The Complete MCA Studio Recordings


The Complete MCA Studio Recordings is a compilation album spanning the five-year period, from 1987 to 1991, that Nanci Griffith spent with MCA Records. The 46-track, two-CD album features all of the songs from the four studio albums recorded on the label during these years: Lone Star State of Mind, Little Love Affairs, Storms and Late Night Grande Hotel, as well as three previously unreleased recordings.

Background

The Complete MCA Studio Recordings collects Griffith's four studio albums recorded with MCA between 1987 and 1991. The compilation chronicles a period in the label's history when it signed "left-of-center" country artists including Griffith, Steve Earle, and Lyle Lovett. When Griffith's first two albums, Lone Star State of Mind and Little Love Affairs, failed to produce a major country hit, she was moved to MCA's pop division where she released Storms and Late Night Grande Hotel, the latter of which alienated her original fan base and resulted in her being dropped by the label. After a stint on Elektra Records, Griffith signed in 2002 with Rounder Records, which ironically had a distribution deal with MCA. This gave the label a significant stake in Griffith's early recordings and prompted the release of The Complete MCA Studio Recordings among other compilations. This set includes three bonus tracks that were previously unavailable in the United States—"Tumble and Fall", "Wooden Heart", and "Stand Your Ground".

Reviews

In a review of The Complete MCA Studio Recordings for PopMatters, Andrew Gilstrap called it "a definitive collection" for Griffith fans and noted that it "makes more apparent the stylistic growth she experienced during those years." Allmusic writer William Ruhlmann remarked that upon listening to the entire set, "The first two albums are no more country than Griffith's early 'folk' albums, and the last two are not so 'pop.'" Ruhlmann added that the songs that make up the compilation "stand up well a decade later and are likely to sound just as good many decades hence."

Track listing

All tracks composed by Nanci Griffith; except where indicated

Disc 1

  1. "Tumble And Fall" 2:41
  2. "Lone Star State Of Mind" 3:58
  3. "Cold Hearts/Closed Minds" 2:42
  4. "From A Distance" 4:12
  5. "Beacon Street" 2:52
  6. "Nickel Dreams" 2:50
  7. "Sing One For Sister" 3:22
  8. "Ford Econoline" 2:13
  9. "Trouble In The Fields" 3:20
  10. "Love In A Memory" 3:19
  11. "Let It Shine On Me" 3:01
  12. "There's A Light Beyond These Woods " 4:23
  13. "Anyone Can Be Somebody's Fool" 2:40
  14. "I Knew Love" 3:17
  15. "Never Mind" 3:42
  16. "Love Wore A Halo " 3:23
  17. "So Long Ago" 4:09
  18. "Gulf Coast Highway" 3:06
  19. "Little Love Affairs" 3:09
  20. "I Wish It Would Rain" 2:39
  21. "Outbound Plane" 2:40
  22. "I Would Change My Life" 3:08
  23. "Sweet Dreams Will Come" 4:26
  24. "Wooden Heart" 2:28

    Disc 2

  25. "I Don't Want To Talk About Love" 4:07
  26. "Drive-In Movies And Dashboard Lights" 3:13
  27. "You Made This Love A Teardrop" 3:11
  28. "Brave Companion Of The Road" 3:19
  29. "Storms" 3:11
  30. "It's A Hard Life Wherever You Go" 4:01
  31. "If Wishes Were Changes" 3:44
  32. "Listen To The Radio" 3:48
  33. "Leaving The Harbor" 3:28
  34. "Radio Fragile" 5:34
  35. "It's Just Another Morning Here" 4:23
  36. "Late Night Grande Hotel" 3:35
  37. "It's Too Late" 2:18
  38. "Fields Of Summer" 3:29
  39. "The Power Lines" 2:38
  40. "Hometown Streets" 4:11
  41. "Down 'N' Outer" 2:46
  42. "One Blade Shy Of A Sharp Edge" 2:59
  43. "The Sun, Moon, And Stars" 4:24
  44. "San Diego Serenade" 3:27
  45. "Stand Your Ground" 3:51