Still (Bill Anderson album)

1963 studio album by Bill Anderson

Still

Studio album by

Bill Anderson

Released| June 17, 1963 (1963-06-17)
Recorded| 1961–1963
Studio|

* Bradley's Barn, Mount Juliet, Tennessee
* Columbia, Nashville, Tennessee

Genre|

* Country
* Nashville Sound

[1]
Label| Decca
Producer| Owen Bradley
Bill Anderson chronology
| Bill Anderson Sings Country Heart Songs
(1962)  | Still
(1963)  | Bill Anderson Sings
(1964)

|
|

Singles from  Still

1. "Get a Little Dirt on Your Hands"
Released: February 1962
2. "Still"
Released: February 1963

Still is a studio album by American country singer-songwriter Bill Anderson. It was released on June 17, 1963 on Decca Records and was produced by Owen Bradley. Still was Anderson's debut studio album as a recording artist after recording several singles for the Decca label. Two singles were included in the album. Its most successful was the title track, which became a crossover hit in 1963. It reached positions on the Billboard country, pop and adult contemporary charts. The album itself would also reach peak position on Billboard charts.

## Background and content

[edit]

By 1963, Bill Anderson had been recording for Decca Records for five years. He signed with the label in 1958 and recorded several hits, including "The Tip of My Fingers" and "Mama Sang a Song".[2] However, a proper debut studio album by Anderson had not yet been released. With the success of the title track in 1963, Decca decided to release his first full-length studio effort. The album's recording sessions were compiled from 1961. Further sessions were added on through early 1963. Sessions were first held at the Columbia Recording Studio in 1961 and were later held at Bradley's Barn, all located in Nashville, Tennessee. The album's recordings were produced by Owen Bradley, whom Anderson had been working with since his original signing.[3]

Still consisted of 12 tracks. Five of the album's songs were written or co-written by Anderson, including the title track. Additional tracks were composed by other artists and songwriters. Further writers on the project included Ned Miller, Ernest Tubb and Fred Rose.[4] Also included were cover versions of songs first recorded by others. These tracks were "From a Jack to a King", "Take These Chains from My Heart", "Little Band of Gold", "The Reverend Mr. Black", "It's Been So Long Darling" and "Down Came the Rain".[4]

## Release and reception

[edit]

Professional ratingsReview scores

Source| Rating
Allmusic|

Before the album's release the first single was issued in February 1962. The single, "Get a Little Dirt on Your Hands", peaked at number 14 on the Billboard country singles chart.[5] The second single issued was the title track in February 1963. It became Anderson's second single to reach number one on the Billboard country singles chart, reaching the top spot in April 1963.[6] It also crossed over to the Hot 100 where it became a major hit and peaked at number eight in June 1963.[7] It also reached a top ten position on the Billboard adult contemporary chart, peaking at number three.[8]

Still was later given 3.5 stars from Allmusic in their review of the album.[1] Still was originally released on June 17, 1963 via Decca Records.[1] The album was first issued as a vinyl record, containing six songs on side one and six songs on side two.[4] Upon its release, Still peaked at number ten on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart, becoming his first album to place on this chart.[5] It also reach a peak position on the Billboard 200 album chart, reaching number 36 in September 1963. It would be Anderson's only studio release to make an appearance on the latter chart.[9]

## Track listing

[edit]

Side one[4]No.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

|
|
|

1.| "Still"| Bill Anderson| 2:45
2.| "Little Band of Gold"| James Gilreath| 2:38
3.| "Down Came the Rain"| Eddie Miller| 2:14
4.| "From a Jack to a King"| Ned Miller| 2:14
5.| "Molly"| Steve Karliski| 2:55
6.| "Get a Little Dirt on Your Hands"| Anderson| 2:47

Side two[4]No.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

|
|
|

1.| "Restless"|

* Anderson
* Skeeter Davis

| 2:44
2.| "It's Been So Long Darling"| Ernest Tubb| 2:45
3.| "The Reverend Mr. Black"|

* Billy Edd Wheeler
* Jerry Leiber
* Mike Stoller

| 3:18
4.| "Take These Chains from My Heart"|

* Hy Heath
* Fred Rose

| 2:45
5.| "Happiness"| Anderson| 2:12
6.| "I Wish I Was Mine"| Anderson| 2:31

## Personnel

[edit]

All credits are adapted from the liner notes of Still.[3]

Musical personnel

* Bill Anderson – lead vocals
* Brenton Banks – strings
* Harold Bradley – guitar
* George Brinkley – strings
* Cecil Brower – strings
* Howard Carpenter – strings
* Martin Catahn – strings
* Floyd Cramer – piano
* Pete Drake – steel guitar
* Ray Edenton – guitar
* Sofie Fott – strings

* Buddy Harman – drums
* Lillian Hunt – strings
* Tommy Jackson – fiddle
* The Jordanaires – background vocals
* Jerry Kennedy – guitar
* The Anita Kerr Singers – background vocals
* Grady Martin – guitar
* Bill McElhiney – trumpet
* Bob Moore – bass
* Morris Palmer – drums
* Joe Zinkan – bass

|

Technical personnel

* Owen Bradley – record producer
* Hal Buksbaum – photography

## Chart performance

[edit]

Chart (1963)  | Peak
position

|

US Billboard 200[10] | 36
US Top Country Albums (Billboard)[11] | 10

## Release history

[edit]

Region  | Date  | Format  | Label  | Ref.

|
|
|
|

United States  | June 17, 1963  | Vinyl  | Decca | [4][1]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c d "Still – Bill Anderson: Songs, Reviews, Credits". Allmusic. Retrieved April 9, 2020.
2. ^ Huey, Steve. "Bill Anderson: Biography & History". Allmusic. Retrieved April 9, 2020.
3. ^ a b Anderson, Bill (June 17, 1963). "Still (Liner Notes and Album Information)". Decca Records.
4. ^ a b c d e f "Bill Anderson – Still (1963, Vinyl)". Discogs. Retrieved April 9, 2020.
5. ^ a b Whitburn, Joel (2008). Hot Country Songs 1944 to 2008. Record Research, Inc. ISBN 0-89820-177-2.
6. ^ ""Still" chart history: Country Songs". Billboard. Retrieved April 9, 2020.
7. ^ ""Still" chart history: Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved April 9, 2020.
8. ^ ""Still" chart history: Adult contemporary". Billboard. Retrieved April 9, 2020.
9. ^ "Still chart history: Billboard 200". Billboard. Retrieved April 9, 2020.
10. ^ "Bill Anderson Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved April 9, 2020.
11. ^ "Bill Anderson Chart History (Top Country Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved April 9, 2020.

* v
* t
* e

Bill Anderson

* Albums
* Singles

Studio albums|

* Still (1963)
* Bill Anderson Sings (1964)
* Showcase (1964)
* Bright Lights and Country Music (1965)
* I Love You Drops (1966)
* Get While the Gettin's Good (1967)
* I Can Do Nothing Alone (1967)
* For Loving You (with Jan Howard) (1968)
* Wild Weekend (1968)
* Happy State of Mind (1968)
* My Life/But You Know I Love You (1969)
* Christmas (1969)
* If It's All the Same to You (with Jan Howard) (1970)
* Love Is a Sometimes Thing (1970)
* Where Have All Our Heroes Gone (1970)
* Always Remember (1971)
* Bill and Jan (Or Jan and Bill) (with Jan Howard) (1972)
* Singing His Praise (with Jan Howard) (1972)
* Bill Anderson Sings for "All the Lonely Women in the World" (1972)
* Don't She Look Good (1972)
* Bill (1973)
* "Whispering" Bill Anderson (1974)
* Every Time I Turn the Radio On/Talk to Me Ohio (1975)
* Sometimes (with Mary Lou Turner) (1976)
* Peanuts and Diamonds and Other Jewels (1976)
* Scorpio (1977)
* Billy Boy & Mary Lou (1977)
* Love...& Other Sad Stories (1978)
* Ladies Choice (1979)
* Nashville Mirrors (1980)
* Southern Fried (1983)
* Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow (1984)
* A Place in the Country (1986)
* Country Music Heaven (1993)
* Greatest Songs (1996)
* Fine Wine (1998)
* A Lot of Things Different (2001)
* No Place Like Home on Christmas (2002)
* Softly & Tenderly (2004)
* The Way I Feel (2005)
* Whisperin' Bluegrass (2007)
* Songwriter (2010)
* Life! (2014)
* Anderson (2018)
* The Hits Re-Imagined (2020)

Compilation albums|

* Bill Anderson Sings Country Heart Songs (1962)
* From This Pen (1965)
* Bill Anderson's Greatest Hits (1967)
* Bill Anderson's Country Style (1968)
* The Bill Anderson Story: His Greatest Hits (1969)
* Bill Anderson's Greatest Hits, Vol. 2 (1971)

Live albums|

* Live from London (1975)

See also|

* Po' Folks

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