Thank You [Deluxe Edition]

by Meghan Trainor

Overview

Displaying a professional savvy her cheerfully naive persona belies, Meghan Trainor ditches the retro sensibilities that fueled her debut album, Title, on its swiftly released successor, Thank You. By no means has Trainor abandoned her theatricality -- whenever she slides into a purportedly soulful slurred vocal, she lets slip her stagy artifice -- but drama club exuberance is as inherent to Meghan's persona as Katy Perry's cheerleader pinup is to hers. The key to Thank You is that she's swapped out Glee-ful retro pageantry in favor of modern R&B shepherded by executive producer Ricky Reed. Such a shift in sensibility means Thank You feels fresher than Title, and it's more coherent, too: everything stems from a clean, stylish sensibility. Even when she indulges in a throwback, as when the lights lower for the slow dance "Hopeless Romantic," the simple guitar and vocal arrangements function as a sly accent to the bright, bustling surroundings of the rest of Thank You. Trainor similarly rejiggers her lyrical outlook, leaving behind the attention-grabbing jokes and jibes, not to mention the antiquated sentiments of "Dear Future Husband," but the empowerment of "All About That Bass" has calcified into narcissism. Her self-regard abounds. "If I was you, I'd want to be me too," she sings on "Me Too," only to up the ante with "I don't mean to brag, I don't mean to boast, I love all y'all me the most." Even her mom is better than your mom. True, all these odes to self are designed to boost the self-esteem of her audience, but presented as an album, the positivity turns preening. That's where Trainor's pop instincts come into play. Thank You camouflages all this vanity as shiny, happy pop, equal parts modern R&B and Y2K throwback. Taken on a track by track basis, it can be silly fun -- even such goofball party numbers as "Dance Like Yo Daddy" contain a guileless charm -- but as a collective, Thank You turns into something less than the sum of its parts almost entirely due to the Trainor's tunnel vision. She's smart to keep things light and positive -- it's a deliberately youthful sound in an era that yearns for maturity -- but by working the same territory so carefully, the seams in her construction are difficult to ignore. [A Deluxe Edition added three bonus tracks.] ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Product Details

Release Date:	05/13/2016
Label:	Epic / Rca
UPC:	0889853119929

Tracks

1. Watch Me Do
2. Me Too
3. NO
4. Better
5. Hopeless Romantic
6. I Love Me
7. Kindly Calm Me Down
8. Woman Up
9. Just a Friend to You
10. I Won't Let You Down
11. Dance Like Yo Daddy
12. Champagne Problems
13. Mom
14. Friends
15. Thank You

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Meghan Trainor   Primary Artist,Vocals,Choir/Chorus,Vocals (Rhythm),Vocals (Background)
Kelli Trainor   Primary Artist,Vocals,Choir/Chorus,Featured Artist
LunchMoney Lewis   Primary Artist,Vocals
Russell City   Primary Artist
Yo Gotti   Primary Artist,Vocals,Featured Artist
Nick Seeley   Choir/Chorus
W.T. Greer   Tenor (Vocal)
Thomas Troelsen   Bass,Vocals,Clapping,Percussion,Tambourine,Vocals (Background)
R. City   Vocals,Featured Artist
Ann Marie Simpson   Viola,Violin
David Baron   Organ
Jennifer Hartswick   Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Tomas Jonsson   Sax (Tenor),Sax (Baritone)
Wojtek Goral   Sax (Alto)
Nelda Washington   Soprano,Soprano (Vocal)
Nils Petter Ankarblom   Horn,Trumpet
Johan Carlsson   Tambourine,Piano,Guitar,Synthesizer,Guitar (Acoustic),Vocals (Background)
Arthur Dyer   Bass
Ricky Reed   Keyboards,Bass,Piano,Guitar,Strings,Guitar (Bass),Guitar (10 String)
Peter Noos Johansson   Trombone
Kevin Kadish   Piano,Vocals,Tambourine,Sax (Baritone),Guitar (Electric)
Ross Golan   Vocals (Background)
Julio David Rodriguez   Bass,Guitar,Vocals (Background)
James G. Morales   Drums,Keyboards,Vocals (Background)
Matt Morales   Horn,Strings,Vocals (Background)
Mr. Franks   Guitar,Keyboards
Magnus Johansson   Trumpet
Kay Penton   Drums
Tom Peyton   Drums
DD Artis   Vocals (Background)
Irina Chirkova   Cello
Marie Kim   Cello
Tommy Brown   Guitar,Keyboards
Chris Gelbuda   Guitar,Vocals,Ukulele,Vocals (Background)
Jelli Dorman   Vocals (Background)
Tayla Parx   Vocals (Background)
Justin Trainor   Co-Producer
Annagrey Wiechman   Alto (Vocals)

Technical Credits

Serban Ghenea   Mixing,Mixing Engineer
Chris Gehringer   Composer,Mastering,Mastering Engineer
John Hanes   Engineer,Assistant,Mixing Engineer,Assistant Engineer
Ryan Tedder   Composer,Lyricist
Michael Foster   Composer,Lyricist
Manny Marroquin   Mixing Engineer,Mixing
Erika Nuri   Composer,Lyricist
Mattias Bylund   Engineer
Peter Svensson   Composer,Lyricist
Chris Galland   Assistant,Assistant Engineer
Jacob Kasher   Composer,Lyricist
Tom Coyne   Mastering,Mastering Engineer
Theron Thomas   Composer,Lyricist
Leo Goff   Engineer
Timothy Thomas   Composer,Lyricist
Jason Schweitzer   Engineer
Anita Marisa Boriboon   Creative Director
Travis Sayles   Composer,Lyricist
Johan Carlsson   Producer,Programming,Composer,Lyricist,Vocal Producer
Bianca Atterberry   Lyricist,Composer
Jake Scherer   Producer
Cory Bice   Engineer
Stefan Johnson   Composer,Engineer,Lyricist
Tom Schirmacher   Photography
Nash Overstreet   Composer,Lyricist
Marcus Lomax   Composer,Lyricist
Brandon Wood   Engineer,Vocal Engineer,Assistant Engineer
Meghan Trainor   Composer,Lyricist,Producer,Programming,Executive Producer
Khaled Rohaim   Composer,Lyricist
Bekah Connolly   A&R
Christopher Trujillo   Engineer
Lewis Hughes   Composer,Lyricist
Nicholas Audino   Composer,Lyricist
Thomas Troelsen   Composer,Lyricist,Producer,Programming
David Bianco   Engineer
Ricky Reed   Producer,Programming,Drum Programming,Executive Producer,String Arrangements
Bill Malina   Engineer
Kevin Kadish   Composer,Engineer,Lyricist,Producer,Drum Programming
Ross Golan   Composer,Lyricist
Twice As Nice   Producer
Thomas Brown   Composer,Lyricist
Julio David Rodriguez   Composer,Lyricist
James G. Morales   Composer,Lyricist
The Monsters & Strangerz   Producer
Michael Klein   A&R
Steven Franks   Composer,Lyricist
Matt Morales   Composer,Engineer,Lyricist,String Arrangements
The Elev3n   Producer
Gamal Lewis   Composer,Lyricist
Ike Schultz   Assistant Engineer
Mr. Franks   Producer,Programming
Sam Holland   Engineer
John Armstrong   Assistant Engineer
Sarah Barlow   Booklet
Jason Goldberg   Assistant,Assistant Engineer
Shane Stevens   Composer,Lyricist
Oliver Peterhof   Lyricist,Composer
Justin Trainor   Composer,Lyricist,Producer
Jordan Johnson   Composer,Lyricist
Eric Frederic   Composer,Lyricist
Mario Mims   Composer,Lyricist
Jason Desrouleaux   Composer,Lyricist
Tommy Brown   Composer,Engineer,Lyricist,Producer,Programming
Tristan Bott   Assistant Engineer
Chris Gelbuda   Composer,Engineer,Lyricist,Producer
Jon Schacter   Assistant,Assistant Engineer
Ethan Shumaker   Engineer,Producer,Assistant Engineer
Tayla Parx   Composer,Lyricist
Jordan Federman   Composer,Lyricist
Ines Ramadanovic   A&R
Greg Majors   Engineer