80's Ladies

''80's Ladies'' is the debut studio album by American country music artist K. T. Oslin, released on June 30, 1987, by RCA Records Nashville. The album, her first, propelled her to success in mainstream country, after an earlier first failed attempt with Elektra Records consisting of two singles released in 1982. She had signed with RCA at 45 years old.

Commercially, the record topped the ''Billboard'' country chart, along with peaking at number 68 on the main ''Billboard'' 200, making it the highest-charting country album in her career. It was certified platinum in the United States by the RIAA and gold in Canada. Five singles were released from the album, with one being released in the UK. Its self-titled single was praised by fans and critics, eventually winning Best Female Country Vocal Performance at the 1987 Grammy Awards. Oslin became the first woman to win "Song of the Year" at the Country Music Association Awards. The song also earned Oslin the top female vocalist award at the Academy of Country Music Awards (ACM) and won the ACM award for music video of the year. The album garnered many major award nominations throughout 1988, and fairly favorable reviews from music critics. Following the album's release, Oslin embarked on tours with Alabama and George Strait.

Background

Between the late 1970s and the early 1980s, K. T. Oslin wrote songs that brought her to the attention of a performance rights group, SESAC. At the same time, she also sang on Guy Clark's eponymous album. Diana Petty, a Nashville executive for SESAC, advised Oslin to sign a major label contract. By 1979, Oslin was signed with Elektra via a "singles-only" contract, with Petty's support. Only two singles were issued on the label, which were both commercial failures. The song "Clean Your Own Tables" was on the charts for "about a minute and a half... nddied a fiery death", Oslin recalled. She was dropped by the label in 1982 and returned to New York, which she found her work unsatisfying. She continued to write songs, and was named "Most Promising Country Music Writer" by SESAC that same year. She made an appearance on a live radio broadcast in 1984 to try to connect with more musicians. Oslin fell into a depressive state due to her lack of commercial success and later said that she had suffered "several '4 a.m. anxiety attacks. Petty continued to encourage her, and she did work with Judy Rodman, Dottie West, Gail Davies, and The Judds.

Eventually, Oslin made another effort to regain a recording contract. By the beginning of 1986, she had borrowed $7,000 from her aunt, lost 40 pounds, and temporarily acquired a Nashville nightclub, inviting music executives to a one-time live showcase, expecting phone calls from them afterwards. She recalled that "the next morning, I sat waiting for the phone to ring", but did not succeed in landing a contract.

Through her musical connections, Oslin contacted Nashville producer Harold Shedd, who had recently been successful working with Alabama. Shedd convinced Oslin to record three of her original tunes, and he eventually became her full-time production collaborator. Through Shedd's connections with RCA Nashville, including Alabama's contract with the label, Oslin met RCA executive Joe Galante, who believed that Oslin had potential due to her outstanding songwriting and voice. At age 45, Oslin was signed officially to RCA in 1986.

Production and composition

After signing with the label, Oslin immediately commenced songwriting, creating five new tracks. Recording sessions for ''80's Ladies'' took place at The Music Mill from early to late 1986 in Nashville, Tennessee, where the rhythm tracks and vocal overdubs were done. Harold Shedd served as the album's sole producer. The recording was done digitally using a 32-track X850 Mitsubishi PCM tape recorder. Oslin provided lead vocals and played keyboards on the album. Additional keyboards were contributed by David Briggs, known for his extensive work with Nashville musicians, and Gary Prim. Guitar parts were recorded by Bruce Dees, Steve Gibson, and Brent Rowan, with Rowan also playing acoustic guitar. The track "Dr., Dr." notably features guitar overdubs. Drummers Eddie Bayers, Larrie Londin, and James Stroud contributed to the rhythm section, alongside bass parts recorded by Mike Brignardello and Larry Paxton. Sam Levine played saxophone on the album, with his contributions being particularly notable on the track "I'll Always Come Back". Terry McMillan, who was also a solo artist, provided the harmonica tracks. Backing vocals were added by Joe Scaife, while Costo Davis played synthesizers. The album was engineered by Jim Cotton and Joe Scaife, with assistance from George W. Clinton and Paul Goldberg. The album was mixed and edited by Milan Bogdan, and mastering was done by Hank Williams.

Music and lyrics

''80's Ladies'' sound has been described as a "blend of pop and southern-blues-and-rock". AllMusic journalist Rodney Batdorf describes it as "a new voice in country music", crediting Oslin's voice as a narrator for "a whole generation of women about the social changes". Lyrically, the album's material appears to be largely autobiographical, about Oslin's career in music, but Oslin denied that it was only about her: "It's indeed not my life story – it's everybody's life story". Oslin said that the songs were about experiences of people that she knew: "I do write from a personal point of view. I see what my friends are going through... how they react to relationships."

Oslin's title track starts as a piano riff that is comparable to those of Jackson Browne. According to Oslin, it took her approximately a year to write the lyrical arrangements, starting it off as a "little howpiece"; she did not initially envision it as a single, let alone a hit song. In promotional copy for Oslin's 2002 ''RCA Country Legends'' compilation, Rich Kienzle wrote that the song "captured the feelings of middle-aged women everywhere". Oslin herself stated that the lyrics were inspired by her best friend's photo showing her ten-year-old daughter looking identical to the friend at the same age. The song describes the long friendship of two people who have known each other since childhood.

The song " Wall of Tears", which was written by Richard Leigh and Peter McCann, was produced as a cover song. Oslin wrote "I'll Always Come Back" as a quiet love song inspired by Little Bo-Peep and a boomerang. The song " Do Ya" is a eulogy for the relationship of a couple who have been married for five years, although Oslin suggested that the relationship on which the song was based actually spanned about thirteen years.

"Younger Men", "Dr., Dr." and "Lonely But Only for You" were written earlier, between 1982 through 1985, before Oslin revived her solo career. "Younger Men" was written by Oslin and was described as "a woman of forty checking out younger guys". Jerry Sharpe from ''The Pittsburgh Press'' said that the song "reverses the role about middle-aged men trying to regain youth through a fling with young women". The song dates back to 1982, a follow-up to her first single, "Clean Your Own Tables", which failed commercially. It was re-recorded for ''80's Ladies''. "Lonely But Only for You", written by Oslin in collaboration with Rory Bourke and Charlie Black (the song was Black's sole contribution to the album), was originally composed for actress Sissy Spacek and featured on her 1983 album '' Hangin' Up My Heart''. Spacek's version peaked at number 15 on ''Billboard'''s Hot Country songs and number 10 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart. "Dr., Dr.", described as "bluesy, brazzy and jazzy" by the ''Indianapolis Star'', describes a songwriter going to see a doctor about a broken heart. The song previously appeared as the B-side of the 1982 version of "Younger Men", initially titled "How Many Loves Have I Got Left".

"Two Hearts", written by Oslin and Bourke, has a "self-assertive theme" about a "lonely K. T." offering comfort to a lonely stranger in a bar. A re-recorded version of the song was later featured on Oslin's 1990 album '' Love in a Small Town''. It was released as a single prior to the album's release, reaching number 73 on the US Country chart. "Old Pictures" was written by Oslin and Jerry Gillespie. They were convinced at first that it was "a Kodak jingle" tune. They worked on the lyrics for a couple of years. "Old Pictures" deals with a woman reminiscing over her photographs of her close relatives and her loved ones. The Judds later recorded the song for their ''Heartland'' album, not long before Oslin released the song.

Release and promotion

Promotional single airplay ensued on country radio stations in early 1987. The album was slated to be released in March of that year, but was delayed to June for unspecified reasons. ''80's Ladies'' was released on June 30, 1987, by RCA Nashville and BMG Music. The album debuted on the US ''Billboard'' Top Country chart at number 15 on August 8, 1987, the highest-ever debut chart position for a female country artist at the time, surpassing Loretta Lynn's debut at number 18 in January 1964 with '' Loretta Lynn Sings''. ''80's Ladies'' peaked at the top spot on the country chart for one week on February 27, 1988. The album debuted at number 145 on the US ''Billboard'' chart on December 12, 1987, before peaking at number 68 on March 26, 1988. The album was on the country chart for 148 weeks. It sold almost 400,000 copies by February 1988, and by March 22, it was certified gold by the RIAA for sales of over 500,000 copies in the US. It was certified platinum on May 23, 1989, for 1,000,000 sales. Despite the album having only charted in the US, it was eventually certified gold in Canada for selling over 50,000 copies in that country.

"Wall of Tears" was released as the first single on January 9, 1987, and reached number 40 on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Songs chart, staying on the chart for 15 weeks. Her second and most successful single, " 80's Ladies", was released on April 24, 1987, and reached number seven on the ''Billboard'' Country Singles chart, staying for 21 weeks on that chart, and reached number four on ''RPM''s Canadian Country Tracks. With "80's Ladies", Oslin became first woman to win "Song of the Year" at the Country Music Association Awards (CMAs). The song also earned Oslin a nomination at the Academy of Country Music Awards. The song won Oslin the Grammy Award for Best Female Country Vocal Performance in 1988.

" Do Ya" was released on September 11, 1987, and peaked at the top spot on the ''Billboard'' Country Singles chart and was number three in Canada. It was Oslin's longest-charting single at the time, with 25 weeks. The song also received multiple nominations at the CMAs. " I'll Always Come Back" was released on January 8, 1988 and again earned the top spot on both the United States and Canada charts. "Younger Men" was released on July 25, 1988 as a single in the UK.

Music videos were produced for "80's Ladies" and "I'll Always Come Back". Both were produced by Marc W. Ball and directed by Jack Cole and John Lloyd Miller. The video for "80's Ladies" won ACM's "Country Music Video of the Year", and "I'll Always Come Back" was nominated for the same award.

Touring

In September 1987, Oslin began assembling a tour, supported by her backing band, to promote her album across the southern and eastern sections of the United States. The tour began in mid-January 1988 and continued throughout the year as an opening act for Alabama and George Strait. Oslin also co-opened and performed with Restless Heart, Merle Haggard, and Randy Travis. The tour ended in October 1988, two months after the release of her second album.

Critical reception

''80's Ladies'' was met with positive reviews from country and contemporary music critics. In a promotional record label review publication, Ralph Novak from ''People'' said the album was "as wryly funny, tuneful and all-around enjoyable as country music gets". He described the songwriting as reflecting "a Kristofferson-like blend of cynical and romantic", giving kudos to Oslin's performance. A review from ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' noted that Oslin's music "addresses marriage, divorce, motherhood and middle-age dating in a way" that had not been seen in the country genre "in a long time", and compared the record's title track to Merle Haggard's " Okie from Muskogee", calling it a "rabble-rouser". ''MusicRow''s magazine staff called ''80's Ladies'' "the best sign of country music's renewed health... new artists who come from nowhere and quickly redefine the field to fit their vision". They praised Oslin's songwriting as "proving how just flexible a rigid form can become in an intelligent writer's hands", while ''Billboard''s Gerry Wood described the songs as having "sass and sagacity".

Critic Robert Christgau said that on ''80's Ladies'', Oslin "asserts herself only when she writes a song all by her lonesome on tracks". However, he called the second half of the album "dreck", describing its dramatic qualities "down to the last overripe chord change". He approved of Oslin's vocal style and concluded the review with a "B" rating. ''Country Music People'' staff praised Oslin's voice as "strong and gusty" and liked her songwriting. AllMusic's Rodney Batdorf felt that the songwriting "remained the same" but was "given a new viewpoint"; he said that ''80's Ladies'' contained "a few weak tracks", but concluded his review by declaring it "an exciting, fresh change".

Joe Sasfy, writing for ''The Washington Post'', described Oslin as "a can't-miss country star", saying that her work was "proof that Nashville's future doesn't depend on fiddles and steel guitars so much as on singer-songwriters who can make you feel they're singing your life". John Wooley from ''Tulsa World'' declared it "the voice of experience", saying that Oslin's songs "are good ones – tough and poetic, full of heartbreak, tenderness and intelligence". Nashville-based music journalist Robert K. Oermann, writing for Gannett newspapers, described the singer's debut as introducing "a major new recording personality", while praising the title track as "a warm, earthy, good-humored anthem that is 'real' as anything Patsy Cline or Dolly Parton ever sang". A ''Stereo Review'' writer said that the performance was "the real stuff" and that the recording for ''80's Ladies'' was "sparkling". The writer said that "Oslin is really more Southern rock-and-blues than country, influenced more by Chuck Berry than Ernest Tubb". The writer described the production as "topnotch", concluding that the album would be "impossible to ignore".

Track listing

All tracks are written by K. T. Oslin, except where noted.

Personnel

Credits are adapted from liner notes.

Musicians

* K. T. Oslin – vocals, keyboards
* David Briggs – keyboards
* Gary Prim – keyboards
* Costo Davis – synthesizer
* Bruce Dees – electric guitar
* Steve Gibson – electric guitar
* Brent Rowan – acoustic guitar, electric guitar
* Mike Brignardello – bass guitar
* Larry Paxton – bass guitar
* Eddie Bayers – drums
* Larrie Londin – drums
* James Stroud – drums
* Sam Levine – saxophone
* Terry McMillan – harmonica
* Joe Scaife – backing vocals

Production

* Harold Shedd – producer
* Jim Cotton; Joe Scaife – engineers, associate producers
* George W. Clinton; Paul Goldberg – assistant engineers
* Milan Bogdan – digital editing
* Hank Williams – mastering

* Mary Hamilton – art design
* Beverly Parker – photography
* Charlie McCallen – hand tinting
* Letha Rodman – make-up

Charts and certifications

Release history

References

Footnotes

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1987 debut albums
K. T. Oslin albums
RCA Records albums
Albums produced by Harold Shedd