Frankie Ballard - "El Rio"

[sabre14]

Released June 10th through Warner Music Nashville.

Tracklist:

1. "El Camino" (Lee Thomas Miller, Chris Stapleton)
2. "Cigarette" (Kip Moore, Chris Stapleton, Jaren Johnston)
3. "Waste Some Of Mine" (Craig Wiseman, Jimmy Yeary)
4. "Little Bit Of Both" (Ben Hayslip, Chris Janson, Craig Wiseman)
5. "L.A. Woman" (Brad Warren, Brett Warren, Frankie Ballard)
6. "It All Started With A Beer" (Jaren Johnston, Neil Mason, Jeremy Stover)
7. "Sweet Time" (Jaren Johnston, Jon Nite, Frankie Ballard)
8. "Good As Gold" (Mando Saenz, Justin Bogart)
9. "Southern Side" (Monty Criswell, Rick Huckaby)
10. "You'll Accompany Me" (Bob Seger)
11. "You Could've Loved Me" (Dustin Christensen, Chris Gelbuda)

[codyj100]

I'm really enjoying this one. I would say it's equal in quality when compared to Sunshine & Whiskey, but there seems to be a bit more depth here. "El Camino" and "Cigarette" are total earworms for me. Those two have been stuck in my head for days. Is "Cigarette" being pushed as the second single? Everywhere I look the album is advertised with "including "Cigarette" and "It All Started With A Beer." 

[sabre14]

Jun 12, 2016 15:05:36 GMT -5 codyj100 said:

Is "Cigarette" being pushed as the second single? Everywhere I look the album is advertised with "including "Cigarette" and "It All Started With A Beer." 

No. It might be the next single but the label is still pushing "It All Started With A Beer." The advertising might be an indicator it will be the next release.

[robenglund]

This album is solid. Definitely has more of a rock/blues edge to it than "Sunshine & Whiskey". No complaints from me regarding that. Love that kind of stuff. Couldn't tell you which album I like better. Will take more listening to this one. Regarding "Cigarette" being the next single, Stapleton is on a tear not only as an artist but as a songwriter, so I'm willing to bet it's the next single. That's a good jam. The vocal cadence of the song definitely sounds like something Stapleton would sing.

[thy4568]

"It All Started With A Beer" (Jaren Johnston, Neil Mason, Jeremy Stover) is by far my favorite. Not a bad album, but need a few more listens to get into it. "Cigarette" and "You'll Accompany Me" are quite good too.

[Deleted]

Either there's a mistake in the Hits Daily Double sales chart, or Frankie had, like, the worst opening sales week ever for a hit-making country artist.

I thought it was funny when Hits didn't even give any projections for Frankie's album, but they posted their final sales chart this evening, and Frankie's El Rio is nowhere to be seen. The chart is 50 positions, and the #50 album sold only 5100 copies.

Frankie's not on the Sales Plus Streaming chart either, where the #50 album moved 11,000 units.

If this isn't an error -- if the official SoundScan chart is similar -- then that means Frankie couldn't even sell 5000 copies and make the top 50

And if his sales are truly that low, then radio should stop playing him immediately. There's no reason for an artist with such poor sales to have three #1's in a row, followed by another song that's top 20 and climbing.

[someguy]

I hope there's a mistake in HDD's projection chart. That would be downright embarrassing for a major label act getting the airplay that Frankie does to open with less that 5,000 copies sold in opening week.

The album itself is pretty solid, imo. After one listen, "Cigarette" is the obvious standout to me (and should really be the next single), but there are a number of decent track here. Frankie sounds a bit rockier than on Sunshine & Whiskey, but it's a good sound for him, and I think he pulls it off well.

Frankie continues to be one of my favourite newer artists in country at the moment. He's going to need better sales though if he's going to be in it for the long haul.

[someguy]

It looks like Hits was right. El Rio enters the Billboard Country Albums chart at #9 this week, which would make sense that it would have had sales in the 4,800-5,000 range.

[Deleted]

Jun 20, 2016 21:50:58 GMT -5 someguy said:

It looks like Hits was right. El Rio enters the Billboard Country Albums chart at #9 this week, which would make sense that it would have had sales in the 4,800-5,000 range.

Actually, I do think Hits made a mistake, but unfortunately Frankie still didn't do very well. Billboard reports that Frankie sold about 7,000 copies last week, which was less than Brandy Clark (she sold a little more than 7,000). That's pretty embarrassing.

A Cold River ad for Drew Baldridge says his Dirt On Us album debuted at #11 on Top Country Albums with 5,700 sold.

I have no idea how Frankie is able to get the airplay that he does. I mean, yeah, he's on Warner Music Nashville, but it appears that the general public doesn't even know who he is even though he's had three #1's in a row and has another song in the top 20. That's a lot of airplay and a ton of exposure, and his sales are just awful.

[dm2081]

I think part of the issue is the album came out before the single was even top 10. It hasn't been an impactful lead single either, so there's probably some that are unaware that he even has new music out.

[Deleted]

Jun 21, 2016 7:54:43 GMT -5 dm2081 said:

I think part of the issue is the album came out before the single was even top 10. It hasn't been an impactful lead single either, so there's probably some that are unaware that he even has new music out.

The song is a big enough hit, and he's coming off three straight #1's. Listeners and fans should know that he has a new album out there, and so, to me, the sales suggest that he doesn't have that many fans.

Brandy Clark sold more and her single is right at #40 with only a small fraction of the airplay that Frankie has.

Every other major label artist (except maybe Chase Bryant) who has a top 20 or better single has been able to sell way more than Frankie. Top 20 is usually good enough for a label to release an album. I'd hate it if labels decided to not release albums until the lead single was top 10 or better...that would slow down the charts even more, and would result in a lot more albums going unreleased.

I get that you like the album; I haven't listened to it yet, but I have nothing against Frankie. However, I do think that radio should reconsider giving Frankie so much support and airplay when he's yet to have a song that truly resonates with the general public. He's had plenty of chances now, and radio even hand-delivered him a trio of #1 hits. I think Frankie's problem is that he's just one guy in a seas of male artists, and I don't think he stands out nearly enough. Canaan Smith and Chase Bryant have the same problem (you could probably throw Granger Smith in there too).

[slowmo]

That's a really low total for someone who has the airplay numbers that he does. I like to think of myself as being somewhat on top of what's being released and when, but if it wasn't for this thread here, I never would've known he had a new album out. I follow quite a bit of country and general entertainment related accounts on social media and still really didn't know. I gotta believe I'm not alone with that and people just really didn't know he has a new album out. …Or maybe I've just completely missed it all. In contrast, there's been a ton of Brandy stuff that I've come across and couldn't miss that she released a new album.

[dm2081]

A lot of these songs sound similar in style to Kid Rock's recent output. These 2 should make a duet album together (plus both are from Michigan). That might help Frankie out a bit.