''Love Travels'' is the tenth studio album by American

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, ...

artist,

Kathy Mattea Kathleen Alice Mattea (born June 21, 1959) is an American country music and bluegrass singer. Active since 1984 as a recording artist, she has charted more than 30 singles on the '' Billboard'' Hot Country Songs charts, including four that re ...

. It was released on February 4, 1997, via

Mercury Records Nashville Universal Music Group Nashville is Universal Music Group's country music subsidiary. Some of the labels in this group include MCA Nashville Records, Mercury Nashville Records, Lost Highway Records, Capitol Records Nashville and EMI Records Nashv ...

. The disc contained a total of 11 tracks that blended a mixture of different musical styles. ''Love Travels'' spawned four

singles Singles are people not in a committed relationship. Singles may also refer to: Film and television * ''Singles'' (miniseries), a 1984 Australian television series * ''Singles'' (1992 film), written and directed by Cameron Crowe * ''Singles'' ...

, two of which made the North American country songs charts: " 455 Rocket" and 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 ...

. The album itself reached the top 20 of the American country albums chart and was reviewed positively by critics.

Background

Steve Huey 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 ...

described Kathy Mattea as "one of the most respected female country stars of her era" as well as "a commercially successful hitmaker". During the eighties and nineties, four of Mattea's singles topped the North American country charts: "

Eighteen Wheels and a Dozen Roses "Eighteen Wheels and a Dozen Roses" is a song written by Paul Nelson and Gene Nelson, and recorded by American country music artist Kathy Mattea. It was released in March 1988 as the second single from her album '' Untasted Honey''. The song hit ...

", "

Goin' Gone "Goin' Gone" is a song written by Pat Alger, Bill Dale and Fred Koller, and recorded by American country music artist Kathy Mattea. It was released in September 1987 as the first single from the album '' Untasted Honey''. The song was Mattea's ni ...

", " Burnin' Old Memories" and "

Come from the Heart "Come from the Heart" is a country music song written by Richard Leigh and Susanna Clark and published in 1987. It is most known through the 1989 single by Kathy Mattea, released in conjunction with her album ''Willow in the Wind'', though the s ...

". Several more made the top ten and top 20 during those decades. By the mid nineties, Mattea had begun changing her artistic direction. For her next album, Mattea explained that she wanted to "delver deeper" into what she was "feeling". "It's such a gift to be paid for being who you are as an artist. I'm so lucky to have a very loyal following of people who've stayed with me through all of my eclectic restlessness. They always want to see what I am going to do next," she explained in 1997.

Recording and content

''Love Travels'' was co-produced by Mattea, along with Ben Wisch and assistant production credits from Shane Tarleton. The album was recorded between June and December 1996 at Woodland Studios, 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 ...

. It incorporated commercial country music with elements of

country folk Contemporary folk music refers to a wide variety of genres that emerged in the mid 20th century and afterwards which were associated with traditional folk music. Starting in the mid-20th century a new form of popular folk music evolved from tradit ...

. Other genres explored in some selections included

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language * Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Fo ...

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...

and New Orleans musical styles. Mattea told the ''

Sun Sentinel The ''Sun Sentinel'' (also known as the ''South Florida Sun Sentinel'', known until 2008 as the ''Sun-Sentinel'', and stylized on its masthead as ''SunSentinel'') is the main daily newspaper of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, as well as surrounding Br ...

'' that she wanted the songs to guide her musical direction for the album. ''Love Travels'' consisted of 11 tracks of material. One track featured writing credits from Mattea's husband (and songwriter),

Jon Vezner Jon Vezner (born June 6, 1951) is an American country music songwriter. He is best known for his work with Kathy Mattea, to whom he has been married since 1988. Vezner began working as a songwriter in Minnesota and later moved to Nashville, Tenne ...

. Titled "All Roads to the River" was composed with singer-songwriter,

Janis Ian Janis Ian (born Janis Eddy Fink; April 7, 1951) is an American singer-songwriter who was most commercially successful in the 1960s and 1970s. Her signature songs are the 1966/67 hit " Society's Child (Baby I've Been Thinking)" and the 1975 Top T ...

. The fifth features vocals from country artist,

Suzy Bogguss Susan Kay Bogguss (born December 30, 1956) is an American country music singer and songwriter. She began her career in the 1980s as a solo singer. In the 1990s, six of her songs were Top 10 hits, three albums were certified gold, and one album re ...

. Titled "Further and Further Away", the song discusses how parents age as their children develop into maturity. Mattea personally connected with the song as she was watching both her parents age at the time. Other themes about romance are found on songs like "If That's What You Call Love". The sixth track, "455 Rocket", is a story song built around a man's love of an

Oldsmobile 88 The Oldsmobile 88 (marketed from 1989 on as the Eighty Eight) is a full-size car that was sold and produced by Oldsmobile from 1949 until 1999. From 1950 until 1974, the 88 was the division's most profitable line, particularly the entry level mod ...

car. The final track, "Beautiful Fool", discusses how social leaders like

Martin Luther King, Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968 ...

tried to solve problems without using physical violence.

Critical reception

''Love Travels'' received a mostly positive critical reception. In their review, ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...

'' gave the album a B+ rating. Thom Owens of

rated the project three out of five stars. He found the album's production to evoke more polished sounds that her previous works, but nonetheless found it to be a strong collection of material. Owens further commented that it walks "the perfect middle-ground between country-folk and mainstream contemporary country." The ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...

'' gave the project three out of four stars, noting the blending the album's incorporation of various musical styles. "Mattea just keeps rolling along in her 11th studio album, another engaging effort highlighted by songs from

Gillian Welch Gillian Howard Welch (; born October 2, 1967) is an American singer-songwriter. She performs with her musical partner, guitarist David Rawlings. Their sparse and dark musical style, which combines elements of Appalachian music, bluegrass, countr ...

Jim Lauderdale James Russell Lauderdale (born April 11, 1957) is an American country, bluegrass, and Americana singer-songwriter. Since 1986, he has released 31 studio albums, including collaborations with artists such as Dr. Ralph Stanley, Buddy Miller, and ...

Cheryl Wheeler Cheryl Wheeler (born July 10, 1951) is a Massachusetts-based singer-songwriter of contemporary folk music. She has recorded thirteen folk albums to date and has toured extensively throughout the United States since the mid-1970s. Heralded as a ...

and Janis Ian. Love and the human spirit reign triumphant in songs that urge listeners to find their muses and trust those pesky inner voices," the newspaper commented. Robert Loy of ''Country Standard Time'' found the album to be more personal that previous works in his review: "For some time now, Kathy Mattea has managed to walk the line between commercialism and a more mature artistic vision. Her previous release ''

Walking Away a Winner ''Walking Away a Winner'' is the ninth studio album by American country music artist, Kathy Mattea. It was released on May 17, 1994 via the Mercury/ PolyGram labels and contained ten tracks of original material. The album's production featured a p ...

'' was radio friendly, but she's back on more personal, even spiritual ground on ''Love Travels''.

Release, chart performance and singles

''Love Travels'' was released on February 4, 1997, on Mercury Records Nashville. It was originally offered as both a

compact disc The compact disc (CD) is a Digital media, digital optical disc data storage format that was co-developed by Philips and Sony to store and play digital audio recordings. In August 1982, the first compact disc was manufactured. It was then rele ...

and a

cassette Cassette may refer to: Technology * Cassette tape (or ''musicassette'', ''audio cassette'', ''cassette tape'', or ''tape''), a worldwide standard for analog audio recording and playback ** Cassette single (or "Cassingle"), a music single in the ...

. It was later released to digital sites for downloading and streaming purposes. The album entered the American ''

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 ...

Top Country Albums Top Country Albums is a chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine in the United States. The 50-position chart lists the most popular country music albums in the country, calculated weekly by Broadcast Data Systems based on physical sales a ...

chart on February 22, 1997, and spent 28 weeks there. On April 12, 1997, it peaked at number 15 on the chart. It also made the ''

Billboard 200 The ''Billboard'' 200 is a record chart ranking the 200 most popular music albums and EPs in the United States. It is published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine and is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of art ...

'' all-genre chart, reaching number 121 on April 12, 1997, after 14 weeks on the chart. It also became her second album to make the United Kingdom's

Official Charts Company The Official Charts (legal name: The Official UK Charts Company Limited) is a British inter-professional organization that compiles various "official" record charts in the United Kingdom, Ireland and France. In the United Kingdom, its charts inc ...

all-genre chart, reaching number 65. Four singles were spawned from ''Love Travels''. The first was "455 Rocket", which was issued on January 18, 1997. On April 19, 1997, the song peaked at number 21 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. It also reached the top 20 of Canada's ''

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 chart, peaking at number 16 around the same time. The next single issued from the album was the track, "I'm on Your Side", which was issued to radio on May 19, 1997. The single did not chart on ''Billboards country survey. It was followed by the title track, which was released in August 1997. The song later peaked at number 39 on the ''Billboard'' country chart after 16 weeks there. It also reached number 79 on the ''RPM'' country songs chart. The final single issued from ''Love Travels'' was the track, "Patiently Waiting", which not chart on ''Billboard''. It was released in 1998.

Track listing

Personnel

All credits are adapted from the

liner notes Liner notes (also sleeve notes or album notes) are the writings found on the sleeves of LP record albums and in booklets that come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or the equivalent packaging for cassettes. Origin Liner notes are desce ...

of ''Love Travels''. ;"Love Travels" * Chris Carmichael - fiddle, cello, handclaps * Bill Cooley - acoustic guitar *

Bob Halligan Jr. Robert Sidney Halligan Jr. (born January 3, 1953) is an American singer, musician, music producer and songwriter who has collaborated with many artists, particularly in the hard rock/heavy metal music, heavy metal genre, throughout his career. He i ...

- piano, acoustic guitar, background vocals, handclaps *

James "Hutch" Hutchinson James Hutchinson (born January 24, 1953) is an American session bassist best known for his work with Bonnie Raitt. Though his work takes him nearly everywhere he primarily resides in Studio City, Los Angeles, CA and Haiku-Pauwela, Hawaii. Car ...

- bass guitar * Mary Ann Kennedy - background vocals *

Abe Laboriel Jr. Abraham Laboriel Jr. (born March 23, 1971) is an American session drummer. He is the son of Mexican bass guitarist Abraham Laboriel, nephew of Mexican rocker Johnny Laboriel, and brother of record producer, songwriter, and film composer Mateo ...

- drums, percussion * Tim Lauer - accordion,

harmonium The pump organ is a type of free-reed organ that generates sound as air flows past a vibrating piece of thin metal in a frame. The piece of metal is called a reed. Specific types of pump organ include the reed organ, harmonium, and melodeon. T ...

, handclaps * Hunter Lee -

pennywhistle The tin whistle, also called the penny whistle, is a simple six-holed woodwind instrument. It is a type of fipple flute, putting it in the same class as the recorder, Native American flute, and other woodwind instruments that meet such criteria. ...

, bagpipes, handclaps *

Duke Levine Duke Levine (born November 29, 1961) is an American guitarist, known primarily for his rock and country music playing as a session musician. Levine was born in Worcester, Massachusetts, United States. He has recorded and performed with Shawn Colv ...

- electric guitar, handclaps * Kathy Mattea - handclaps * Michael McDonald - background vocals * Donna McElroy - background vocals * Steve Sturm - pedal steel guitar * Suzy Wills - background vocals ;"Sending Me Angels" * Bob Bailey - background vocals * Kim Fleming - background vocals * Paul Franklin - pedal steel guitar * Vicki Hampton - background vocals * James "Hutch" Hutchinson - bass guitar, handclaps * Abe Laboriel Jr. - drums, handclaps * Duke Levine - electric guitar, handclaps * Kathy Mattea - handclaps * Louis Nunley - background vocals *

Don Potter Donald Steele Potter (21 April 1902 – 7 June 2004) was an English sculptor, wood carver, potter and teacher. Don Potter was born in Newington, near Sittingbourne, Kent, the son of a school teacher, and attended a private school. He joined t ...

- acoustic guitar *

Matt Rollings Matt Rollings is a Grammy Award-winning American composer, keyboard player and record producer. Known mainly for playing in Lyle Lovett's Large Band, Rollings has worked with many artists, not all country. Matt won the 'Best Traditional Pop Voca ...

- piano,

Hammond B-3 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 to vary sounds. Until 1975, Hammond organs generated s ...

* Kirby Shelstad - percussion ;"Patiently Waiting" *

Jonatha Brooke Jonatha Brooke (born January 23, 1964) is an American folk rock singer-songwriter and guitarist from Massachusetts, United States. Her music merges elements of folk, rock and pop, often with poignant lyrics and complex harmonies. She has been a ...

- background vocals * Farrell Morris - congas, shaker, tambourine * James "Hutch" Hutchinson - bass guitar *

Jim Keltner James Lee Keltner (born April 27, 1942) is an American drummer and percussionist known primarily for his session work. He was characterized by Bob Dylan biographer Howard Sounes as "the leading session drummer in America".Howard Sounes. ''Down ...

- drums * Duke Levine - electric guitar * Don Potter - acoustic guitar * Matt Rollings - piano, Hammond B-3 organ * Suzy Wills - background vocals ;"If That's What You Call Love" *

Lionel Cartwright Lionel Burke Cartwright (born February 10, 1960) is an American country music artist. Between 1988 and 1992, Cartwright charted twelve singles on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Singles & Tracks charts, including a 1 single in 1991's "Leap of Fait ...

- piano, background vocals * Kathy Chiavola - background vocals * Paul Franklin - pedal steel guitar * James "Hutch" Hutchinson - bass guitar * Abe Laboriel Jr. - drums * Tim Lauer - synthesizer * Duke Levine - acoustic guitar, electric guitar * Don Potter - acoustic guitar * Kirby Shelstad - percussion ;"Further and Further Away" *

- background vocals * Abe Laboriel Jr. - drums, percussion *

John Leventhal John Leventhal (born December 18, 1952) is a musician, producer, songwriter, and recording engineer who has produced albums for William Bell, The Blind Boys of Alabama, Michelle Branch, Rosanne Cash, Marc Cohn, Shawn Colvin, Sarah Jarosz, Rodne ...

- bass guitar, electric guitar, acoustic guitar,

mando-guitar An octave twelve is a type of 12-string guitar fitted with a short-scale neck (15.5 inches) and a small solid body. It is tuned one octave higher than a standard guitar, giving it the tonal range of a mandolin and enabling a guitarist to achiev ...

bouzouki The bouzouki (, also ; el, μπουζούκι ; alt. pl. ''bouzoukia'', from Greek ), also spelled buzuki or buzuci, is a musical instrument popular in Greece. It is a member of the long-necked lute family, with a round body with a flat top and ...

* Ben Wisch - synthesizer ;"455 Rocket" * Pat Buchanan - electric guitar *

Jerry Douglas Gerald Calvin "Jerry" Douglas (born May 28, 1956) is an American Dobro and lap steel guitar player and record producer. Career In addition to his fourteen solo recordings, Douglas has played on more than 1,600 albums. As a sideman, he has ...

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 ...

Stuart Duncan Stuart Duncan (born April 14, 1964) is an American bluegrass musician who plays the fiddle, mandolin, guitar, and banjo. Life Duncan was born in Quantico, Virginia, and raised in Santa Paula, California, where he played in the school band. He ...

- mandolin * Bob Halligan Jr. - background vocals * James "Hutch" Hutchinson - bass guitar, foot taps, knee slaps * Kirk "Jelly Roll" Johnson - harmonica * Jim Keltner - drums, maracas, foot taps, knee slaps * Kathy Mattea - foot taps, knee slaps * Don Potter - acoustic guitar *

Kim Richey Kimberly Richey (born December 1, 1956) is an American singer and songwriter. Career Kim Richey came onto the music scene in the 1990s and entered her first recording contract at the age of 37. Kim signed with Mercury Nashville. She spent the n ...

- background vocals ;"I'm on Your Side" * Pat Bucahanan - electric guitar * James "Hutch" Hutchinson - bass guitar * Jim Keltner - drums, tambourine *

- acoustic guitar * George Marinelli - electric guitar * Kathy Mattea - background vocals * Kirby Shelstad - percussion ;"The Bridge" * James "Hutch" Hutchinson - bass guitar * Mary Ann Kennedy - background vocals * Abe Laboriel Jr. - drums * Duke Levine - slide guitar * Michael McDonald - background vocals * Don Potter - acoustic guitar * Matt Rollings -

Wurlitzer electric piano The Wurlitzer electronic piano is an electric piano manufactured and marketed by Wurlitzer from the mid-1950s to mid-1980s. Sound is generated by striking a metal reed with a hammer, which induces an electric current in a pickup. It is conceptua ...

, Hammond B-3 organ ;"All Roads to the River" * Jonatha Brooke - background vocals * James "Hutch" Hutchinson - bass guitar *

John Jennings John Jennings may refer to: Politicians * John Jenyns (1660–1717), MP * John Jennings (Burton MP) (1903–1990), British Conservative Party politician * John Jennings (American politician) (1880–1956), U.S. Representative from Tennessee, 1939 ...

- baritone guitar * Abe Laboriel Jr. - drums * Hunter Lee -

digeridoo The didgeridoo (; also spelt didjeridu, among other variants) is a wind instrument, played with vibrating lips to produce a continuous drone while using a special breathing technique called circular breathing. The didgeridoo was developed by ...

* Duke Levine -

mandola The mandola (US and Canada) or tenor mandola (Ireland and UK) is a fretted, stringed musical instrument. It is to the mandolin what the viola is to the violin: the four double courses of strings tuned in fifths to the same pitches as the viola ...

, slide guitar * Don Potter - acoustic guitar * Kirby Shelstad - percussion * Suzy Wills - background vocals ;"The End of the Line" * James "Hutch" Hutchinson - bass guitar * Mary Ann Kennedy - background vocals * Abe Laboriel Jr. - drums, percussion * Duke Levine - electric guitar * Michael McDonald - background vocals * Don Potter - acoustic guitar,

resonator guitar A resonator guitar or resophonic guitar is an acoustic guitar that produces sound by conducting string vibrations through the bridge to one or more spun metal cones (resonators), instead of to the guitar's sounding board (top). Resonator gui ...

* Matt Rollings - Wurlitzer electric piano * Ben Wisch - synthesizer *

Jonathan Yudkin Jonathan Yudkin is an American multi-instrumentalist who is a proficient player of banjo, violin, mandolin, and other stringed instruments. He is a Nashville-based session musician, record producer, arranger, and band leader. Biography Growin ...

- mandolin ;"Beautiful Fool" *

Phil Keaggy Philip Tyler Keaggy (born March 23, 1951) is an American acoustic and electric guitarist and vocalist who has released more than 55 albums and contributed to many more recordings in both the contemporary Christian music and mainstream markets. H ...

- acoustic guitar *

Edgar Meyer Edgar Meyer (born November 24, 1960) is an American bassist and composer. His styles include classical, bluegrass, newgrass, and jazz. He has won five Grammy Awards and been nominated seven times. Meyer is a member of the Telluride Bluegrass ...

- double bass * Ben Wisch - synthesizer ;Technical personnel * Ted Jensen – mastering * Matt Knobel – engineering * Kathy Mattea – producer * John McGriff – assistant technician * Shane Tarleton – assistant producer * Ben Wisch – producer, engineering, mixing

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Release history

References

{{Authority control 1997 albums Albums produced by Kathy Mattea Kathy Mattea albums Mercury Nashville albums