''Wednesday's Child Is Full of Woe'' is a

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

by American singer

Jody Miller Myrna Joy "Jody" Miller (November 29, 1941 – October 6, 2022) was an American singer, who had commercial success in the genres of country, folk and pop. She was the second female artist to win a country music accolade from the Grammy Awards, ...

. It was released in 1963 via

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007), and simply known as Capitol, is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-base ...

and contained twelve tracks. It was the debut studio album of Miller's career and consisted of traditional

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk horror ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Fo ...

songs. At the time of its release, Miller was a folk artist and was being promoted as such. It received a positive review from ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', is an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

''.

Background, recording and content

Jody Miller had recently moved to

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

and then signed with Capitol Records as a folk performer. Her debut studio album would be released in 1963 titled ''Wednesday's Child Is Full of Woe''. "I was very into Folk Music at the time," Miller recalled on her official website. The album was recorded at

Capitol Studios Capitol Studios is a recording studio located at the landmark Capitol Records Building in Hollywood, California, United States. The studios, which opened in 1956, were initially the primary recording studios for the American record label Capi ...

, located in

Hollywood, California Hollywood, sometimes informally called Tinseltown, is a List of districts and neighborhoods in Los Angeles, neighborhood and district in the Central Los Angeles, central region of Los Angeles County, California, within the city of Los Angeles. ...

. Sessions took place between December 1962 and January 1963. It was produced by Kermit Walter. The recording sessions were backed by The Wrecking Crew, a group that featured

Billy Strange William Everett Strange (September 29, 1930 – February 22, 2012) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, guitarist, and actor. He began as a session musician with The Wrecking Crew, a famous session band of the 1960s and 1970s, and was i ...

and future artist

Glen Campbell Glen Travis Campbell (April 22, 1936 – August 8, 2017) was an American country musician and actor. He was best known for a series of hit songs in the 1960s and 1970s, and for hosting ''The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour'' on CBS television from ...

. The project consisted of 12 songs in total. According to 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 cassette j-cards. Origin Liner notes are descended from the prog ...

, the material for the album was songs Miller learned as a child. According to Miller herself, her favorite songs on the album were " The Hangman", "Railroad Boy" and "Butterfly".

Release and reception

''Wednesday's Child Is Full of Woe'' was released in 1963 on Capitol Records. It was originally distributed as a

vinyl LP The LP (from long playing or long play) is an analog sound storage medium, specifically a phonograph record format characterized by: a speed of rpm; a 12- or 10-inch (30- or 25-cm) diameter; use of the "microgroove" groove specificati ...

, offered in both mono and stereo versions. The original disc featured six songs on either side of the record. In 2021, Capitol released her entire catalog from the label to digital retailers which included her debut album. ''

'' magazine gave the disc a positive review in June 1963, calling her "a talent to watch". The magazine further commented, "The lark has a rich, deep, vibrant wide-range voice and a distinctive feelingful style of phrasing." The album helped Miller secure an opportunity to promote material on

Tom Paxton Thomas Richard Paxton (born October 31, 1937) is an American folk singer-songwriter whose career spans more than sixty years. In 2009, Paxton received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.

's folk television show in 1963. However, the album was not a commercial success. "By the time I cut my first LP with Capitol, folk music was on its way out," she told ''

The Oklahoman ''The Oklahoman'' is the largest daily newspaper in Oklahoma, United States, and is the only regional daily that covers the Oklahoma City metropolitan area, Greater Oklahoma City area. The Alliance for Audited Media (formerly Audit Bureau Circul ...

''. Miller would go on to have her commercial breakout single with 1965's "

Queen of the House "Queen of the House" is a song originally recorded and made commercially successful by American singer Jody Miller. It was an answer song to Roger Miller's " King of the Road". It featured lyrics written by Mary Taylor, with credit also given to R ...

". She would have further success in the pop and country genres through the 1970s.

Track listing

Release history

References

{{Jody Miller 1963 debut albums Capitol Records albums Jody Miller albums