Be Here

by Keith Urban

Overview

Keith Urban has been a consistent presence in the country charts since 2000, scoring eight consecutive entries as of the release of his third U.S. solo album, Be Here (the eighth being this disc's leadoff track, "Days Go By"). And there's plenty more where that came from. Unlike most other country artists, Urban doesn't restrict his albums to ten selections from the Nashville songwriting establishment. This one contains 13 songs at a generous 55-minute running time, and Urban's name is on nine of them as a co-writer. Thus, the collection can be viewed as more of a singer/songwriter effort than the usual Music City product. From that point of view, the album has a distinct storytelling arc, beginning with the carpe diem sentiments of "Days Go By" and continuing into a series of songs that celebrate life and love, notably Rodney Crowell's unabashedly romantic "Making Memories of Us," which finds Urban doing his best Crowell imitation. Suggestions of struggle begin to intrude as of "God's Been Good to Me," however -- and after seven songs, Urban abruptly changes the sound and the mood with a piano-and-strings weeper, "Tonight I Wanna Cry." "She's Gotta Be" picks up the pace, if not the mood, and Matraca Berg and Jim Collins' "Nobody Drinks Alone" brings the singer to a sodden rock bottom before he changes the subject by covering Elton John's "Country Comfort" and finally overcomes adversity in "Live to Love Another Day," then rewrites the album's opening song to look forward again on the album-closing "These Are the Days." The album-length story of optimism and perseverance in the face of romantic turmoil and alcoholic temptation is told musically with Urban's usual collection of fast-picked string instruments, including electric and acoustic guitars, banjo, mandolin, and Dobro (the last played by Bruce Bouton). It's a muscular sound indebted at least as much to rock and bluegrass as to traditional country, but it supports his light, flexible tenor and his essentially upbeat message. ~ William Ruhlmann

Product Details

Release Date:	09/21/2004
Label:	Capitol
UPC:	0724357748926

Tracks

1. Days Go By
2. Better Life
3. Making Memories of Us
4. God's Been Good to Me
5. The Hard Way
6. You're My Better Half
7. Could Fly
8. Tonight I Wanna Cry
9. She's Gotta Be
10. Nobody Drinks Alone
11. Country Comfort
12. Live to Love Another Day
13. These Are the Days

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Keith Urban   Primary Artist,Vocals,Banjo,E-Bow,Soloist,Mandolin,Lead Vocals,Handclapping,Slide Guitar,Vocal Harmony,Guitar (Acoustic),Guitar (Electric),Vocals (Background),Guitar (12 String Acoustic)
Paul Bushnell   Guitar (Bass),Bass
Jimmie Lee Sloas   Guitar (Bass),Bass
Paula Hochhalter   Cello
Rudy Stein   Cello
Steve Richards   Cello
Dan Smith   Cello
Natalie Leggett   Violin
Paul Buckmaster   Conductor,String Conductor
Roland Kato   Viola
Steven King   Accordion
Larry Corbett   Cello
Armen Garabedian   Violin
Bruce Dukov   Violin
Russell Terrell   Vocals (Background)
Chris McHugh   Drums,Percussion
Jimmy Nichols   Piano,Keyboards,Synthesizer Strings
Tom Bukovac   Guitar,Slide Guitar,Wah Wah Guitar,Guitar (Acoustic),Guitar (Electric)
Steve Nathan   Piano
Matt Chamberlain   Drums,Percussion
Charles Stegeman   Violin
Denyse Buffum   Viola
Dann Huff   Mandolin,Guitar (Electric),Guitar (12 String Acoustic)
Evan Wilson   Viola
Josefina Vergara   Violin
Bruce Bouton   Dobro,Guitar (Steel)
Berj Garabedian   Violin
Suzie Katayama   Cello
Peter Kent   Violin
Chris Thile   Mandolin
Eric Darken   Percussion
Tim Akers   Organ,Piano,Accordion,Keyboards,Organ (Hammond)
Jonathan Yudkin   Cello,Fiddle
Charlie Bisharat   Violin
Endre Granat   Violin
Robert Matsuda   Violin
Paula Hochalter   Cello
Steve King   Accordion
Bob Peterson   Violin
Rachel Stegeman   Violin
Sara Parkins   Violin
Matthew Funes   Viola
Daniel Smith   Cello

Technical Credits

Brady Barnett   Audio Engineer,Engineer
Mark Hagen   Audio Engineer,Engineer
Justin Niebank   Audio Engineer,Mixing,Engineer
Keith Urban   Audio Production,Composer,Producer
Dann Huff   Audio Production,Producer
Andy Ackland   Digital Editing,Pro-Tools
Drew Bollman   Assistant,Mixing Assistant,Assistant Engineer
Darrell Brown   Composer
Paul Buckmaster   Arranger,String Arrangements
Troy Verges   Composer
Blair Daly   Composer
Betsy Cook   Management
Jimmy Nichols   Engineer
Greg Lawrence   Assistant,Assistant Engineer
David M. Robinson   Assistant
John Shanks   Composer
Rivers Rutherford   Composer
Rodney Crowell   Composer
Darin Murphy   Booking
Jim Collins   Composer
Richard Marx   Composer
Bernie Taupin   Composer
Matraca Berg   Composer
Scott Kidd   Assistant,Assistant Engineer
Jesse Amend   Assistant,Assistant Engineer
Jeremy Cottrell   Assistant Engineer
Monty Powell   Composer
Adam Ayan   Mastering
Suzie Katayama   Orchestral Coordinator
Andrew Powell   Composer
Steve Churchyard   Engineer
Steve Genewick   Assistant Engineer
Elton John   Composer
Gordie Sampson   Composer
Jon Sparks   Assistant Engineer
Andrew Southam   Photography
Joanna Carter   Art Direction
Christiev Carothers   Stylist
Mike "Frog" Griffith   Production Coordination
David Robinson   Assistant Engineer
Chris Rowe   Digital Editing
Christopher Rowe   Digital Editing
Denise Jarvis   Art Producer
Debra Wingo   Make-Up,Hair Stylist
Kevin Pickle   Assistant,Assistant Engineer
Jeremy David Cottrell   Assistant,Assistant Engineer
Gary Borman   Management
Daniel Caudill   Stylist
David L. Robinson   Assistant Engineer
Jonathan Sparks   Assistant Engineer
Michelle Hall   Art Producer
Julian Peploe   Design