Back from Rio is the sixth studio album by American singer-songwriter, guitarist and co-founder of the Byrds Roger McGuinn. It was released on January 8, 1991, more than a decade after McGuinn's previous solo album, Thunderbyrd.[7] The album was issued following the release of the Byrds box set and musically it leans on the sound of the Byrds thanks to McGuinn's ringing 12-string electric guitar and vocal contributions from ex-Byrds members David Crosby and Chris Hillman. Also prominent on the album are Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, with Petty co-authoring and duetting with McGuinn on the album's lead single "King of the Hill". In addition, several members of the Heartbreakers provide musical backing on a number of the album's tracks. Other prominent songwriters on the album—besides McGuinn and his wife Camilla—are Elvis Costello, Jules Shear and Dave Stewart of the Eurythmics.
| Back from Rio | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | January 8, 1991 | |||
| Recorded | Capitol (Hollywood) | |||
| Genre | Rock | |||
| Length | 41:44 | |||
| Label | Arista | |||
| Producer |
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| Roger McGuinn chronology | ||||
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| Alternative cover | ||||
 Cover of European release | ||||
| Singles from Back from Rio | ||||
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| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| Entertainment Weekly | B[2] |
| The Great Rock Discography | 6/10[3] |
| MusicHound | 2/5[4] |
| Orlando Sentinel | [5] |
| Rolling Stone |  [6] |
The album was generally well received by music critics and it peaked at No. 44 on the Billboard 200 album chart. [8] Two singles were drawn from the album: "King of the Hill" and "Someone to Love", which peaked at #2 and #12 respectively, on the Billboard Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart. [9]
In Europe, Back from Rio was released in February 1991[7] and featured different cover artwork.
Track listing
editSide one
edit- "Someone to Love" (Roger McGuinn, Camilla McGuinn) – 3:32
- "Car Phone" (feat. Stan Ridgway) (Mike Campbell, R. McGuinn) – 4:33
- "You Bowed Down" (Elvis Costello) – 3:52
- "Suddenly Blue" (Scott Cutler, R. McGuinn, Dennis Morgan) – 3:49
- "The Trees Are All Gone" (R. McGuinn, C. McGuinn) – 3:51
Side two
edit- "King of the Hill" (duet with Tom Petty) (R. McGuinn, Tom Petty) – 5:27
- "Without Your Love" (R. McGuinn, C. McGuinn) – 3:59
- "The Time Has Come" (Scott Cutler, R. McGuinn) – 3:45
- "Your Love Is a Gold Mine" (R. McGuinn, Dave Stewart) – 4:06
- Includes "Back from Rio Interlude" (R. McGuinn, Petty, Jeff Lynne)
- "If We Never Meet Again" (Jules Shear) – 4:28
Personnel
edit- Mike Campbell – electric guitar, slide guitar, baritone guitar
- David Cole – percussion, piano, acoustic guitar, MPC-60
- Elvis Costello – backing vocals
- David Crosby – vocals, backing vocals
- George Hawkins – bass guitar
- Dan Higgins – saxophone
- Chris Hillman – vocals, background vocals
- John Jorgenson – acoustic guitar, electric guitar, baritone guitar, saxophone, bass guitar, mandolin
- Stan Lynch – drums, percussion
- Roger McGuinn – lead vocals, backing vocals, 12-string electric guitar, 12-string acoustic guitar
- Michael Penn – backing vocals, 12-string acoustic guitar
- Tom Petty – co-lead vocals ("King of the Hill"), backing vocals
- Stan Ridgway – telephone voice
- Kimmy Robertson – telephone voice
- Timothy B. Schmit – backing vocals
- J. Steven Soles – backing vocals
- Benmont Tench – organ, keyboards, Hammond B-3
- Michael Thompson – electric guitar, acoustic guitar
Production
edit- David Cole – producer, engineer, mixing
- Peter Doell – engineer
- John Hall – demo engineer, mixing at Firetail-on-the-Hill Studios
- Jesse Kanner – mixing
- Roger McGuinn – producer, mixing
- Wally Traugott – mastering
Charts
editWeekly charts
edit| Chart (1991) | Peak |
|---|---|
| Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[10] | 22 |
| Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[11] | 49 |
| German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[12] | 70 |
| Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[13] | 6 |
| US Billboard 200[14] | 44 |
Year-end charts
edit| Chart (1991) | Rank |
|---|---|
| Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[15] | 99 |
Notes
edit- ^ AllMusic review
- ^ Entertainment Weekly review
- ^ Strong, Martin (2006). The Great Rock Discography. Edinburgh, UK: Canongate. p. 165. ISBN 978-1-84195-827-9.
- ^ Graff, Gary; Durchholz, Daniel, eds. (1999). MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Farmington Hills, MI: Visible Ink Press. p. 186. ISBN 1-57859-061-2.
- ^ Gettelman, Parry (February 22, 1991). "Roger McGuinn Back From Rio". Orlando Sentinel. Archived from the original on May 6, 2014. Retrieved May 26, 2018.
- ^ Rolling Stone review[dead link]
- ^ a b Rogan, Johnny (1998). The Byrds: Timeless Flight Revisited (2nd ed.). Rogan House. p. 556. ISBN 0-9529540-1-X.
- ^ "Roger McGuinn – Discography – Back from Rio". Billboard.com. Archived from the original on November 21, 2021. Retrieved July 2, 2008.
- ^ "Roger McGuinn – Artist Chart History". Billboard.com. Retrieved July 2, 2008.
- ^ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 1479". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved May 24, 2022.
- ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Roger McGuinn – Back From Rio" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 24, 2022.
- ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Roger McGuinn – Back From Rio" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved May 24, 2022.
- ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – Roger McGuinn – Back From Rio". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 24, 2022.
- ^ "Roger McGuinn Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved May 24, 2022.
- ^ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 1702". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved May 24, 2022.