Golden

## ***Golden***Studio Album by Lady A

* Standard Edition
* Deluxe Edition

### Studio

Ocean Way Studio; Shabby Row Studio; Sound Stage Studios; Warner Studios (Nashville, TN)

## Singles from *Golden*

1. Downtown
 Released: January 22nd, 2013

2. Goodbye Town
 Released: May 13th, 2013

3. Compass
 Released: October 14th, 2013

***Golden*** is the fifth studio album by American country music trio Lady A. It was released on May 7th, 2013, through Capitol Records Nashville. A deluxe edition of the album was released on November 12th, 2013.

## Critical Reception

*Golden* has received mostly positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score out of 100 to reviews and ratings from mainstream critics, the album received a metascore of 70, based on 6 reviews. Eric Allen of *American Songwriter* told that with just "one listen to *Golden* [and it] immediately declares that Lady A has returned to form and isn't going anywhere in the imaginable future." At *Country Weekly*, Joseph Hudak rated the album a B−, and called the first half of the album "a little too polished", but towards the end the band is "close to finding the secret for mixing easygoing music with evocative, mature lyrics. It’s musical alchemy." Glenn Gamboa of *Newday* graded the album a B, and found that the band is "picking approaches that suit the songs best, rather than what keeps all the talented folks occupied most." At *The Oakland Press*, Gary Graff evoked that the album "changes things up — subtly, to be sure, but just enough to be perceptibly different from its predecessors", which at the same time "still holds close to the middle of the country road here, but it veers just enough to keep things interesting." Roughstock's Dan MacIntosh alluded to how "*Golden* may be better than all past Lady Antebellum efforts, but it’s by no means perfect". and yet he wrote that "the result is an album that is truly golden, and really difficult to hate." David Burger of *The Salt Lake Tribune* graded the album a B−, and found that the release contains "both sweet, full-bodied songs that will sound great on the radio this summer, but also features a lot of filler." At *Toronto Star*, Ben Rayner evoked that the release is "a touch less prissy and overdressed than the high-gloss wallpaper that has come before," which the band "occasionally takes a stab at rockin’ out in restrained fashion without embarrassing itself at all." Billy Dukes of *Taste of Country* projected forward by stating that "there’s a new maturity on this record that, if allowed to progress, promises something even bigger with the next album." At *USA Today*, Brian Mansfield affirmed that "a bittersweet edge makes even the liveliest songs more poignant."

However, Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic criticized the release as being "so cheerful" that it makes the album seem "a little churlish", and he felt the need "to complain that the songs here aren't grabbers: they're slow burns, designed to sink into the subconscious through repeated plays on radio, in-store sound systems, waiting rooms, and bumper music." Yet, Erlewine noted "that's fine", and called the album a "professional product at its finest, meticulously assembled, polished until it gleams, designed to be nothing more than thoroughly agreeable." At *Daily News*, Jim Farber highlighted that the album contains songs that are "sun-kissed, expensively constructed, and bound to reap a mint", but that is not necessarily a good thing because "like all Lady A ditties, they’re also lacking in little things like personality, detail and need." At *The Gazette*, Bernard Perusse told that as a consolation we should "just be happy that this disc is a smooth, pleasant-enough improvement over the last one." Chuck Eddy of *Rolling Stone* wrote that the release "feels like a house of mirrors". PopMatters' Dave Heaton rated the album a five-out-of-ten, and said that the release is "an overall sedate," and "relatively predictable album".

## Commercial Performance

*Golden* debuted at number one on the US *Billboard* 200 chart, selling 167,000 copies in its first week, according to Nielsen Soundscan. This became Lady Antebellum's third US number one debut. The album also debuted at number one on the US Top Country Albums chart, becoming the group's fourth number one on that chart. In its second week, the album dropped to number five on the chart, selling an additional 56,000 copies. In its third week, the album dropped to number ten on the chart, selling an additional 34,000 copies. On November 20th, 2013, the album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for sales of over 500,000 copies in the US. As of January 2014, the album has sold 558,000 copies in the United States.

## Singles

Downtown
January 22nd, 2013Goodbye Town
May 13th, 2013Compass
October 14th, 2013

## Credits

### Lady A

* **Hillary Scott** – lead vocals, background vocals
* **Charles Kelley** – lead vocals, background vocals, acoustic guitar, tambourine
* **Dave Haywood** – acoustic guitar, Hammond B-3 organ, mandolin, piano, ukulele, background vocals

### Additional Musicians

* **Chad Cromwell** – drums, shaker, tambourine
* **Jason "Slim" Gambill** – electric guitar
* **Will Hoge** – harmonica
* **David Huff** – drum loops
* **Rob McNelley** – electric guitar
* **Michael Rhodes** – bass guitar
* **Michael Rojas** – Fender Rhodes, Hammond B-3 organ, piano, synthesizer
* **Biff Watson** – acoustic guitar, banjo
* **Glenn Worf** – bass guitar
* **Paul Worley** – acoustic guitar, electric guitar

### Design

* **Terri Apanasewicz** – hair stylist, make-up
* **Jonna Carter** — art direction
* **Michelle Hall** – art producer
* **Joseph Llanes** – photography
* **Lee Moore** – stylist, wardrobe design
* **Karen Naff** – art direction

### Production

* **Natthaphol Abhigantaphand** – assistant engineer
* **Daniel Bacigalupi** – assistant engineer
* **Steve Blackmon** – assistant engineer
* **Paige Conners** – production coordination
* **Adam Grover** – assistant engineer
* **Erik Hellerman** – engineer
* **Charles Kelley** – producer
* **Joe Martino** – assistant engineer
* **Andrew Mendelson** – mastering
* **Allen Parker** – assistant engineer
* **Clarke Schleicher** – engineer, mixing
* **Nick Spezia** – assistant engineer
* **Brad Winters** – assistant engineer
* **Jeremy Witt** – production assistant
* **Paul Worley** – producer

## References

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden\_(Lady\_Antebellum\_album)