Stickin' to My Guns is the sixteenth studio album by Etta James, released in 1990.[9][10] It was nominated for a Grammy for "Best Contemporary Blues Recording".[11]

Stickin' to My Guns
Studio album by
Released1990
StudioDigital Recorders, Nashville, Tennessee; OmniSound Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
GenreFunk rock[1]
LabelIsland[2]
ProducerBarry Beckett
Etta James chronology
Seven Year Itch
(1989)
Stickin' to My Guns
(1990)
The Right Time
(1992)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
Calgary HeraldA[4]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[5]
MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide[6]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[7]
Windsor StarA[8]

Production

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The album contains a duet with rapper Def Jef. Although it reunited her with several Muscle Shoals musicians, James later expressed ambivalence about the more electronic sound of the album.[5][12] Stickin' to My Guns was produced by Barry Beckett.[7]

Critical reception

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Rolling Stone called the album "a nonstop dance party filled with house rockers like 'Love to Burn' and turn-the-lights-down-low, slow-grind numbers like 'Your Good Thing (Is About to End)'."[13] MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide deemed it "a largely unsuccessful attempt to incorporate rap and hip-hop into a more traditional R&B context."[6] The New York Times called it "the best album Aretha Franklin never made, as Ms. James belts out songs about lovers and deceivers."[14]

Track listing

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No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Whatever Gets You Through the Night"Carson Whitsett, Dan Penn, Hoy "Bucky" Lindsey3:48
2."Love to Burn"Bud Reneau, Dobie Gray, Ricky Ray Rector3:29
3."The Blues Don't Care"Etta James3:41
4."Your Good Thing (Is About to End)"Isaac Hayes, David Porter3:52
5."Get Funky"Danny Rhodes4:45
6."Beware"Eric Randle3:39
7."Out of the Rain"Tony Joe White4:33
8."Stolen Affection"Jim Hurt, Jonnie Barnett3:52
9."A Fool in Love"Allan Fraser, Frankie Miller3:24
10."I've Got Dreams To Remember"Joe Rock, Otis Redding, Zelma Redding4:28

Personnel

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References

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  1. ^ DeCurtis, Anthony; Henke, James; George-Warren, Holly, eds. (1992). The Rolling Stone Album Guide: Completely New Reviews : Every Essential Album, Every Essential Artist (3rd ed.). Random House. p. 358. ISBN 0-679-73729-4. Of her two Island albums, Stickin ' to My Guns best shows her adapting a hard R&B approach to a contemporary funk-rock sound.
  2. ^ Popoff, Martin (September 8, 2009). Goldmine Record Album Price Guide. Penguin. ISBN 978-1-4402-2916-9. Archived from the original on May 13, 2021. Retrieved May 13, 2021 – via Google Books.
  3. ^ "Stickin' to My Guns - Etta James | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". Archived from the original on 2021-05-13. Retrieved 2021-05-13 – via www.allmusic.com.
  4. ^ Brennan, Brian (14 June 1990). "JAZZ DISCS". Calgary Herald. p. E3.
  5. ^ a b Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 4. MUZE. pp. 566–567.
  6. ^ a b MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1999. p. 590.
  7. ^ a b The Rolling Stone Album Guide. Random House. 1992. pp. 357–358.
  8. ^ Shaw, Ted (16 June 1990). "Record Review". Windsor Star. p. C2.
  9. ^ "Etta James | Biography & History". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 2018-06-17. Retrieved 2021-05-13.
  10. ^ Pareles, Jon (December 30, 1990). "POP MUSIC/1990; The Best Show? In the Court, Not the Concert Hall". Archived from the original on May 13, 2021. Retrieved May 13, 2021 – via NYTimes.com.
  11. ^ "Etta James". GRAMMY.com. November 23, 2020. Archived from the original on May 19, 2021. Retrieved May 13, 2021.
  12. ^ "Rollin' With Etta : Etta James has sung and lived the blues, but these are good times for the R&B; matriarch bound for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame". Los Angeles Times. November 1, 1992. Archived from the original on 2021-05-13. Retrieved 2021-05-13.
  13. ^ Cohen, Bob J. (August 23, 1990). "Stickin' To My Guns". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on May 13, 2021. Retrieved May 13, 2021.
  14. ^ Pareles, Jon (7 Oct 1990). "HOME ENTERTAINMENT/RECORDINGS: SOUNDINGS: The 60's Very Soul". The New York Times. p. A34.