''Storms'' was the eighth studio album released by singer-songwriter

Nanci Griffith Nanci Caroline Griffith (July 6, 1953 – August 13, 2021) was an American singer, guitarist, and songwriter. She often appeared on the PBS music program ''Austin City Limits'', starting in 1985 during season 10. In 1990, Griffith appeared on th ...

. When recording the album, Griffith chose to go in the direction of mainstream

pop music Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form during the mid-1950s in the United States and the United Kingdom.S. Frith, W. Straw, and J. Street, eds, ''iarchive:cambridgecompani00frit, The Cambridge Companion to Pop ...

. This was quite a musical change for her, as her previous albums had been

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 ...

and

country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...

. Griffith enlisted the talents of noted rock music producer

Glyn Johns Glyn Thomas Johns (born 15 February 1942) is an English recording engineer and record producer. He has worked with many of the most famous rock recording acts from both the UK and abroad, such as the Rolling Stones, the Beatles, the Who, ...

for the musical style change. The album landed at No. 42 on the

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

Country Albums chart, and at No. 99 on the Pop Albums chart in 1989.

Composition and music

The sixth track, "It's a Hard Life Wherever You Go" differs from the rest of the album, as an explicitly political song. The song was inspired by Griffith's visits to

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

. The track "Listen to the Radio" is a tribute to singer-songwriter

Loretta Lynn Loretta Lynn (; April 14, 1932 – October 4, 2022) was an American country music singer and songwriter. In a career spanning six decades, Lynn released multiple gold albums. She had numerous hits such as "Hey Loretta", "The Pill (song), The P ...

. The last track on the album, "Radio Fragile", is about singer-songwriter

Phil Ochs Philip David Ochs (; December 19, 1940 – April 9, 1976) was an American songwriter, protest song, protest singer (or, as he preferred, "topical singer"), and Political Activist, political activist. Ochs was known for his sharp wit, sardonic h ...

Critical reception

Robert Christgau did not much care for the album. He gave it a C+ and remarked, "I don't know. But I expect she thinks it has something to do with art." Mike Boehm, wrote in

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

that in the song "It's a Hard Life Wherever You Go", "Griffith challenges what we have always been taught to believe: that America is the most principled of countries, the greatest force for global good. She ends the song by saying that a far different image--that of the Ugly American--is closer to fact." Writing years later 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 Lindsay Planer noted that although her change in style was not well received by purists, Griffith "unfurled some of her finest musical stories to date".

Track listing

Personnel

*Nanci Griffith – lead and harmony vocals, acoustic guitar * James Hooker – piano, synthesizer *Fran Breen – drums *

Bernie Leadon Bernard Matthew Leadon III ( ; born July 19, 1947) is an American singer, musician, songwriter, and founding member of the Eagles, for which he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1998. Prior to the Eagles, he was a member of thr ...

– acoustic slide guitar, mando-cello, electric guitar, harmony vocals (track 8) *

Pat Donaldson Fotheringay was a short-lived British folk rock group, formed in 1970 by singer-songwriter and musician Sandy Denny on her departure from Fairport Convention. The band drew its name from her 1968 composition " Fotheringay" about Fotheringhay C ...

– electric bass, mando-cello *Neil MacColl – electric guitar (tracks 1, 6, 10) *

Jerry Donahue Jerry Donahue (born September 24, 1946, Manhattan, New York City) is an American guitarist and producer primarily known for his work in the British folk rock scene as a member of Fotheringay and Fairport Convention as well as being a member of ...

– electric guitar (track 7) *Mark Donahue – emulator III *

Phil Everly Phillip Everly (January 19, 1939 – January 3, 2014) was an American musician, who was one half of the duo The Everly Brothers alongside his older brother Don. Early life Phil was born in Chicago in 1939 to Isaac Milford "Ike" Everly, Jr. (190 ...

– supporting harmony vocals (track 3) *

Albert Lee Albert William Lee (born 21 December 1943) is an English guitarist known for his fingerstyle and hybrid picking technique. Lee has worked, both in the studio and on tour, with many famous musicians from a wide range of genres. He has also m ...

– supporting harmony vocals (tracks 7, 8)

Production

*Produced by

*Recording Engineer – Jack Joseph Puig *Recording Second Engineer – Joe Schiff *Mixing Engineer – Glyn Johns *Mising Assistant Engineer – Mike Rose *Mastered by Doug Sax Track information and credits adapted from the album's liner notes.

Charts

References

{{Authority control Nanci Griffith albums 1988 albums Albums produced by Glyn Johns MCA Records albums