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Heartbreaker's Hall of Fame

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Heartbreaker's Hall of Fame
Studio album by
Sunny Sweeney
ReleasedMarch 6, 2007 (2007-03-06)
Studio
GenreCountry
Length39:22
LabelBig Machine
ProducerTommy Detamore
Tom Lewis
Sunny Sweeney
Sunny Sweeney chronology
Heartbreaker's Hall of Fame
(2007) 		Concrete
(2011)
Singles from Heartbreaker's Hall of Fame
  1. "If I Could"
    Released: 2007

Heartbreaker's Hall of Fame is the first studio album by American country music singer Sunny Sweeney. It was self released in March 2006, then re-released in March 2007 via Big Machine Records. The album included the single "If I Could".

Content

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"Please Be San Antone" was co-written by Emily Erwin (now known as Emily Robison) of the Dixie Chicks, and was previously recorded by Jim Lauderdale on his 1999 album Onward Through It All. "16th Avenue" was previously a Top 10 hit for Lacy J. Dalton from her 1982 album of the same name. "Mama's Opry" by Iris DeMent had appeared on DeMent's 1992 album Infamous Angel. Sweeney self-penned the title track "Heartbreakers Hall of Fame" and "Slow Swinging Western Tunes" as well as co-wrote "Ten Years Pass" with Elizabeth Mason.

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
The Austin Chronicle[2]
Entertainment WeeklyB+[3]
PopMatters8/10[4]

Heartbreaker's Hall of Fame received favorable reviews from music critics. Michael Berick, who reviewed the album for AllMusic, called it "a refreshing slice of traditional honky tonk enlivened with a dollop of rock & roll energy[…]She has a strong idea of who she is as a singer and performer, and her instincts are proven correct on this impressive effort."[1] Chris Willman of Entertainment Weekly called it "the kind of roadhouse fare typically tagged 'too country for country'."[3] Country Standard Time critic Stuart Munro gave a favorable review as well, noting the mix of material on the album, and describing Sweeney's voice as being "full of sass and syrupy twang."[5] Jeff McCord of Texas Monthly wrote that: "There aren't many practitioners left of this kind of music—unadorned instrumentation augmented by pedal steel, pronounced rural accents that turn words like "well" into three syllables—which makes this gem of an album so refreshing. Sweeney's writing has a ways to go, but she's smart enough to surround herself with veterans (Jim Lauderdale's "Refresh My Memory" is a real standout), and she sings as if it's exactly what she was born to do."[6]

A writer for No Depression found Sweeney's original tracks "focused, if slightly less catchy" than her covers, but felt "it's her vocals that'll catch you by the throat", saying, "Not many debut discs sound this confident, poised, and excited."[7] Despite finding fault in her backing band being "on the side of cookie-cutter, taking few chances", Eric Thom of Exclaim! praised Sweeney's vocal performance for coming across as "a balls-to-the-walls honky tonker who sings with the confidence of a seasoned veteran", saying "[T]his is a heartbreaking and powerful debut."[8] Jim Caligiuri of The Austin Chronicle praised the album's "impeccable" production but was critical of the songs, saying there were "already definitive versions" of "East Texas Pines" and "If I Could" but found "Next Big Nothing" to be "a two-stepper's delight," and "Lavender Blue" had "the right tinge of sorrow", concluding that "Sweeney isn't much of a writer – yet – but it's obvious she possesses plenty of talent to be shaking things up for a long time."[2]

Track listing

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No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Refresh My Memory"Jim Lauderdale, John Scott Sherrill3:23
2."East Texas Pines"Libbi Bosworth, Gary Griffin3:20
3."Next Big Nothing"Audrey Auld3:14
4."Lavender Blue"Keith Sykes3:18
5."Ten Years Pass"Sunny Sweeney, Elizabeth Mason3:24
6."Here Kinda Lately"Deron Harris2:50
7."Heartbreaker's Hall of Fame"Sweeney2:34
8."Slow Swinging Western Tunes"Sweeney4:35
9."Please Be San Antone"Lauderdale, Emily Erwin2:20
10."Mama's Opry"Iris DeMent4:07
11."If I Could"Tim Carroll2:19
12."16th Avenue"Thom Schuyler3:58

Personnel

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Release history

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Release dates and formats for Heartbreaker's Hall of Fame
Region Date Format(s) Label Ref.
United States March 3, 2006 CD Self-released [9]
March 6, 2007 Big Machine [10]

References

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  1. ^ a b Berick, Michael. "Heartbreaker's Hall of Fame - Sunny Sweeney". AllMusic. Archived from the original on March 31, 2017. Retrieved February 15, 2009.
  2. ^ a b Caligiuri, Jim (March 9, 2007). "Sunny Sweeney: Heartbreaker's Hall of Fame". The Austin Chronicle. Archived from the original on May 11, 2024. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
  3. ^ a b Willman, Chris (March 16, 2007). "Heartbreaker's Hall of Fame". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on April 3, 2015. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
  4. ^ Brown, Alan (February 18, 2007). "Sunny Sweeney: Heartbreakers Hall of Fame". PopMatters. Archived from the original on September 27, 2023. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
  5. ^ Munro, Stuart. "Sunny Sweeney - Heartbreaker's Hall of Fame". Country Standard Time. Archived from the original on May 15, 2021. Retrieved February 15, 2009.
  6. ^ McCord, Jeff (March 2007). "Heartbreaker's Hall of Fame". Texas Monthly. Archived from the original on March 20, 2023. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
  7. ^ "Sunny Sweeney - Heartbreaker's Hall of Fame". No Depression. November 1, 2006. Archived from the original on May 11, 2024. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
  8. ^ Thom, Eric (March 22, 2007). "Sunny Sweeney - Heartbreaker's Hall of Fame". Exclaim!. Archived from the original on October 25, 2021. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
  9. ^ Heartbreaker's Hall of Fame (media notes). Sunny Sweeney. Self-released (Not on Label). 2006. 0678572953521.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  10. ^ Heartbreaker's Hall of Fame (media notes). Sunny Sweeney. Big Machine. 2007. BMR-156602.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
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