| Take Me as I Am | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | October 12, 1993 | |||
| Recorded | July 1993 | |||
| Studio | Woodland Recording Studios, Midtown Tone and Volume, and The Soundshop, Nashville, Tennessee, US | |||
| Genre | Country | |||
| Length | 34:07 | |||
| Label | Warner Bros. Nashville | |||
| Producer | Scott Hendricks, Michael Clute, Gary Burr | |||
| Faith Hill chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from Take Me as I Am | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [1] |
| Entertainment Weekly | B+[2] |
| Rolling Stone | (favorable)[3] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [4] |
Take Me as I Am is the debut studio album by American country music singer Faith Hill, released in 1993 by Warner Bros. Records. It has been certified 3× platinum in the United States for shipments of three million copies.
Four singles were released from the album. The first two — "Wild One" and "Piece of My Heart" — reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart in 1994. "Wild One," the tale of a rebellious teen-aged girl in conflict with her parents' more conservative ways, was the lead-off single, spending four weeks at No. 1 that January.
"Piece of My Heart", a cover of the 1967 song by Erma Franklin, was issued as the follow-up. The third single, "But I Will", failed to break the Top 30, but Hill's fourth release in late 1994 (the title track) reached No. 2.
Larry Flick from Billboard stated that on "But I Will", "the power of her pliable, pure country voice has never been better showcased than on this heartfelt ballad about a woman who's had just about enough."[5]
Track listing
All tracks produced by Scott Hendricks; except "Just Around the Eyes" produced by Michael Clute and Gary Burr.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Take Me as I Am" | Bob DiPiero, Karen Staley | 3:17 |
| 2. | "Wild One" | Jaime Kyle, Pat Bunch, Will Rambeaux | 2:45 |
| 3. | "Just About Now" | Gary Burr, Jon Vezner | 2:57 |
| 4. | "Piece of My Heart" | Bert Berns, Jerry Ragovoy | 4:01 |
| 5. | "I've Got This Friend" (with Larry Stewart) | Faith Hill, Bruce Burch, Vern Dant | 3:46 |
| 6. | "Life's Too Short to Love Like That" | Sandy Ramos | 2:37 |
| 7. | "But I Will" | Troy Seals, Eddie Setser, Larry Stewart | 3:47 |
| 8. | "Just Around the Eyes" | Burr | 3:07 |
| 9. | "Go the Distance" | Trey Bruce, Thom McHugh, Hill | 3:02 |
| 10. | "I Would Be Stronger Than That" | Burr | 4:48 |
| Total length: | 34:07 | ||
Personnel
As listed in liner notes.
All tracks except "Just Around the Eyes"
- Gary Burr – background vocals
- John Catchings – cello
- Bill Cuomo – synthesizer
- Stuart Duncan – mandolin, fiddle
- Paul Franklin – steel guitar, Dobro
- Dann Huff – electric guitar
- John Barlow Jarvis – piano
- Mary Ann Kennedy – background vocals
- Mark Luna – background vocals
- Brent Mason – electric guitar
- Terry McMillan – congas, cymbals, tambourine
- Don Potter – acoustic guitar
- Michael Rhodes – bass guitar
- Pam Rose – background vocals
- Victoria Shaw – background vocals
- Karen Staley – background vocals
- Larry Stewart – background vocals
- Cindy Richardson Walker – background vocals
- Ron Wallace – background vocals
- Lari White – background vocals
- Lonnie Wilson – drums
On "Just Around the Eyes"
- Gary Burr – background vocals
- Jerry Douglas – dobro
- Rob Hajacos – fiddle
- Terry McMillan – percussion
- Edgar Meyer – acoustic bass guitar
- Harry Stinson – drums
- Biff Watson – acoustic guitar
- Glenn Worf – electric bass guitar
Production
- Producers: Scott Hendricks (all tracks except "Just Around the Eyes"); Mike Clute and Gary Burr ("Just Around the Eyes" only)
- Assistant producer: John Kunz
- Engineers: Mike Clute, John Kelton
- Assistant engineers: Jon "JD" Dickson, Amy Hughes, John Kunz, Shawn McLean, Wayne Morgan, Herb Tassin
- Mixing: Scott Hendricks
- Mastering: Denny Purcell
- Overdubs: Scott Hendricks, John Kunz
- Art direction: Laura LiPuma
- Design: Garrett Rittenberry
- Photography: Aaron Rapoport
- Make-up: Eric Bernard, Beth Katz
Charts
Weekly charts
|
Year-end charts
|
Certifications
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Canada (Music Canada)[11] | 3× Platinum | 300,000^ |
| United States (RIAA)[12] | 3× Platinum | 3,000,000^ |
|
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
References
- ↑ Take Me as I Am at AllMusic
- ↑ Alanna Nash (1993-12-10). "Take Me as I Am Review". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2012-03-11.
- ↑ "Faith Hill – Take Me as I Am CD Album". CD Universe. Retrieved 2012-12-22.
- ↑ Brackett, Nathan; Christian Hoard (2004). The Rolling Stone Album Guide. New York City, New York: Simon and Schuster. p. 378. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
rolling stone faith hill album guide.
- ↑ Flick, Larry (May 28, 1994). "Single Reviews" (PDF). Billboard. p. 51. Retrieved March 18, 2021.
- ↑ "Faith Hill Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved February 22, 2021.
- ↑ "Faith Hill Chart History (Top Country Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved February 22, 2021.
- ↑ "Faith Hill Chart History (Heatseekers Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved February 22, 2021.
- ↑ "Top Country Albums – Year-End 1994". Billboard. Retrieved February 22, 2021.
- ↑ "Top Country Albums – Year-End 1995". Billboard. Retrieved February 22, 2021.
- ↑ "Canadian album certifications – Faith Hill – Take me As I am". Music Canada. Retrieved 31 August 2019.
- ↑ "American album certifications – Faith Hill – Take me As I am". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 31 August 2019.