''Rock Me Back to Little Rock'' is the tenth studio album 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 Jan Howard. It was released in June 1970 on

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis, Jack Kapp, American Decca's first president, and Milton Rackmil, who later became American ...

and was produced by

Owen Bradley William Owen Bradley (October 21, 1915 – January 7, 1998) was an American musician and record producer who, along with Chet Atkins, Bob Ferguson, Bill Porter, and Don Law, was one of the chief architects of the 1950s and 1960s Nashville sou ...

. The album featured two singles, one of which became a top 20 hit 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. Additionally, the album would reach peak positions on the ''Billboard'' country albums chart.

Background and content

''Rock Me Back to Little Rock'' was recorded in several sessions between 1969 and 1970 at

Bradley's Barn ''Bradley's Barn'' is the fifth studio album by American rock group The Beau Brummels. Released in October 1968, it contains the singles "Long Walking Down to Misery" and "Cherokee Girl." The album has received critical acclaim as an early examp ...

studio in

Mount Juliet, Tennessee Mt. Juliet (also referred to as Mount Juliet) is a city located in western Wilson County, Tennessee. A suburb of Nashville, it is approximately east of downtown Nashville. Mt. Juliet is located mostly between two major national east-west routes, ...

. All sessions were produced by the studio's owner,

, Howard's collaborator since signing with the

Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, a record label * Decca Gold, a classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, a musical theater record label * Decca Studios, a recording facility in We ...

label. The album consisted of 11 tracks, most of which were cover versions of songs by other artists. Of these covers was

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

's "

Let It Be Let It Be most commonly refers to: * ''Let It Be'' (Beatles album), the Beatles' final studio album, released in 1970 * "Let It Be" (Beatles song), the title song from the album It may also refer to: Film and television * ''Let It Be'' (1970 ...

", Glen Campbell's " Try a Little Kindness" and

Simon & Garfunkel Simon & Garfunkel were an American folk rock duo consisting of the singer-songwriter Paul Simon and the singer Art Garfunkel. They were one of the best-selling music groups of the 1960s, and their biggest hits—including the electric remix of " ...

's " Bridge Over Troubled Water". The album also included original tracks, such as the title track and Howard's self-penned "Love Is a Sometimes Thing". The latter track would later be released as a single by Howard's friend and musical collaborator, Bill Anderson. ''Rock Me Back to Little Rock'' also included two songs that were previously recorded by Connie Smith. The album's second track "

You and Your Sweet Love "You and Your Sweet Love" is a song written by Bill Anderson and recorded by American country music artist Connie Smith. Released in October 1969, the song reached number 6 on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Singles chart. The single was later rel ...

" was a top 10 hit for Smith in 1969 and was co-written by Bill Anderson. The album's tenth track, "

I Never Once Stopped Loving You ''I Never Once Stopped Loving You'' is the fourteenth solo studio album by American country singer Connie Smith. It was released in September 1970 on RCA Victor and contained ten tracks. The collection mixed original material with covers of prev ...

", was composed by both Anderson and Howard. The song also became a top 10 hit for Smith.

Release and reception

''Rock Me Back to Little Rock'' was released in June 1970 on

via a vinyl record format. The record included six songs on the first side and five songs on the remaining side. The album peaked at number 42 on the ''

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 June 23, 1970. It spent a total of 3 weeks on the chart. The album also featured two singles. The first single, "

We Had All the Good Things Going "We Had All the Good Things Going" is a single by American country music artist Jan Howard. Released in August 1969, the song reached #20 on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Singles chart. The single was later included on Howard's 1970 album, ''Rock M ...

", reached number 20 on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Singles chart in November 1969. It became Howard's sixth and final top 20 hit as a solo artist. The title track was released in 1970, reaching number 26 on the ''Billboard'' country songs chart on May 2. The album was reviewed positively by ''

'' in 1970. In their commentary, writers called it a "pop-country product with a few mavericks that she (and produced Owen Bradley) adopted and adapted." Magazine writers praised Howard's covers of "Bridge Over Troubled Water" and "I Never Once Stopped Loving You".

Track listing

Personnel

All credits are adapted from the liner notes of ''Rock Me Back to Little Rock''. Musical and technical personnel *

Harold Bradley Harold Ray Bradley (January 2, 1926 – January 31, 2019) was an American guitarist and entrepreneur, who played on many country, rock and pop recordings and produced numerous TV variety shows and movie soundtracks. Having started as a session ...

–

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

–

producer Producer or producers may refer to: Occupations *Producer (agriculture), a farm operator *A stakeholder of economic production *Film producer, supervises the making of films **Executive producer, contributes to a film's budget and usually does not ...

* Kenneth Buttrey –

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

* Jimmy Capps – guitar *

Floyd Cramer Floyd Cramer (October 27, 1933 – December 31, 1997) was an American pianist who became famous for his use of melodic "half step" attacks. He was inducted into both the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. His signature ...

–

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

Ray Edenton Ray Quarles Edenton (November 3, 1926 – September 21, 2022) was an American guitar player and country music session musician. Early life Ray Edenton was born into a musical family on November 3, 1926, and grew up near Mineral, Virginia. His f ...

– guitar * Buddy Harman – drums * Jan Howard – lead vocals *

Roy Huskey Roy Milton Huskey (December 17, 1956 – September 6, 1997) was a prominent American upright bass player in country music from Nashville, Tennessee. Huskey performed alongside musicians such as Chet Atkins, Garth Brooks, Johnny Cash, Vince Gi ...

–

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gui ...

* Grady Martin – guitar * Charlie McCoy –

harmonica The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica inclu ...

vibes Vibes may refer to: * Vibes (percussion) or vibraphone, a musical instrument * Vibes (company) a mobile marketing company * The aura or energy given off by someone Media * ''Vibes'' (film), a 1988 comedy * ''Vibes'' (video game), a 2010 video ...

* Hal Rugg –

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 ...

* Jerry Smith – piano * Pete Wade – guitar

Chart performance

Release history

References

{{Authority control 1970 albums Jan Howard albums Albums produced by Owen Bradley Decca Records albums