Here for the Party

Here for the Party
Studio album by Gretchen Wilson
Released	May 11, 2004
Genre	Country
Length	37:36
Label	Epic Nashville
Producer	Joe Scaife Mark Wright John Rich (associate producer)
Gretchen Wilson chronology
Here for the Party (2004) All Jacked Up (2005)
Singles from Here for the Party
"Redneck Woman" Released: March 23, 2004 "Here for the Party" Released: July 2004 "When I Think About Cheatin'" Released: October 25, 2004 "Homewrecker" Released: January 17, 2005

Here for the Party is the 2004 debut album by American country music singer Gretchen Wilson. It reached the top of the US country charts in May 2004 and number 2 on the Billboard 200 album charts.

Featured on the album is Wilson's breakthrough debut single, "Redneck Woman", a Number One hit on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks (now Hot Country Songs) charts. The tracks "Here for the Party", "When I Think About Cheatin'", and "Homewrecker" were also released as singles; these three singles all reached top 5 on the country charts as well.

The album received four Grammy nominations: Best New Artist, Best Country Album, Best Country Song ("Redneck Woman") and Best Female Country Vocal Performance ("Redneck Woman"). Gretchen Wilson won Best Female Country Vocal Performance.

Making of the album

Gretchen Wilson was singing in a bar when she met John Rich of Big & Rich, who invited her to work with him. After some persistence, she agreed and joined the MuzikMafia, an informal group of Nashville singers and songwriters that gathered weekly to play songs.

Wilson signed with Epic Records in 2003 and went in the studio with producers Mark Wright and Joe Scaife and Rich as co-producer. The first single, "Redneck Woman," was written as a tribute to women from small-town America.

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
About.com	[1]
Allmusic	[2]
Entertainment Weekly	B+[3]
Q	[4]
Robert Christgau	[5]
Rolling Stone	[6]
Stylus Magazine	B[7]
USA Today	[8]

"Redneck Woman" was released as a single in early 2004 and reached the top of the Billboard country singles charts and number 22 on the Billboard Hot 100. The album was released in the U.S. on May 11, 2004. It debuted at the top of the country album charts and at number two on the Billboard 200 with 227,000 copies sold.^[9] Here for the Party was the fifth best selling album of 2004, with about 2.9 million copies sold.^[10]

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Here for the Party"	John Rich, Big Kenny, Gretchen Wilson	3:16
2.	"Redneck Woman"	Wilson, Rich	3:42
3.	"When I Think About Cheatin'"	Rich, Wilson, Vicky McGehee	4:09
4.	"Homewrecker"	George Teren, Rivers Rutherford, Wilson	3:27
5.	"Holdin' You"	Thom McHugh, Wade Kirby	3:34
6.	"Chariot"	John Caldwell, Leslie Satcher	4:26
7.	"What Happened"	Al Anderson, Bob DiPiero, Bekka Bramlett, Tim Nichols	3:51
8.	"When It Rains"	Rich, McGehee, Wilson	3:03
9.	"The Bed" (featuring Big & Rich)	Keith Anderson, Rich, McGehee	2:53
10.	"Pocahontas Proud"	Rich, McGehee, Wilson	5:15

Musicians

Compiled from liner notes.^[11]

Musicians

• Al Anderson – gut string guitar
• Big Kenny – background vocals on "The Bed"
• Mike Brignardello – bass guitar, baritone guitar
• Tom Bukovac – electric guitar
• Eric Darken – percussion
• Larry Franklin – fiddle, mandolin
• Kenny Greenberg – electric guitar
• Wes Hightower – background vocals
• Greg Morrow – drums, percussion
• Steve Nathan – piano, Hammond B-3 organ
• Russ Pahl – pedal steel guitar, lap steel guitar, banjo
• Angela Primm – background vocals
• Michael Rhodes – bass guitar, baritone guitar
• John Rich – acoustic guitar, background vocals on "The Bed"
• Joe Scaife – background vocals
• Trez – background vocals
• Gale West – background vocals
• John Willis – acoustic guitar
• Gretchen Wilson – lead vocals, background vocals
• Reese Wynans – piano, Hammond B-3 organ

Chart performance

Album

Chart (2004)	Peak position
U.S. Billboard Top Country Albums	1
U.S. Billboard 200	2
Australian Albums Chart	21
Norwegian Albums Chart	14
Swedish Albums Chart	7
UK Albums Chart	60

Singles

Year	Single	Peak chart positions					Certifications (sales threshold)
		US Country [12]	US [13]	AUS [14]	IRE [15]	UK [16]
2004	"Redneck Woman"	1	22	50	45	42	US: Platinum[17]
	"Here for the Party"	3	39	—	—	—	US: Gold[18]
	"When I Think About Cheatin'"	4	39	—	—	—
2005	"Homewrecker"	2	56	—	—	—
"—" denotes releases that did not chart

Certifications

Region	Certification
Australia (ARIA)[19]	Gold
Canada (Music Canada)[20]	Platinum
United States (RIAA)[21]	5× Platinum

References

1. Bjorke, Matt. "Here for the Party – Gretchen Wilson". About.com.
2. Loftus, Johnny. "Here for the Party – Gretchen Wilson". Allmusic.
3. Havighhurst, Craig (2004-05-21). "Here for the Party Review". Entertainment Weekly: 81. Retrieved 2012-10-13.
4. "Gretchen Wilson – Here for the Party CD Album". CD Universe. Retrieved 2012-10-13.
5. Christgau, Robert. "CG: Gretchen Wilson". RobertChristgau.com. Retrieved 2012-10-13.
6. Caramanica, Jon (2004-06-24). "Gretchen Wilson: Here for the Party : Music Reviews". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 2008-07-06. Retrieved 2012-10-13.
7. Love, Josh (2004-06-21). "Gretchen Wilson – Here for the Party – Review". Stylus Magazine.
8. Mansfield, Brian (2004-05-13). "Party with Gretchen Wilson, Los Lobos (Gretchen Wilson, Here for the Party)". USA Today. Retrieved 2013-06-03.
9. Gretchen Wilson By Susan Moyer, p. 35, at Google Books
11. Here for the Party (CD booklet). Gretchen Wilson. Epic Records. 2004. 93533.
12. "Gretchen Wilson Album & Song Chart History – Country Songs". Billboard. Retrieved November 14, 2010.
13. Peak chart positions for charted singles on the Hot 100:
    • "Gretchen Wilson Album & Song Chart History – Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved November 24, 2010.
    • Whitburn, Joel (2008). Hot Country Songs 1944 to 2008. Record Research, Inc. p. 471. ISBN 0-89820-177-2.
14. "australian-charts.com – Australian charts portal". Hung Medien. australian-charts.com. Retrieved November 24, 2010.
15. "irishcharts.com – Discography Gretchen Wilson". Hung Medien. irishcharts.com. Retrieved May 28, 2011.
16. "Chart Log UK: Kristine W. – Tammy Wynette". The Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 24, 2010.
17. "RIAA – Gold & Platinum – November 24, 2010: "Redneck Woman" certified awards". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved November 24, 2010.
18. "RIAA – Gold & Platinum – November 24, 2010: "Here for the Party" certified awards". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved November 24, 2010.
19. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2005 Albums". Australian Recording Industry Association.
20. "Canadian album certifications – Gretchen Wilson – Here for the Party". Music Canada.
21. "American album certifications – Gretchen Wilson – Here for the Party". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH