Heartache Medication

by Jon Pardi

Overview

Jon Pardi got to the top of the country charts the old-fashioned way: through slow, steady work. His second album, 2016's California Sunrise, found the Californian singer stripping his music to hardcore basics and it turned him into a star, so it comes as no surprise that he doesn't mess with the formula for its 2019 sequel, Heartache Medication. Reuniting with his co-producer Bart Butler, Pardi barely takes a sideways glance at the present on Heartache Medication. Opening with "Old Hat," an anthem for old cats that ain't ready to give old hats the boot, Heartache Medication also has odes to cowboys, sweet memories about old times, and tributes to the old-timers who make the best drinking buddies. Pardi's trick is how he doesn't succumb either to this sentimental streak or his own musical conservatism. Make no mistake, there are no modern frills to be heard on Heartache Medication. The closest it comes is the thumping backbeat driving "Oughta Know That," a rhythm that in other contexts could be called disco but that big beat seems as part of '90s tradition, just like the cranked-up guitars on the slow-moving "Call Me Country." These sly nods to rockin' country sit comfortably alongside "Me and Jack" and "Tied One On" -- two cuts that spin traditional beer joint music into a revved-up ruckus -- not to mention the breezy "Love Her Like She's Leaving," whose roots are firmly grounded in '70s soft rock, and the winking mariachi horns on "Tequila Little Time." All of these songs show that Pardi's traditionalism is flexible, and those subtle grace notes help make Heartache Medication the best old-fashioned mainstream country album of 2019. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Product Details

Release Date:	09/27/2019
Label:	Capitol
UPC:	0602577904257

Tracks

1. Old Hat
2. Heartache Medication
3. Nobody Leaves a Girl Like That
4. Ain't Always the Cowboy
5. Me and Jack
6. Don't Blame It on Whiskey
7. Tied One On
8. Oughta Know That
9. Tequila Little Time
10. Buy That Man a Beer
11. Call Me Country
12. Just Like Old Times
13. Love Her Like She's Leaving
14. Starlight

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Jon Pardi   Primary Artist,Vocals,Guitar (Electric),Vocals (Background)
Lauren Alaina   Primary Artist,Vocals,Featured Artist,Vocals (Background)
Andy Ellison   Pedal Steel
Danny Rader   Banjo,Mandolin,Guitar (Acoustic)
Russell Terrell   Vocals (Background)
Jenee Fleenor   Fiddle
John Lancaster   Wurlitzer,Synthesizer
Lee Francis   Bass,Bass (Vocal)
Rob McNelley   Guitar (Electric)
Jeff Hyde   Vocals (Background)
Derek Wells   Guitar (Electric)
Mike Haynes   Trumpet
Howard Duck   Piano
Ryan Gore   Percussion
Miles McPherson   Drums,Timbales,Percussion
Luke Laird   Synthesizer
Mike Johnson   Dobro,Pedal Steel
Dave Cohen   Banjo,Piano,Strings,Mandolin,Accordion,Wurlitzer,Vibraphone,Synthesizer,Fender Rhodes

Technical Credits

Ted Jensen   Mastering,Mastering Engineer
Natalie Hemby   Composer
Clint Daniels   Composer
John Pierce   Composer
Dean Dillon   Composer
Michael Heeney   Composer
Rhett Akins   Composer
Miranda Lambert   Composer
Brian David Willis   Editing
Eric Church   Composer
Jim Wright   Photography
Barry Dean   Composer
Jeffrey Steele   Composer
Marv Green   Composer
Jason Mott   Assistant Engineer
Josh Osborne   Composer
Seth Morton   Assistant Engineer
Bart Butler   Composer,Producer
Jeff Hyde   Composer
Driver Williams   Composer
Jimmy Yeary   Composer
Matt Jenkins   Composer
Scott Johnson   Assistant Producer,Production Coordination
Karen Naff   Design,Art Direction
Brice Long   Composer
Ryan Gore   Mixing,Engineer,Producer,Recording,Programming
Matt Dragstrem   Composer
Luke Laird   Composer,Engineer,Recording,Programming
Brandon Kinney   Composer
Josh Thompson   Composer
Ryan Tyndell   Composer
Jamie Paulin   Composer
Jesse Jo Dillon   Composer
Jon Pardi   Composer,Producer,Art Direction
Brian Wright   A&R
Justin Lantz   Composer
Jessie Dillon   Composer
Chris Small   Editing,Digital Editing
Kam Luchterhand   Assistant Engineer
Sean R. Badum   Assistant Engineer
Chase McGill   Composer
Dan Davis   Assistant Engineer
Sarah Marie Burke   A&R
Kera Jackson   Art Producer