Rumor Has It (Clay Walker album)
Encyclopedia
Critical reception
Mikel Toombs of The San Diego Union-TribuneThe San Diego Union-Tribune
-Predecessors:The predecessor newspapers of the Union-Tribune were:* San Diego Sun, founded 1861 and merged with the Evening Tribune in 1939.* San Diego Union, founded October 10, 1868.* Evening Tribune, founded December 2, 1895.-Ownership:...
gave the album a negative review writing, "An overactive arrangement and a mess of vocal mannerisms fail to hide the song's mundane nature. And Walker's singing also doesn't benefit "Country Boy and City Girl," a failed attempt at a Randy Travis weeper, although the utterly clichéd lyrics are even more deadly. To be fair, Walker is adept at snappy, sappy fare like "I'd Say That's Right" and "Heart Over Head Over Heels". But most of this CD's value remains in the foldout miniposter that backs the packaging." Buffalo News gave the album two stars and wrote, "I wish the man well, but his music just leaves me cold. Yes, he occasionally turns out a clever song like "One, Two, I Love You" from this set, but the man consistently does the unforgiveable -- he sings without soul." The Dallas Morning News
The Dallas Morning News
The Dallas Morning News is the major daily newspaper serving the Dallas, Texas area, with a circulation of 264,459 subscribers, the Audit Bureau of Circulations reported in September 2010...
gave the album a negative review writing the album "is Mr. Walker's poorest effort to date. Opening with the instantly forgettable title cut and closing with Then What, a watered-down attempt at Jimmy Buffett-inspired calypso, Rumor Has It finds Mr. Walker abandoning all the promise that spurred his 1993 debut album for empty-headed mainstream pap.
Mike Joyce of the Washington Post gave the album a negative review by writing, "Walker's vocal talent isn't nearly impressive enough to overcome the hackneyed songwriting that keeps surfacing throughout the album." Paul Verna of Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
said, "As one of the spiritual children of the George Jones school of hard-edged Southwestern country, he maintains the tradition of kick-ass up-tempo songs and solemn, hat-in-hand ballads. The world may not need another margarita song, but the one here is OK." Thom Owens of AllMusic wrote, "Rumor Has It may not be among his very best, yet there are enough strong moments to make it worthwhile for most fans." Larry Stephens of Country Standard Time
Country Standard Time
Country Standard Time is a website dedicated to country music and related genres such as Bluegrass and Rockabilly. It provides news and musical reviews pertaining to the genre. It was established in 1992 by Jeffrey B. Remz as a print magazine, which was first published only in New England but went...
gave the album a negative review and said, "Most of this is cookie cutter country, and Walker's voice doesn't add anything to the mix - it's just one of dozens that all sound the same." Marianne Horner of Country Spotlight gave the album a favorable review and wrote, "Rumor Has It presents Clay Walker in the basic, pure country style that kicked opened the doors for him four years ago, and made him a major force in country music today."
Personnel
- Eddie Bayers – drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
- Bruce C. Bouton – steel guitarSteel guitarSteel guitar is a type of guitar or the method of playing the instrument. Developed in Hawaii in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, a steel guitar is usually positioned horizontally; strings are plucked with one hand, while the other hand changes the pitch of one or more strings with the use...
- Larry ByromLarry ByromLarry Byrom is an American guitarist who has written, recorded, and toured with acts like Steppenwolf, Ratchell, Neil Young, Steve Winwood, Peter Frampton, Eddie Rabbit and Tanya Tucker.- References :...
– acoustic guitarAcoustic guitarAn acoustic guitar is a guitar that uses only an acoustic sound board. The air in this cavity resonates with the vibrational modes of the string and at low frequencies, which depend on the size of the box, the chamber acts like a Helmholtz resonator, increasing or decreasing the volume of the sound... - Dan Dugmore – steel guitar
- Stuart DuncanStuart DuncanStuart Duncan is a bluegrass musician who plays the fiddle, mandolin, guitar and banjo. Born in Quantico, Virginia and raised in Santa Paula, California, where he played in the school band, he has been a member of the Nashville Bluegrass Band since 1985, and is a much-in-demand session musician...
– fiddleFiddleThe term fiddle may refer to any bowed string musical instrument, most often the violin. It is also a colloquial term for the instrument used by players in all genres, including classical music... - Paul FranklinPaul Franklin (musician)Paul Franklin is an American multi-instrumentalist, known mainly for his work as a steel guitarist. He began his career in the 1970s as a member of Barbara Mandrell's road band; in addition he toured with Mel Tillis and Jerry Reed. He has since become a prolific session musician in Nashville,...
– steel guitar - Tim MensyTim MensyTimmie Menzies is an American country music artist known as Tim Mensy. Initially, he was a member of the band Bandana, in which he charted several singles on the Hot Country Songs charts in the 1980s...
– acoustic guitar - Steve Nathan – pianoPianoThe piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
- Tom Roady – percussionPercussion instrumentA percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration...
- Brent Rowan – electric guitarElectric guitarAn electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
, acoustic guitar - Tim Sargeant – steel guitar
- Joe Spivey – fiddle
- Wayne ToupsWayne ToupsWayne Toups is one of the most commercially successful American Cajun singers. He is also a songwriter.-Biography:...
– squeeze boxAccordionThe accordion is a box-shaped musical instrument of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone family, sometimes referred to as a squeezebox. A person who plays the accordion is called an accordionist.... - Glenn WorfGlenn WorfGlenn Worf is one of the premier Nashville session bassists. He was born in Dayton, Ohio but grew up in Madison, Wisconsin and has concentrated on the bass guitar since he was thirteen. He majored in music at the University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire. Inevitably his talents forced him to abandon the...
– bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick.... - Curtis WrightCurtis WrightCurtis Blaine Wright is an American country music artist. He made his debut in 1989 with the single "She's Got a Man on her Mind" on a branch of MCA Records, before recording a solo album in 1992 on Liberty Records...
– background vocals - Curtis Young – background vocals
Chart performance
During the albums debut week, it sold over 30,000 units.Weekly charts
| Chart (1997) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Top Country Albums | 4 |
| U.S. Billboard 200 | 32 |
| Canadian RPM Country Albums | 7 |
Certifications
| Country | Certification |
|---|---|
| United States Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States... |
Platinum |