If You're Going Through Hell

( 6 )

Editorial Reviews

Barnes & Noble - David McGee
Blessed with an expressive, masculine baritone and a sensitive soul, Rodney Atkins makes an impressive debut with a collection of songs about family, friends, fortitude, and self-reliance. Atkins doesn't preach, but it's traditional values he celebrates, as on the stomping, fiddle-fired country rocker "These Are My People": church league softball, working hard at a day job, and so on, "giving this life everything we've got / and then some." In the churning "Cleaning This Gun (Come On In Boy)," he recalls how his girlfriend's dad laid down the law to him on a first date, reminding him "he'll be up all night / cleaning this gun," and reflects on the far-off moment when his...
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Editorial Reviews

Barnes & Noble - David McGee
Blessed with an expressive, masculine baritone and a sensitive soul, Rodney Atkins makes an impressive debut with a collection of songs about family, friends, fortitude, and self-reliance. Atkins doesn't preach, but it's traditional values he celebrates, as on the stomping, fiddle-fired country rocker "These Are My People": church league softball, working hard at a day job, and so on, "giving this life everything we've got / and then some." In the churning "Cleaning This Gun (Come On In Boy)," he recalls how his girlfriend's dad laid down the law to him on a first date, reminding him "he'll be up all night / cleaning this gun," and reflects on the far-off moment when his own daughter finds "that teenage boy just like me." A lesson of a different sort is taught by his young 'un in "Watching You," a driving, acoustic-based story that starts when a young son cuts loose with a four-letter word, which sets off a series of insightful reflections on parental responsibility set to thundering drums, sizzling guitar, and soaring pedal steel. Persevering through hard times is the message illustrated in the hit title song, a tune cloaked in Celtic finery (via bagpipes) and traditional country strains that seems to sum up the appealing essence of this most promising young artist. Keep an eye on him.
All Music Guide - J. Poet
Rodney Atkins spent nine years in Nashville struggling to make it as a singer and songwriter. He grew up poor and while he always wanted to be an entertainer, he worked his way through Tennessee Tech before heading to Nashville. He got signed to Curb in 1997, but his first singles failed to make a dent in the charts. He finally hit number four in 2004 with the song "Honesty" and followed it up with an album by the same name. The album was a modest success, and set the stage for If You're Going Through Hell. Wanting to make an album with a less produced sound, Atkins cut the vocals for If You're Going Through Hell in his small home studio. The song was the album's lead single and shot to number one on the charts; it was also the most played country single on radio in 2006. "If You're Going Through Hell (Before the Devil Even Knows)" is a big, anthemic song that tips its hat to everybody who's ever had a hard time. Its soaring chorus is as much pop as country, as is the production, which featuring bagpipes, a thumping drumbeat, and a wall of fiddles and banjos. Other hits include "Cleaning This Gun (Come on in Boy)," the tale of an overprotective father trying to intimidate his daughter's first date by showing up on the front porch with his rifle. Atkins sings it first from the perspective of the young man, then as a new father with a young daughter of his own, and strikes the perfect balance between love and aggression. "These Are My People" is a celebration of growing up country. It's a string of clichés, the kind of song that can sink under its own sentimental weight, but Atkins delivers it with a sly humor that makes it believable. "Watching You," the first number one that Atkins co-wrote himself, went gold. It's a midtempo rocker that details the way kids will mimic everything their patents do from cussin' to praying. If You're Going Through Hell was reissued in 2010 by Cracker Barrel Old Country Stores with two bonus tracks: "Farmer's Daughter," Atkins' hit single of June 2010, and "More Like Your Memory (Always Takes Me Back)," one of the first tunes he ever wrote, a poignant ballad of lost love and regret.
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Product Details

  • Release Date: 7/18/2006
  • Label: Curb Records
  • UPC: 715187894525
  • Catalog Number: 78945
  • Sales rank: 1,172

Album Credits

Performance Credits
Rodney Atkins Primary Artist
Gary Prim Piano, Hammond Organ
Mike Brignardello Bass
Colin Campbell Crowd Noise
Larry Franklin Fiddle, Mandolin
Rob Hajacos Fiddle
Ted Hewitt Acoustic Guitar, Electric Guitar, Background Vocals
Julian King Percussion
B. James Lowry Acoustic Guitar
Brent Mason Electric Guitar
Gordon Mote Piano, Hammond Organ
Larry Paxton Bass
Kelly Pody Crowd Noise
Shawn Pody Crowd Noise
Wanda Vick Banjo
John Willis Acoustic Guitar, Banjo
Lonnie Wilson Drums
Terje Petrus Bratlie Crowd Noise
Troy Lancaster Electric Guitar
Skip Cleavinger uillean pipes
Scotty Sanders Steel Guitar
Jim "Moose" Brown Piano
Danielle Caffey Crowd Noise
Sandi Harrison Crowd Noise
Steven Sheehan Acoustic Guitar, Crowd Noise
Aaron Bowlin Crowd Noise
Angela Hurt Background Vocals, Crowd Noise
Tammy Jo Atkins Crowd Noise
Doug Barnard Crowd Noise
Clayton Bozeman Crowd Noise
Rhonda Chaffin Crowd Noise
CiGi Crowd Noise
James Hedden Crowd Noise
Tecia Hedden Crowd Noise
Lindsey Herren Crowd Noise
Justin Luffman Crowd Noise
Marianne Mashburn Crowd Noise
Charlie Miralez Crowd Noise
Nicole Miralez Crowd Noise
Jenn Poppe Crowd Noise
Kevin Rapillo Crowd Noise
Belinda Smith Crowd Noise
Natalie Stout Crowd Noise
Jenny Tackett Crowd Noise
Kathryn Vieira Crowd Noise
Mike Johnson Steel Guitar, Lap Steel Guitar
Technical Credits
Steve Dean Composer
Tony Green Engineer
Ted Hewitt Composer, Producer, Engineer
Michael Lunn Composer
Craig White Engineer
Tom Hambridge Composer
Rodney Atkins Composer, Producer, Engineer
Rivers Rutherford Composer
Danny Simpson Composer
Annie Tate Composer
Sam Tate Composer
Bobby Tomberlin Composer
Kent Agee Composer
Casey Beathard Composer
Billy Kirsch Composer
Dave Berg Composer
Shane Minor Composer
P.T. Houston Engineer
Hank Williams Mastering
Marla Cannon-Goodman Composer
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Customer Reviews

Average Rating 4.5
( 6 )
Rating Distribution

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(4)

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(2)

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Sort by: Showing all of 6 Customer Reviews

  • Anonymous

    Posted October 1, 2010

    I Also Recommend:

    Rockferry
    The Fall
    Revolution
    The Soul Sessions
    Crazy Ex-Girlfriend

    Great album

    Love the whole album.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Posted October 1, 2010

    more from this reviewer

    I Also Recommend:

    Pure 80's
    The Secret (Extended Edition)
    The Good Girl's Guide to Bad Girl Sex: An Indispensible Guide to Pleasure & Seduction

    Great Hard Hits for Hard Times

    I'm not into country, but my husband heard a song on the radio. We listened to bits of his album at the B&N bookstore and sure enough-every song was a hit. Listen to the words...definitely a much needed pick-me-up!

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Anonymous

    Posted October 1, 2010

    A must have for every country music lover!!!

    I LOVE every song on this CD. Each track is so different and evokes a range of emotion from the listener. When I first heard the title track, "Going Through Hell", I knew I needed to own this CD for that song alone but have been thrilled with each and every song on this CD. Rodney's voice is a pleasure to listen to and you will find yourself listening to this CD again and again.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Anonymous

    Posted July 11, 2009

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted May 23, 2010

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted October 1, 2009

    No text was provided for this review.

Sort by: Showing all of 6 Customer Reviews