''Ordinary Average Guy'' is the ninth solo 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 ...

, and its title track (second on the playlist), by American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist

Joe Walsh Joseph Fidler Walsh (born Joseph Woodward Fidler; November 20, 1947) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. Best known as a member of the rock band Eagles (band), Eagles, his five-decade career includes solo work and stints in other ...

. The album was released in mid

1991 It was the final year of the Cold War, which had begun in 1947. During the year, the Soviet Union Dissolution of the Soviet Union, collapsed, leaving Post-soviet states, fifteen sovereign republics and the Commonwealth of Independent State ...

. It was Walsh's first album of entirely new music since '' Got Any Gum?'' in 1987, and his first solo album to be issued internationally by

Epic Epic commonly refers to: * Epic poetry, a long narrative poem celebrating heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation * Epic film, a genre of film defined by the spectacular presentation of human drama on a grandiose scale Epic(s) ...

following a four-year alliance with

Warner Bros. Records Warner Records Inc. (known as Warner Bros. Records Inc. until 2019) is an American record label. A subsidiary of Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division ...

in the United States and Canada. The album features

Ringo Starr Sir Richard Starkey (born 7 July 1940), known professionally as Ringo Starr, is an English musician, songwriter and actor who achieved international fame as the drummer for the Beatles. Starr occasionally sang lead vocals with the group, us ...

Survivor Survivor(s) may refer to: * one who survives Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities * Survivors, characters in the 1997 KKnD series#Armies, ''KKnD'' video-game series * ''The Survivors'', or the ''New Survivors Foundation'', a fictional ...

's lead vocalist

Jimi Jamison Jimmy Wayne Jamison (August 23, 1951 – September 1, 2014) was an American singer. Best known as Jimi Jamison, he earned recognition as the frontman for the rock bands Target, Cobra, and Survivor from 1984 to 1988, performing the songs " Burni ...

, and the drummer Joe Vitale from Walsh's former band Barnstorm. Vitale also sings the lead vocals on the final track of the album, "School Days".

Critical reception

Writing for

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

, critic Vincent Jeffries wrote of the album "This collection of nostalgia, decent balladry, and quirky anthems probably reinforced any notions of Joe Walsh's creative decline... this reflective, sometimes half-hearted effort belies a weariness that's both sad and difficult to appreciate as this master goes through the motions."

Track listing

All songs by

, except where noted.

Personnel

* Joe Walsh – vocals, keyboards, guitars * Joe Vitale – keyboards, drums, percussion, vocals, lead vocals (11) *

Waddy Wachtel Robert "Waddy" Wachtel (born May 24, 1947) is an American musician, composer and record producer, most notable for his guitar work. Wachtel has worked as session musician for other artists such as Linda Ronstadt, Beth Hart, Stevie Nicks, Miranda ...

– guitars (5) *

Rick Rosas Rick "Rick the Bass Player" Rosas (September 10, 1949 – November 6, 2014) was an American musician, and one of the most sought after studio session musicians in Los Angeles. Though largely known for his long collaboration with Neil Young, throug ...

– bass (1-4, 6-11), vocals *

George "Chocolate" Perry George Wesly Perry (born 1953), known professionally as "Chocolate Perry" is an American bassist, songwriter and producer. Perry has worked with the Bee Gees, John Cougar, Jon Secada, Stephen Stills, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Al Kooper, Di ...

– bass (5) *

Chad Cromwell Chad Cromwell (born June 14, 1957) is an American rock drummer whose music career has spanned more than 30 years. He is the founding member of a band called Fortunate Sons, which released a self-titled album in 2004. Cromwell has worked with mu ...

– drums, percussion * Otis Lawrence – saxophones * Kelly Hurt – backing vocals * Lavestia Miller – backing vocals * Al Paris – backing vocals * Jeffrey Rogers – backing vocals

Production

* Scott MacLellan – executive producer * Joe Walsh – producer * Joe Vitale – producer * Dave Reynolds – recording, mixing * Jim Nipar – recording (5) *

Bill Szymczyk William Frank Szymczyk (; born February 13, 1943) is an American music producer and recording engineer best known for working with rock and blues musicians, most notably the Eagles in the 1970s. He produced many top albums and singles of the ...

– recording (5) * Tim Ray – recording assistant, mix assistant * Jim Stabile – recording assistant * John Walls – recording assistant, mix assistant *

Vlado Meller Vlado Meller (born in 1947 in Humenné as ''Vladimír Meller'') is a Slovak audio mastering engineer, currently with Vlado Meller Mastering in Charleston, South Carolina. Meller works across many genres of music, with credits on rock, hip-hop, p ...

– mastering * David Coleman – art direction * Alan Messer – photography * Patrick Cullie – barn photography * Willie Gibson – barn photography Studios * Recorded at Pyramid Recording Studio (Lookout Mountain, Tennessee) and Kiva Recording Studio (Memphis, Tennessee). * Mixed at Kiva Recording Studio * Mastered at

Sony Music Studios Sony Music Studios was an American music recording and mastering facility in New York City. The five-story building was a music and broadcasting complex located at 460 W. 54th Street, at 10th Avenue, in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of Manhat ...

(New York City, New York).

Charts

References