My Favourite Albums of 2018: Encore - Anderson East

I decided that I wasn't going to do a chart list of my favourite albums of the year but rather I would just share a few albums that have been bringing me a lot of joy in 2018. It's a nice mixed bag of musical stylings that I trust maybe one or two might be a little pleasing to your ears. The final one in my list will be what for me has been my overall favourite, you are just have to keep coming back to see what that one is.

I haven't been posting an awful lot this year but am grateful to those who have stuck by to read and listen to what little I have shared. The Blog reached over 500,000 Page views a couple of weeks back and for some reason it kind of passed by without fanfare. Thank you whatever land you are in across the globe for visiting Soundtrack4Life. I am really grateful for the continued interest despite my absences throughout the year.

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Encore - Anderson East
Elektra
Produced by Dave Cobb
Released 12th January 2018
US Billboard 200 Chart #48
US Folk Chart #3
US Rock Chart #5

Listen To The Album Here.

  Tracklist*
A1 King For The Day 
A2 This Too Shall Last
A3 House Is A Building   
A4 Sorry You're Sick
A5 If You Keep Leaving Me   
A6 Girlfriend   
B1 Surrender   
B2 All On My Mind    
B3 Without You    
B4 Somebody Pick Up My Pieces  
B5 Cabinet Door

* Here are live versions and Promo Videos of songs from the album taken from various places. Click on the Links to watch.

Anderson East hails from Alabama but currently is based in Nashville, Tennessee.

I have to confess to knowing very little about him but earlier this year I heard him cover Ted Hawkins' 'Sorry You're Sick' (the Cover Version features on the Encore album) and was blown away by it so much I had to check out more from him.

I liked the fact that Dave Cobb had produced the album. His previous work on albums by Jason Isbell, Sturgis Simpson, Zac Brown Band and Chris Stapleton impressed me a lot.

Another Cover Version on the album is a Willie Nelson song ('Somebody Pick Up My Pieces') whilst the rest of the songs are co-writes with a number of folks including Chris Stapleton (his wife Morgane Stapleton also has a co-write credit for 'King For A Day'), Natalie Hemby (who has written for Lee Ann Womack, Toby Keith, Miranda Lambert and Little Big Town), Avicii (Tim Bergling, Swedish DJ/Producer who died in April 2018), Johnny McDaid (Snow Patrol), Ed Sheeran, and Steve McEwan (who has written songs for the likes of Carrie Underwood, Faith Hill, Keith Urban, Kylie Minogue, Roger Daltrey, Eminem and more).

With a lot of Country type folk involved you might expect that Encore was going to be a Country album but it isn't at all. Yes, there are some tinges of Country (or Country Rock, whatever you want to call it), but there are nods to Southern Soul, Folk, Americana, Pop and R&B as well which all make for an album that is really worth listening to for its sheer diversity of sound.

Encore was the first album of 2018 to really impress me and there were many more to come. Keep your eyes opened for the next one in a couple of days time.