''If Only My Heart Had a Voice'' is the twenty-fifth studio album by country music superstar

Kenny Rogers Kenneth Ray Rogers (August 21, 1938 – March 20, 2020) was an American singer, songwriter, and actor. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2013. Rogers was particularly popular with country audiences but also charted mo ...

. It was Rogers' first album released on the

Giant Records In folklore, giants (from Ancient Greek: '' gigas'', cognate giga-) are beings of human-like appearance, but are at times prodigious in size and strength or bear an otherwise notable appearance. The word ''giant'' is first attested in 1297 fr ...

label. However, Rogers had been signed with its parent company,

WEA The Wea were a Miami-Illinois-speaking Native American tribe originally located in western Indiana. Historically, they were described as either being closely related to the Miami Tribe or a sub-tribe of Miami. Today, the descendants of the ...

, since 1989. The album was Rogers' first since 1976 not to chart. The album includes the singles "Missing You", "

Ol' Red "Ol' Red" is a song written by James "Bo" Bohon, Don Goodman, and Mark Sherrill. The song was originally recorded by George Jones on his 1990 album '' You Oughta Be Here with Me'' and covered by Kenny Rogers on his 1993 album ''If Only My Heart Ha ...

" and "Wanderin' Man".

Content

"Ol' Red" was also recorded by

George Jones George Glenn Jones (September 12, 1931 – April 26, 2013) was an American country musician, singer, and songwriter. He achieved international fame for his long list of hit records, including his best-known song "He Stopped Loving Her Today", ...

on his 1990 album '' You Oughta Be Here with Me'', and would later be a Top 20 hit in 2002 for

Blake Shelton Blake Tollison Shelton (born June 18, 1976) is an American country music singer and television personality. In 2001, he made his debut with the single " Austin". The lead-off single from his self-titled debut album, "Austin" spent five weeks at ...

from his self-titled debut. "If I Were You", recorded here as a duet with

Travis Tritt James Travis Tritt (born February 9, 1963) is an American country music singer and songwriter. He signed to Warner Bros. Records in 1989, releasing seven studio albums and a greatest hits package for the label between then and 1999. In the 20 ...

, was originally cut by

The Oak Ridge Boys The Oak Ridge Boys are an American country and gospel vocal quartet originating in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. The group was founded in the 1940s as the Oak Ridge Quartet. They became popular in Southern gospel during the 1950s. Their name was chang ...

on their 1991 album ''

Unstoppable Unstoppable may refer to: Film and television * Unstoppable (2004 film), ''Unstoppable'' (2004 film), an American film directed by David Carson * ''Unstoppable: Conversation with Melvin Van Peebles, Gordon Parks, and Ossie Davis'', a 2005 America ...

'', and would later be recorded by

Chad Brock Chad Brock (born July 31, 1963) is an American country music singer and disc jockey. Before beginning his musical career in the late 1990s, he was a professional wrestler in World Championship Wrestling (WCW), until an injury forced him to retire ...

as a duet with

Mark Wills Mark Wills (born Daryl Mark Williams; August 8, 1973) is an American country music artist. Signed to Mercury Records between 1996 and 2003, he released five studio albums for the label – ''Mark Wills'', ''Wish You Were Here'', '' Permanently'' ...

on Brock's 2000 album '' Yes!''

Critical reception

Rob Theakston of

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 ...

rated the album 2.5 out of 5 stars, saying that "there are some moments on here that die-hard fans will enjoy". He thought that the production had "aged well" and that the songs were "surprisingly consistent."

Track listing

Personnel

– lead vocals, backing vocals * Larry Butler – keyboards, synthesizers * Gene Golden – keyboards, synthesizers *

Mike Lawler Michael Vincent Lawler (born September 9, 1986) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for New York's 17th congressional district since 2023. From 2021 to 2022, he was a Republican member of the New York State Assembly fro ...

– keyboards, synthesizers * Warren Hartman –

Hammond B3 organ The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert and first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding #Drawbars, drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, Hammond organs ...

* Steve Glassmeyer – acoustic piano * Randy McCormick – acoustic piano *

Bobby Ogdin Robert Ford Ogdin (born September, 1945) is a Nashville-based recording session pianist. He is best known as a member of Elvis Presley's TCB band. He performed on 20 of Presley's recordings and accompanied him on 45 live shows until Presleys' deat ...

– acoustic piano * Gary Prim – acoustic piano *

Larry Byrom Steppenwolf was an American-Canadian rock band that was prominent from 1968 to 1972. The group was formed in late 1967 in Los Angeles by lead singer John Kay, keyboardist Goldy McJohn, and drummer Jerry Edmonton, all formerly of the Canadian b ...

– acoustic guitar, electric guitar * Chuck Jones – acoustic guitar * Chris Leuzinger – acoustic guitar, electric guitar,

electric sitar An electric sitar is a type of electric guitar designed to mimic the sound of the sitar, a traditional musical instrument of India. Depending on the manufacturer and model, these instruments bear varying degrees of resemblance to the traditiona ...

* Tim Mensy – acoustic guitar *

Biff Watson Fletcher Bangs "Biff" Watson is an American guitarist, songwriter, and producer. His musicianship has been a part of recording sessions for many artists. Biography Early years Raised in Chatham, Virginia, Watson learned how to play guitar at a ...

– acoustic guitar,

mandolin A mandolin ( it, mandolino ; literally "small mandola") is a stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally plucked with a pick. It most commonly has four courses of doubled strings tuned in unison, thus giving a total of 8 ...

* Randy Dorman – electric guitar * Steve Gibson – electric guitar * Ricky Harper – electric guitar * Porter Howell – electric guitar *

Dann Huff Dann Lee Huff (born November 15, 1960) is an American record producer and songwriter. For his work as a producer in the country music genre, he has won several awards, including the ''Musician of the Year'' award in 2001, 2004, and 2016 at the Co ...

– electric guitar *

Brent Rowan Brent Rowan (born May 28, 1956 in Waxahachie, Texas) is an American session musician and record producer who works primarily in country music. Active since the 1970s, Rowan began working with John Conlee through the recommendation of record produce ...

– electric guitar * Sonny Garrish –

steel guitar A steel guitar ( haw, kīkākila) is any guitar played while moving a steel bar or similar hard object against plucked strings. The bar itself is called a "steel" and is the source of the name "steel guitar". The instrument differs from a conve ...

dobro Dobro is an American brand of resonator guitars, currently owned by Gibson and manufactured by its subsidiary Epiphone. The term "dobro" is also used as a generic term for any wood-bodied, single-cone resonator guitar. The Dobro was originally ...

Weldon Myrick Weldon Myrick (born Weldon Merle Myrick; April 10, 1938 – June 2, 2014) was an American steel guitar player.Joe Chemay Joe Chemay is an American bassist and background singer, known for his recording session work. Biography Chemay started out working as a session and touring support musician in Los Angeles, but moved to Nashville in 1989. Chemay has worked wi ...

– bass * Chuck Jacobs – bass *

Dave Pomeroy Dave Pomeroy (born April 26, 1956) is an American musician, known as a Nashville vocalist, songwriter, and producer (Earwave Productions), but is best known as a bassist. He has played electric and acoustic bass for many world renowned artists ...

– bass *

Glenn Worf Glenn Worf is an American bassist known mainly for his work as a session musician. He has recorded with many major country music acts and also tours with Mark Knopfler. Early life and education Worf was born in Dayton, Ohio, and grew up in Madis ...

– bass * Bob Wray – bass * Lynn Hammann – drums *

Paul Leim Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) *Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity * Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chri ...

– drums *

Nigel Olsson Nigel Olsson (born 10 February 1949) is an English rock drummer and singer best known for his long-time affiliation with Elton John. A dynamic drummer and backing vocalist, Olsson helped establish the Elton John sound as a member of the Elton J ...

– drums, percussion *

James Stroud James Stroud is an American musician and record producer who works in pop, rock, R&B, soul, disco, and country music. He played with the Malaco Rhythm Section for Malaco Records. In the 1990s, he was the president of Giant Records (a subsidiar ...

– drums, percussion *

Lonnie Wilson Lonnie Wilson is an American drummer, songwriter, and record producer, known primarily for his work in country music. Born in Monroe, Louisiana, Wilson was originally the lead singer of the band Bandana, which charted ten singles on the Hot C ...

– drums * Joe Spivey –

fiddle A fiddle is a bowed string musical instrument, most often a violin. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including classical music. Although in many cases violins and fiddles are essentially synonymous, th ...

* Carl Gorodetzky – string arrangements and conductor *

The Nashville String Machine Nashville String Machine is a musical collective comprising session musicians, based in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Members of the group have been credited on records dating from 1972 to the present, although the group was formally formed ...

– strings * Jana King – backing vocals *

Curtis Wright Curtis Blaine Wright (born June 6, 1955) is an American country music artist. He first recorded in the 1980s as a member of the Super Grit Cowboy Band before becoming a solo artist in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Wright charted three singles ...

– backing vocals * Curtis Young – backing vocals *

– lead vocals on "If I Were You"

Production

* Producers – Larry Butler and James Stroud * Recorded by Julian King, Lynn Peterzell and

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 ...

. * Assistant Engineers – Derek Bason, Mark Capps, David Hall, John Hurley, Julian King, Graham Lewis and Darren Smith. * Recorded at Sound Stage Studios, Soundshop Recording Studios and 16th Avenue Sound (Nashville, TN); The Castle (Franklin, TN); Mesa Recording (Sebastapol, CA). * Mixed by Lynn Peterzell at 16th Avenue Sound, Sound Stage Studios and Masterfonics (Nashville, TN). * Mastered by Glenn Meadows at Masterfonics * Art Direction – Laura LiPuma Nash * Design – Beth Middleworth * Photography – Peter Nash * Management – Ken Kragen at Kragen & Co. * Booking – C.K. Spurlock

References

{{Authority control Kenny Rogers albums 1993 albums Giant Records (Warner) albums Albums produced by Larry Butler (producer) Albums produced by James Stroud