"Cryin' Game" is a song written by Jamie O'Hara. It was originally recorded by American

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 ...

artist

Sara Evans Sara Lynn Evans (; born February 5, 1971) is an American country music singer and songwriter. She is also credited as a record producer, actress, and author. She had five songs reach the number one spot on the '' Billboard'' country songs ch ...

and released as the lead

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

off her second studio album, ''

No Place That Far ''No Place That Far'' is the second studio album by American country music artist Sara Evans. It was released in October 1998 via RCA Records Nashville. The album's first single, "Cryin' Game", peaked at number 56 on the US ''Billboard (magazine) ...

.'' The song became a minor on the ''

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 ...

'' country chart in 1998. "Cryin' Game" received positive reviews from critics and writers alike.

Background

"Cryin' Game" was composed by Jamie O'Hara. Previously O'Hara had written Evans's single "

Shame About That "Shame About That" is a song written by American country artist Sara Evans and American songwriter Jamie O'Hara. In 1997, Sara Evans released it as the third and final single off her debut studio album called '' Three Chords and the Truth''. The s ...

," which was released in 1997. In reviewing her second studio album,

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 ...

's Thom Jurek described "Cryin' Game" as an upbeat track that displayed a "country pub rock shuffle." The song was recorded in March 1998 at Emerald Sound Studios, which was located in

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 ...

. The song's eventual B-side, "Wait a Minute," was also cut during the same recording session. The sessions were co-produced by

Buddy Cannon Buddy Cannon (born April 20, 1947 Lexington, Tennessee) is an American country music songwriter and record producer. Active since the late 1970s, he is known primarily for his work with Willie Nelson and as Kenny Chesney's record producer, for w ...

and

Norro Wilson Norris Denton "Norro" Wilson (April 4, 1938 – June 8, 2017) was an American country music singer-songwriter, producer, and member of the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. Wilson wrote or co-wrote numerous hit songs during more than 40 yea ...

. It was Evans's first experience recording at the studio and her first session with both producers. Cannon and Wilson would also co-produce her 1998 studio album.

Critical reception

Upon its release, "Cryin' Game" received a positive response from writers and critics. In July 1998, ''

'' reviewed the single, praising its traditional production and Evans's vocal stylings. Reviewers also noted that the song was "strong" lyrically and may lead to Evans reaching commercial success: "The song is strong. Her performance is stunning. Here's hoping this is the one." Allmusic's Thom Jurek also praised the song when reviewing Evans's second album. Jurek compared its sound and style to that of early work by

Rosanne Cash Rosanne Cash (born May 24, 1955) is an American singer-songwriter and author. She is the eldest daughter of country musician Johnny Cash and Vivian Liberto Cash Distin, Johnny Cash's first wife. Although she is often classified as a country art ...

. He also made comparisons to the songwriting of

Hank DeVito Henry M. "Hank" DeVito is an American musician and photographer known primarily for his pedal steel guitar work and songwriting. Biography After high school, DeVito attended the School of Visual Arts in New York City. He studied graphic arts and ...

in his commentary: "It was a place where Evans' voice was left pretty much untreated and allowed to display its natural range and emotional depth."

Release and chart performance

"Cryin' Game" was released as a single to country radio on June 23, 1998 via

RCA Nashville RCA Nashville is an American country music record label based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is distributed by Sony Music Nashville which is part of Sony Music. Current artists *Kane Brown *Andrew Jannakos *Miranda Lambert *Niko Moon (RCA/River Hou ...

. It Evans's fourth single release in her career. It was issued as both a

CD single A CD single (sometimes abbreviated to CDS) is a music single in the form of a compact disc. The standard in the Red Book for the term ''CD single'' is an 8 cm (3-inch) CD (or Mini CD). It now refers to any single recorded onto a CD of any si ...

and a

vinyl single Vinyl may refer to: Chemistry * Polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a particular vinyl polymer * Vinyl cation, a type of carbocation * Vinyl group, a broad class of organic molecules in chemistry * Vinyl polymer, a group of polymers derived from vinyl m ...

. It included a

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...

, "Wait a Minute." The song spent ten weeks on the ''Billboard''

Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...

chart in the summer of 1998. In August, it reached a peak of 56. The single became Evans's fourth charting song on the ''Billboard'' country chart. The single also was her first to reach the Canada ''

RPM Revolutions per minute (abbreviated rpm, RPM, rev/min, r/min, or with the notation min−1) is a unit of rotational speed or rotational frequency for rotating machines. Standards ISO 80000-3:2019 defines a unit of rotation as the dimensionl ...

'' Country Songs chart, peaking at number 82. "Cryin' Game" was later released on Evans's second studio album, ''

.'' Despite only being a minor country hit, Evans would go on to have a series of major hits following "Cryin' Game." The

title track A title track is a song that has the same name as the album or film in which it appears. In the Korean music industry, the term is used to describe a promoted song on an album, akin to a single, regardless of the song's title. Title track may al ...

off of ''No Place That Far'' would reach number one on the country charts in 1998. Evans would then continue having major hits through the next decade, including four more number one singles.

Track listing

CD single, 7" vinyl single * "Cryin' Game" – 2:53 * "Wait a Minute" – 2:43

Charts

References

{{authority control 1998 singles 1998 songs RCA Records singles Sara Evans songs Song recordings produced by Buddy Cannon Song recordings produced by Norro Wilson Songs written by Jamie O'Hara (singer)