View source for Born to Sing (Connie Smith album)

{{Infobox album
| name       = Born to Sing
| type       = studio
| artist     = [[Connie Smith]]
| cover      = Connie Smith-Born to Sing.jpg
| released   = September 1966
| recorded   = April – May 11, 1966
| studio     = [[RCA Studio A]] (Nashville, Tennessee)
| genre      = {{hlist|[[Country music|Country]]<ref name="Allmusic">{{cite web |title=''Born to Sing'': Connie Smith: Songs, reviews, credits |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/born-to-sing-mw0000865531 |website=[[AllMusic]] |access-date=1 May 2022}}</ref>|[[Nashville Sound]]{{sfn|Escott|2001|p=23}}}}
| length     = 29:41
| label      = [[RCA Victor]]
| producer   = [[Bob Ferguson (music)|Bob Ferguson]]
| prev_title = [[Connie Smith Sings Great Sacred Songs]]
| prev_year  = 1966
| next_title = [[Downtown Country]]
| next_year  = 1967
| misc       = {{Singles
| name        = Born to Sing
| type        = Studio
| single1     = [[Ain't Had No Lovin']]
| single1date = May 1966
}}
}}
'''''Born to Sing''''' is the fifth [[studio album]] by American [[Country music|country]] singer [[Connie Smith]]. It was released in September 1966 by [[RCA Victor]] and contained 12 tracks. The album was her first to include string instrumentation. It reached the top five of the ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' [[Top Country Albums|Country LP's]] chart and included the [[Single (music)|single]] "[[Ain't Had No Lovin']]".
==Background==
In 1964, Connie Smith emerged with the number one [[Single (music)|single]] titled "[[Once a Day]]". The song jump started her career and helped bring the singles "[[Then and Only Then]]" and "[[If I Talk to Him]]" into the country top ten.<ref name="Allmusicbio">{{cite web |last1=Bush |first1=John |title=Connie Smith: Biography & History |url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/connie-smith-mn0000099753/biography |website=[[AllMusic]] |access-date=1 May 2022}}</ref> During the mid 1960s, country music record producers saw potential to expand into [[Pop music|pop]] markets. They encouraged several artists to record music tailored in this direction. [[RCA Records|RCA Victor]] producers [[Chet Atkins]] and [[Bob Ferguson (music)|Bob Ferguson]] (the latter was Smith's producer) saw crossover potential in her music. In 1966, they organized Smith's sessions for her next album to be recorded with more pop influences. Ferguson brought in arranger Bill Walker to include string instrumentation. This would be Smith's first album to have a string section. This decisions crafted Smith's next studio album ''Born to Sing''. The album was named for the title track, which was composed by [[Cy Coben]].{{sfn|Escott|2001|p=23}}
==Recording and content==
Smith went into the studio to record the tracks for ''Born to Sing'' between April 7 and May 11, 1966. The sessions were produced by Bob Ferguson and took place at [[RCA Studio A]] in [[Nashville, Tennessee]].{{sfn|Escott|2001|p=41-42}}<ref name="Liner Notes">{{cite journal |last1=Smith |first1=Connie |title=''Born to Sing'' (LP Liner Notes and Album Information) |journal=[[RCA Records|RCA Victor]] |date=September 1966 |id=LSP-3628}}</ref> Smith told writer [[Colin Escott]] that she was uncomfortable recording in Studio A because of its size. "In Studio B I could judge from the walls what my voice was doing. I controlled it by what I heard and what I felt in the room. The singer loses control in the big studio and the studio takes over."{{sfn|Escott|2001|p=23}} The album's title track was intended for [[Hank Williams Jr.]] but was instead cut by Smith. Also included were two selections composed by [[Dallas Frazier]]: "A Touch of Yesterday" and "Ain't Had No Lovin'". Three tracks were covers of pop selections: [[Dean Martin]]'s "[[I Will (Dick Glasser song)|I Will]]" along with [[Anita Bryant]]'s "[[Paper Roses]]" and "[[In My Little Corner of the World]]". The track "[[Gone (Ferlin Husky song)|Gone]]" was first a country hit by [[Ferlin Husky]]. Remaining tracks were original recordings composed by [[June Carter]], [[Cy Coben]], [[Liz Anderson]] and several others.<ref name="Liner Notes"/>{{sfn|Escott|2001|p=23}}
==Release and reception==
{{Album ratings
| rev1      = [[Allmusic]]
| rev1score = {{rating|4.5|5}}<ref name="Allmusic"/>
}}<!-- Automatically generated by DASHBot-->
''Born to Sing'' was first released in September 1966 on the RCA Victor label. It was Smith's fifth studio album in her career. It was distributed as a [[Gramophone record|vinyl LP]], containing six songs on both side of the record.<ref name="Liner Notes"/> Several decades later, ''Born to Sing'' was reissued to digital and streaming sites which included [[Apple Music]].<ref name="Apple">{{cite web |title=''Born to Sing'' by Connie Smith |url=https://music.apple.com/us/album/born-to-sing/1169670699 |website=[[Apple Music]] |access-date=1 May 2022}}</ref> In its original release, the album spent 25 weeks on the ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' magazine [[Top Country Albums|Country LP]]'s chart. It became her third and final album to reach the number one spot on the LP's chart, peaking there in December 1966.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Connie Smith chart history (Country Albums) |url=https://www.billboard.com/artist/connie-smith/ |magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] |access-date=1 May 2022}}</ref> The album received a 4.5 star rating from [[AllMusic]].<ref name="Allmusic"/> ''Born to Sing'' included the single "Ain't Had No Lovin'", which was released by RCA Victor in May 1966.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Smith |first1=Connie |title="Ain't Had No Lovin"/"Five Fingers to Spare" (7" vinyl single) |journal=[[RCA Records|RCA Victor]] |date=May 1966 |id=47-8842}}</ref> It became her highest-peaking song on the ''Billboard'' [[Hot Country Songs]] chart since "Once a Day", climbing to the number two position.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Connie Smith chart history (Country Songs) |url=https://www.billboard.com/artist/connie-smith/ |magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] |access-date=1 May 2022}}</ref>
==Track listings==
===Vinyl version===
{{track list
|headline = Side one<ref name="Liner Notes"/>
|title1 = Strange
|writer1 = {{hlist|[[Curly Fox]]|Pat White}}
|length1 = 2:10
|title2 = [[Ain't Had No Lovin']]
|writer2 = [[Dallas Frazier]]
|length2 = 2:16
|title3 = Five Fingers to Spare
|writer3 = [[Liz Anderson]]
|length3 = 2:17
|title4 = [[Paper Roses]]
|writer4 = {{hlist|[[Fritz Spielmann (composer)|Fred Spielman]]|[[Janice Torre]]}}
|length4 = 2:24
|title5 = [[My Little Corner of the World]]
|writer5 = {{hlist|[[Bob Hilliard]]|[[Lee Pockriss]]}}
|length5 = 2:32
|title6 = [[Gone (Ferlin Husky song)|Gone]]
|writer6 = Smokey Rodgers
|length6 = 2:06
}}
{{track list
|headline = Side two<ref name="Liner Notes"/>
|title1 = Go Away Stranger
|writer1 = [[June Carter]]
|length1 = 2:50
|title2 = I Don't Know Why I Keep Loving You
|writer2 = [[Fred Carter, Jr.]]
|length2 = 2:35
|title3 = Born to Sing
|writer3 = [[Cy Coben]]
|length3 = 2:05
|title4 = Invisible Tears
|writer4 = {{hlist|[[Ned Miller]]|Sue Miller}}
|length4 = 2:17
|title5 = [[I Will (Dick Glasser song)|I Will]]
|writer5 = [[Dick Glasser]]
|length5 = 2:13
|title6 = A Touch of Yesterday
|writer6 = {{hlist|Frazier|[[Arthur Leo Owens]]}}
|length6 = 2:08
}}
===Digital version===
{{track list
|headline = ''Born to Sing'' (download and streaming)<ref name="Apple"/>
|title1 = Strange
|writer1 = {{hlist|Fox|White}}
|length1 = 2:12
|title2 = Ain't Had No Lovin'
|writer2 = Frazier
|length2 = 2:19
|title3 = Five Fingers to Spare
|writer3 = Anderson
|length3 = 2:21
|title4 = Paper Roses
|writer4 = {{hlist|Spielman|Torre}}
|length4 = 2:25
|title5 = My Little Corner of the World
|writer5 = {{hlist|Hilliard|Pockriss}}
|length5 = 2:36
|title6 = Gone
|writer6 = Rodgers
|length6 = 2:09
|title7 = Go Away Stranger
|writer7 = J. Carter
|length7 = 2:54
|title8 = I Don't Know Why I Keep Loving You
|writer8 = F. Carter
|length8 = 2:37
|title9 = Born to Sing
|writer9 = Coben
|length9 = 2:09
|title10 = Invisible Tears
|writer10 = {{hlist|N. Miller|S. Miller}}
|length10 = 2:20
|title11 = I Will
|writer11 = Glasser
|length11 = 2:18
|title12 = A Touch of Yesterday
|writer12 = {{hlist|Frazier|Owens}}
|length12= 2:10
}}
== Personnel ==
All credits are adapted from the [[liner notes]] of ''Born to Sing''<ref name="Liner Notes"/> and the biography booklet by Colin Escott also titled ''Born to Sing''.{{sfn|Escott|2001|p=41-42}}
'''Musical personnel'''
{{col-begin}}
{{col-2}}
* Byron Bache – [[cello]]
* Brenton Banks – [[violin]]
* Howard Carpenter – violin
* [[Jerry Carrigan]] – [[drums]]
* Dorothy Dillard – [[background vocals]]
* [[Ray Edenton]] – [[guitar]]
* Dolores D. Edgin – background vocals
* Solie Fott – [[viola]]
* Kenneth Goldsmith – violin
* [[Buddy Harman]] – drums
* [[Priscilla Mitchell|Priscilla Hubbard]] – background vocals
* Lillian Hunt – violin
* Roy Huskey – Bass
* Martin Katahn – viola
{{col-2}}
* [[Shelly Kurland]] – violin
* Piere Menard – violin
* Louis Nunley – background vocals
* Jimmy Lance – guitar
* Len Miller – drums
* [[Wayne Moss]] – electric guitar
* [[Weldon Myrick (musician)|Weldon Myrick]] – [[steel guitar]]
* Earl Porter – electric guitar
* Connie Smith – lead vocals
* Jerry Smith – [[piano]]
* Dorothy Walker – viola
* [[Pete Wade]] – guitar
* Harvey Wolfe – cello
* William Guilford Wright, Jr. – background vocals
{{col-end}}
'''Technical personnel'''
* Bob Ferguson – Producer
* Bill Walker – Contractor
==Chart performance==
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
|-
! scope="col"| Chart (1966–1967)
! scope="col"| Peak<br /> position
|-
{{album chart|BillboardCountry|1|artist=Connie Smith|rowheader=true|date=20200121|accessdate=May 1, 2022}}
|-
|}
==Release history==
{|class="wikitable plainrowheaders"
|-
!scope="col"| Region
!scope="col"| Date
!scope="col"| Format
!scope="col"| Label
!scope="col"| Ref.
|-
! scope="row" rowspan="2"| North America
| September 1966
| Vinyl
| RCA Victor Records
| <ref name="Liner Notes"/>
|-
| 2010s
| {{hlist|Music download|streaming}}
| [[Sony Music Entertainment]]
| <ref name="Apple"/>
|-
|}
==References==
===Footnotes===
{{reflist}}
===Books===
{{Refbegin}}
* {{cite book |last1=Escott |first1=Colin |title=''Born to Sing'' (Box Set Biography) |date=May 8, 2001 |publisher=[[Bear Family Records]] |isbn=3-89795-770-1}}
{{Refend}}
{{Connie Smith}}
{{Authority control}}
[[Category:1966 albums]]
[[Category:Connie Smith albums]]
[[Category:Albums produced by Bob Ferguson (music)]]
[[Category:RCA Victor albums]]