacy J. Dalton (born Jill Lynne Byrem; October 13, 1946) is an American country music singer and songwriter. She is known for her gritty, powerful vocals, which ''People Magazine'' likened to a country equivalent of Bonnie Raitt. Dalton had a ...

and rocked up considerably compared to the R&B original recorded at Muscle Shoals. ''Castles in the Sand'' contains two more duets: “Fool Inside of Me” with Diane Sherrill and the romantic “Don’t Be a Stranger with Eve Shapiro, which is augmented with a saxophone. One of the most impressive songs Coe ever wrote is “Missin’ the Kid,” which finds a father lamenting the loss of his daughter, who now lives with his estranged ex-wife. Over a languid beat and using simple language, Coe delivers a stunning vocal that expresses with weary resignation the bitterness, guilt, and extreme sadness that comes with a broken family. Beginning with the line, “I still can’t believe after all of these years I still miss you," the narrator wonders what his wife will tell their daughter when she asks about him, and finally declares: :''I tell myself that it’s best if I don’t try to see her'' :''Seeing her now could not make up for all she’s been through'' :''Watching two people she once called her mother and father'' :''Acting like strangers, that’s something I could not do In his

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

review of the album, writer Thom Jurek writes: “Son of a Rebel Son” is similar to Coe’s earlier composition “I Still Sing the Old Songs” in that it recalls three generations, including a grandfather who “was a rebel back in ‘61” and who “fought for freedom but never won.” The album concludes with the first of what will be a four-part series of songs: "For Lovers, Pt. 1." It begins like a

Tom Waits Thomas Alan Waits (born December 7, 1949) is an American musician, composer, songwriter, and actor. His lyrics often focus on the underbelly of society and are delivered in his trademark deep, gravelly voice. He worked primarily in jazz during ...

ballad as Coe begins to sing from a barstool, offering a portrayal of himself trying to write the song in some gin mill and asking an imaginary waitress for a Jack Daniels and water, and a pencil with an eraser on it before stumbling, flubbing, and finding his way through a fond wish for those who dare to love not to give up, no matter how rough the breaks can be.

Reception

AllMusic: “''Castles in the Sand'' is one of David Allan Coe's most underrated and consistent. Coming well after his glory - and scandal - years in the 1970s, Coe and producer Billy Sherrill integrated their partnership into a seamless whole.”

Track listing

All songs written by David Allan Coe except as indicated. #”Cheap Thrills” (

Bob McDill Robert Lee McDill (born April 4, 1944) is a retired American songwriter, active from the 1960s until 2000. During his career he wrote or co-wrote 31 number one country hits. His songs were also recorded by popular artists of the 1970s, 1980s an ...

/Robert Lee McDill) #”Son of a Rebel Son” #”Fool Inside of Me” (with Diane Sherrill) #”Castles in the Sand” #”Gotta Serve Somebody” (with Lacy J. Dalton) (Bob Dylan) #” The Ride” (Gary Gentry/John Blayne Detterline, Jr.) #”I Can’t Let You Be a Memory” (Warren Haynes) #”Missin’ the Kid” #”Don’t Be a Stranger” (with Eve Shapiro) (Karen Brooks/Coe) #”For Lovers Only, Pt. 1”

References

{{Authority control David Allan Coe albums 1983 albums Albums produced by Billy Sherrill Columbia Records albums