Maps of Music
Just Go (2009)
Where the lyrics of Just Go take you, and where it was really made.
Richie had little writing involvement in the songs on Just Go, but he wrote "Eternity", which also appears on a tribute album.
View on the mapKey places
Recording location: GelreDome, Arnhem (2009)
Recording site GelreDome — The album's Wikipedia page lists GelreDome in Arnhem, the Netherlands, as the recording location. The point marks the venue building. Google Maps · Apple Maps
How to get there: See the map for directions.
Album story
Overview
- Just Go: tenth studio album by American singer Lionel Richie
- First released by Island Records on March 10, 2009 in the United Kingdom
- Majority of the album made with Tricky Stewart and the Norwegian production duo StarGate
- Additional production by Akon, David Foster, and John Ewbank
- Songwriting credits include Ne-Yo, Johntá Austin, The-Dream, and Espen Lind
- Richie had little writing involvement in the songs, but he wrote "Eternity"
Background
- Lead single "Good Morning", followed by the single "Just Go"
- Also released: the single "I'm in Love"
- Promotional singles: "Face in the Crowd", "Forever and Ever", and "I'm Not Okay"
- "Eternity" also appears on the tribute album Change Is Now: Renewing America's Promise
Recording
- Richie worked with Tricky Stewart and StarGate on the majority of the album
- Recording location listed as GelreDome in Arnhem, the Netherlands
- "Just Go" and "Nothing Left to Give" feature Akon as a guest artist
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
Tracklist
| 1 | Forever | 3:19 |
| 2 | Just Go | 4:18 |
| 3 | Nothing Left to Give | 3:33 |
| 4 | Forever and a Day | 4:04 |
| 5 | I’m Not Okay | 3:29 |
| 6 | Good Morning | 4:08 |
| 7 | Through My Eyes | 4:07 |
| 8 | I’m in Love | 4:06 |
| 9 | Think of You | 4:12 |
| 10 | Into You Deep | 5:20 |
| 11 | Pastime | 3:53 |
| 12 | Face in the Crowd | 4:22 |
| 13 | Somewhere in London | 5:07 |
| 14 | Eternity | 4:38 |
| 15 | Just Go (Mike Rizzo Funk Generation radio edit) | 4:06 |
| 16 | Just Go (Rich Morel’s radio edit) | 3:32 |
| 17 | Just Go (Friscia and Lamboy radio edit) | 3:35 |
| 18 | Just Go (Mike Rizzo Funk Generation club) | 6:53 |
| 19 | Just Go (Rich Morel’s Pink Noise club) | 7:50 |
| 20 | Just Go (Friscia and Lamboy After Dark club) | 7:10 |
| 21 | Just Go (Mike Rizzo Funk Generation dub) | 6:54 |
| 22 | Just Go (Rich Morel’s Pink Noise dub) | 7:44 |
| 23 | Just Go (Friscia and Lamboy After Dark dub) | 7:30 |
| 24 | Face in the Crowd (instrumental) | 4:22 |
Sources: musicbrainz.org
Artist
Formation
- Born June 20, 1949, in Tuskegee, Alabama; grew up on the Tuskegee Institute campus and attended Tuskegee Institute on a tennis scholarship.
- In the late 1960s he joined the Commodores as singer and saxophonist; they moved from Atlantic to Motown, first as a support act to The Jackson 5.
- Commodores' early funky sound ("Machine Gun", "Brick House") gave way to romantic ballads he wrote and sang, such as "Easy", "Three Times a Lady", "Still" and "Sail On".
Career
- 1974: first commercial songwriting success with "Happy People", recorded by The Temptations as a No. 1 R&B hit.
- 1980: wrote "Lady" for Kenny Rogers, a US No. 1; produced Rogers' album Share Your Love in 1981.
- 1981: "Endless Love", a duet with Diana Ross, became one of Motown's biggest hits.
- 1982: debut solo album Lionel Richie, with the No. 1 single "Truly", sold over 4 million copies.
- 1983: Can't Slow Down won Album of the Year and sold over twice as many copies; "All Night Long" was a No. 1 hit.
- 1985: co-wrote "We Are the World" with Michael Jackson; "Say You, Say Me" from White Nights won an Academy Award and a Golden Globe.
- 1986: Dancing on the Ceiling, his last widely popular album; a break from recording followed until the 1992 hits collection Back to Front.
- Sold over 90 million records worldwide and won four Grammy Awards.
- Judge on American Idol from its 16th season (2018 onward).
- 2022: inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
Reception
At release
- Critics gave the album generally positive reviews
- Metacritic: average score 68 based on 6 reviews, indicating generally favorable reviews
- AllMusic editor Andy Kellman: bringing a 60-year-old artist to younger listeners with new material is a big ask, but the fanbase will find plenty to like
- The Guardian's Caroline Sullivan: Richie sounds reliably smooth, ruminating calmly about love
- New York Times' Nate Chinen: the album reads like a textbook adult-contemporary record, but its songs still have credible emotional footing
- People's Chuck Arnold and Joey Bartolomeo: Akon, The-Dream and Stargate put a fresh but familiar spin on Richie's sound, though he falls into a midtempo rut
- Entertainment Weekly's Leah Greenblatt: collaborators are top dogs in their own territory but lack the old tricks of Richie, and the midtempo digital grooves blur together
Records
- US Billboard 200 debut: number 24
- Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums: number 9, Richie's fifth top ten entry on that chart
- Top ten in Austria, Germany, and the United Kingdom
- UK Albums Chart peak: number 10
- US sales: 95,000 copies by May 2012 (Nielsen SoundScan)
- UK: additional 60,000 units by May 2012
- UK: BPI silver certification, indicating sales above 60,000 copies
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
Trivia
- Richie had little writing involvement in the album's songs but wrote "Eternity", which is also included on the tribute album Change Is Now: Renewing America's Promise.
- The album's track listing runs 14 songs, ending with "Eternity" at 4:37.
- "Face in the Crowd" was one of three promotional singles released from the album.
- Akon is a featured guest on "Just Go" and "Nothing Left to Give".
Sources: en.wikipedia.org · it.wikipedia.org
View on the map