Ripcord

by Keith Urban

Overview

As something of an outsider to Nashville, Keith Urban has the latitude to experiment, an opportunity he seizes with 2016's Ripcord. The album's very title suggests he's diving into the great wide open and he makes no attempt to disguise the record's heavy hip-hop and electronic influence. "Sun Don't Let Me Down," a collaboration with Nile Rodgers featuring a verse by Latin superstar rapper Pitbull, is merely the culmination of all these inclinations, a move Urban hinted at with the rolling loop propelling the album's lead single, "John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16." Given how contemporary country has shifted in the years following 2013's Fuse -- the party-hearty swagger of bro country is in decline, replaced by the flexible R&B rhythms of the likes of Sam Hunt and Brett Eldredge -- Urban's shift is not only adventurous, but commercially savvy. It also suits his style, which always threads subtly modern, mass appeal moves into a country pop that's never beholden to Music City conventions. Despite the presence of such sturdily constructed songs as "Blue Ain't Your Color" -- a 12-bar slow dance that could've been a hit back in the '50s -- Ripcord relies on songs that push at the borders of modern country, often qualifying as pop by any other name. That's not true merely of "Sun Don't Let Me Down," whose Pitbull cameo may scare away listeners who knew Urban long before he starred on American Idol: "Gone Tomorrow (Here Today)" zooms along on a neon highway and "The Fighter," a duet with Carrie Underwood, feels like an updated spin on '80s Urban Cowboy. All throughout Ripcord, the electronic elements are at the forefront and foundation, but it's to Urban's credit that this never feels desperate or pandering: it's a smooth, logical progression that makes his music feel sleek and mature. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Product Details

Release Date:	05/06/2016
Label:	Capitol Nashville / Hit Red Records
UPC:	0602547444653

Tracks

1. Gone Tomorrow (Here Today)
2. John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16
3. Wasted Time
4. Habit of You
5. Sun Don't Let Me Down
6. Gettin' in the Way
7. Blue Ain't Your Color
8. The Fighter
9. Break on Me
10. Boy Gets a Truck
11. Your Body
12. That Could Still Be Us
13. Worry 'Bout Nothin'

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Keith Urban   Primary Artist,E-Bow,Vocals,Vocal Harmony,Guitar (Acoustic),Guitar (Electric),Guitar (Nylon String)
Charlie Judge   Keyboards,Synthesizer
Russell Terrell   Vocal Harmony
James Gadson   Drums,Piano,Keyboards,Vocal Harmony
Jonny Price   Keyboards,Synthesizer
Nile Rodgers   Featured Artist
Dann Huff   Bass,Synthesizer,Guitar (Acoustic),Guitar (Electric)
Carrie Underwood   Vocals,Featured Artist
Pino Palladino   Bass
Matt Chamberlain   Drums
Pitbull   Featured Artist
Nathan Barlowe   Synthesizer
Sean Neff   Drums

Technical Credits

Sean Neff   Editing
Ross Copperman   Composer
Jesse Lee   Composer
Tyler Shields   Assistant Engineer
Jonathan Price   Composer
Steven Lee Olsen   Composer
Brandon Schexnayder   Engineer
Russell Graham   Engineer,Programming
Jon Nite   Composer
Mike Stankiewicz   Assistant
Jordan Reynolds   Composer
Chris Tompkins   Composer
J Hart   Composer
Jackson Morgan   Composer
Serban Ghenea   Mixing
Tony Maserati   Mixing
Keith Urban   Composer,Producer
Joe Baldridge   Engineer
David Hodges   Composer
James Gadson   Programming
Shane McAnally   Composer
Greg Wells   Composer,Engineer
Dave O'Donnell   Engineer
John Hanes   Mixing Engineer
Jonny Price   Composer,Engineer,Producer,Programming
Nitzan Kaikov   Composer,Producer
Ryan Nashi   Engineer
K-Kov   Composer
Jeff Bhasker   Composer,Engineer,Producer,Programming
Dann Huff   Engineer,Producer
Nathan Chapman   Producer,Programming
Manny Marroquin   Mixing
Hillary Lindsey   Composer
Clint Lagerberg   Composer
Chris Lord-Alge   Mixing
Mike Busbee   Composer
Josh Kear   Composer
Dave Clauss   Editing,Engineer
Josh Osborne   Composer
Rodney Clawson   Composer
Seth Morton   Assistant
Nik Karpen   Assistant,Mixing Engineer
Chris Galland   Assistant
Tom Coyne   Mastering
Aaron Scherz   Composer
Armando Christian Perez   Composer
Nathan Barlowe   Programming
Jason Duke   Composer
Aaron Sherz   Composer
Josh Ditty   Assistant
Emily Weisband   Composer
Adam Chagnon   Engineer
David Hodgers   Composer
John Edwards   Assistant
Justin Niebank   Mixing
Matt Chamberlain   Programming
Nile Rodgers   Composer,Producer
Justin Fisher   Assistant
Tyler Johnson   Composer,Engineer,Producer
Ash Bowers   Composer