''Wreck Your Life'' is the second studio

album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

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 ...

rock band A rock band or pop band is a small musical ensemble that performs rock music, pop music, or a related genre. A four-piece band is the most common configuration in rock and pop music. In the early years, the configuration was typically two guita ...

Old 97's Old 97's is an American rock band from Dallas, Texas. Formed in 1992, they have since released twelve studio albums, two full extended plays, shared split duty on another, and have one live album. Their most recent release is ''Twelfth''. They ...

, first released on October 3, 1995 (see

1995 in music This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1995. Specific locations * 1995 in British music *1995 in Norwegian music Specific genres * 1995 in classical music * 1995 in country music *1995 in heavy metal music * 1 ...

). The album's title comes from a

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

Department of Transportation bumper sticker with the slogan, "Don't Wreck Your Life". Drummer Philip Peeples removed the first word and applied the sticker to the band's touring van. ''Wreck Your Life'' was the band's first professionally released album, released by

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

alt-country label

Bloodshot Records Bloodshot Records is an independent record label based in Chicago, Illinois, which specializes in alternative country. History Bloodshot Records was founded in 1994 by Nan Warshaw, Rob Miller, and Eric Babcock, who knew each other from jobs ...

. The album contains many of the country and bar band elements absent from the later

Elektra Records Elektra Records (or Elektra Entertainment) is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, founded in 1950 by Jac Holzman and Paul Rickolt. It played an important role in the development of contemporary folk and rock music between the 1 ...

recordings. Four extra songs from these sessions, as well as two singles, were later combined by Bloodshot for the '' Early Tracks'' EP. Though the anticipation of the album was immense, the ratings were not very good. "Doreen" is a re-recording from the band's first album, ''

Hitchhike to Rhome ''Hitchhike to Rhome'' is the first studio album by American country/rock band Old 97's, first released on November 1, 1994 (see 1994 in music). The title comes from the song, "Stoned," and refers to Rhome, Texas. The lyrics make numerous ref ...

'', and an alternate take on "W-I-F-E" can be found on '' Early Tracks''. "Big Brown Eyes" was featured in the series finale of ''

Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide ''Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide'' (sometimes shortened to ''Ned's Declassified'') is an American live action sitcom on Nickelodeon that debuted on the Nickelodeon Sunday night TEENick scheduling block on September 12, 2004. The series ...

'' and was re-recorded for the band's next album, ''

Too Far to Care ''Too Far to Care'' is the third studio album by American country/rock band Old 97's, first released on June 17, 1997 (see 1997 in music). The album's title comes from the song "Streets of Where I'm From." History The album was the band's first ...

''. The lead song, "Victoria", is a country ballad to Miller's ex-girlfriend, while "Doreen" refers to a memorable fan of

Killbilly Killbilly was a Dallas, Texas-based band active from 1987 to 1994, which described its music as being a mixture of bluegrass and punk. Critics have variously described the band's style as a "fusion of bluegrass and shred metal", and as "a genuin ...

, a predecessor band featuring Miller and Hammond. "You Belong To My Heart" was made famous by

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...

, while "My Sweet Blue-Eyed Darlin'" is by

Bill Monroe William Smith "Bill" Monroe (; September 13, 1911 – September 9, 1996) was an American mandolinist, singer, and songwriter, who created the bluegrass music genre. Because of this, he is often called the " Father of Bluegrass". The genre take ...

. The Robert mentioned in "Big Brown Eyes" (as well as "Drowning In The Days") is Miller's boyhood friend, Robert Jenkins. In 2009, Bloodshot reissued the album under the title ''Wreck Your Life... And Then Some: The Complete Bloodshot Recordings''. The reissue contains not only the entire original album, but also other obscure songs the band recorded for Bloodshot.

Track listing

All songs by

Rhett Miller Stewart Ransom "Rhett" Miller II (born September 1970) is the lead singer of the country rock band Old 97's. He also records and performs as a solo musician, and has been published as a writer of both fiction and non-fiction. Early life Mille ...

, Ken Bethea, Murry Hammond and Philip Peeples, except where noted. #"Victoria" - 3:51 #"The Other Shoe" - 2:58 #"Doreen" - 3:43 #"

You Belong To My Heart "You Belong to My Heart" is the name of an English-language version of the Mexican Bolero song "Solamente una vez" (''Only Once'', in English). This song was composed by Mexican songwriter Agustín Lara and originally performed by singer Ana Marí ...

" (Dora Luz and

Agustín Lara Ángel Agustín María Carlos Fausto Mariano Alfonso del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús Lara y Aguirre del Pino (; October 30, 1897 – November 6, 1970), known as Agustín Lara, was a Mexican composer and performer of songs and boleros. He is recogn ...

; English lyrics:

Ray Gilbert Ray Gilbert (September 5, 1912 – March 3, 1976) was an American lyricist. He grew up in Hartford, Connecticut. Career Gilbert is best remembered for the lyrics to the Oscar-winning song "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah" from the film ''Song of the South'', w ...

) - 3:05 #"Big Brown Eyes" - 4:25 #"Dressing Room Walls" - 3:55 #"W-I-F-E" - 3:32 #"Bel Air" - 4:05 #"My Sweet Blue-Eyed Darlin'" (

; vocals by

Murry Hammond Old 97's is an American rock band from Dallas, Texas. Formed in 1992, they have since released twelve studio albums, two full extended plays, shared split duty on another, and have one live album. Their most recent release is ''Twelfth''. They ...

) - 2:15 #"Old Familiar Steam" - 3:58 #"Over The Cliff" - 3:19 (

Jon Langford Jonathan Denis Langford (born 11 October 1957) is a Welsh musician and artist based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Langford is a founder member of the punk band The Mekons, the post-punk group The Three Johns, and the alternative country ...

) #"Goin', Goin', Gone" - 3:54

Personnel

Old 97's are: *Ken Bethea - electric guitar *Murry Hammond - bass, vocals & banjo *Rhett Miller - vocals & acoustic guitar *Philip Peeples - trap kit Additional performances *Jon Langford - guitar on Doreen outro *Chuck Uchida - power chords on Dressing Room Walls *Don Walser - yodeling on Old Familiar Steam outro

References

{{Authority control Old 97's albums 1995 albums Bloodshot Records albums