It Works for Me

It Works for Me
It Works for Me
Studio album by Barbara Mandrell
Released	April 21, 1994
Studio	Groundstar Lab
Genre	Country
Length	43:28
Label	Direct; Razor & Tie;
Producer	Barbara Mandrell; Brent Rowan;
Barbara Mandrell chronology
It Works for Me (1997 cover)

It Works for Me is the twenty-fifth and final solo studio album by American country artist Barbara Mandrell. It was originally released on April 21, 1994, via Direct Records. The original version of the album was only sold on television through a marketing campaign. In 1997, it was re-released via Razor & Tie and was sold to retailers in multiple formats. Both releases contained the same track listing of 12 songs. The album contained a mixture of covers as well as original material. It was Mandrell's twenty seventh studio project and the final studio project released in her career.

Background and recording

In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Barbara Mandrell was considered among country music's most successful artists. During this period she had a series of top ten and number one singles on the North American country charts.^[2]^[3] By the end of the 1980s, Mandrell's singles began to reach progressively lower chart positions, although she remained on a major label until the early 1990s.^[3] In 1994, it was announced that Direct Records (a New York based record company) would release two studio albums of Mandrell's music directly through television marketing. They were not sold in retail stores despite a willingness from specialty companies. The two albums would be Acoustic Attitude and It Works for Me.^[4] The disc was recorded at the Groundstar Lab, a studio located in Nashville, Tennessee. The sessions were co-produced by Brent Rowan and Mandrell. It was her second studio album to include Mandrell on production credits.^[5]

Content and release

It Works for Me was a collection of 12 recordings new to Mandrell's catalog. It included several covers, including Brenda Russell's "Get Here" and Van Morrison's "Have I Told You Lately". It also featured the original tracks "I Won't Be Home Tonight" and "Love by Any Name".^[5]^[6] Also included was the track "Ten Pound Hammer", which was first recorded by Aaron Tippin for his 1995 album Tool Box.^[7] The album was first released on April 21, 1994, on Direct Records. It was originally distributed as a compact disc. The disc's release marked the twenty seventh studio album of Mandrell's music career.^[5] It was sold exclusively on television in combination with what was described by Billboard as a "fan pack". Items included in the package were a biography and an autographed photo. It was mostly marketed on The Nashville Network.^[6]

In March 1997, it was announced that Mandrell had signed a recording contract with the Razor & Tie label.^[8] One month later, the label re-released It Works for Me with the same track listing, however the photography was different.^[9] It was made available as both a compact disc and as a cassette.^[10] Years later, the album was reissued to digital platforms including Spotify.^[11] It Works for Me marked the final album in Mandrell's recording career. She would retire from the entertainment industry shortly after the disc's 1997 re-release.^[3]^[12]

Track listing

Compact disc and digital versions

*It Works for Me* (1994) (1997)^[5]^[9]^[11]
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Ten Pound Hammer"	Dennis Linde	2:53
2.	"To My Heart"	Steve Bogard Tony Haselden	2:54
3.	"Heart from a Stone"	Beth Nielsen Chapman Mark Germino	3:35
4.	"I Won't Be Home Tonight"	Bob Gaudio Roger Murrah	3:35
5.	"Get Here"	Brenda Russell	4:22
6.	"Your One and Only"	Hillary Kanter Even Stevens	3:18
7.	"Temptation"	Gary Lloyd Jimmy Stewart	3:53
8.	"Love by Any Name"	Jim Daddario Don Pfrimmer	3:40
9.	"A Little Time for Us"	Sam Hogin Monty Powell Kim Williams	3:18
10.	"Just Like Me"	Debbie Hupp Bob Morrison	3:36
11.	"Weight of the World"	Mac McAnally	3:56
12.	"Have I Told You Lately"	Van Morrison	4:28
Total length:			43:28

Cassette version

Side one (1997)^[10]
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Ten Pound Hammer"	Linde	2:53
2.	"To My Heart"	Bogard Haselden	2:54
3.	"Heart from a Stone"	Chapman Germino	3:35
4.	"I Won't Be Home Tonight"	Gaudio Murrah	3:35
5.	"Get Here"	Russell	4:22
6.	"Your One and Only"	Kanter Stevens	3:18

Side two (1997)^[10]
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Temptation"	Lloyd Stewart	3:53
2.	"Love by Any Name"	Daddario Pfrimmer	3:40
3.	"A Little Time for Us"	Hogin Powell Williams	3:18
4.	"Just Like Me"	Hupp Morrison	3:36
5.	"Weight of the World"	McAnally	3:56
6.	"Have I Told You Lately"	Morrison	4:28

Personnel

All credits are adapted from the liner notes of It Works for Me^[9] and AllMusic.^[13]

Musical personnel

Michael Black – Background vocals
Gary Burr – Background vocals
Bruce Dees – Background vocals
Owen Hale – Drums
Jim Horn – Saxophone
Barbara Mandrell – Lead vocals
Steve Nathan – Keyboards
Michael Rhodes – Bass
John Wesley Ryles – Background vocals
Brent Rowan – Guitar
Dennis Wilson – Background vocals

Technical personnel

Paul Aresu – Photography
Derek Bason – Assistant engineer
Eric Darken – Percussion
John Guess – Mixing engineer
John Hurley – Assistant engineer
Ioannis – Art direction, design
Stephen Jacaruso – Design
Barbara Mandrell – Producer
Keith Odle – Engineer
Brent Rowan – Producer
Denny Somach – Project coordinator
Liz Vap – Art direction, design
Marty Williams – Assistant engineer, mixing engineer

Release history

Region	Date	Format	Label	Ref.
North America	April 21, 1994	Compact disc	Direct Records	^[5]
	April 22, 1997	Compact disc	Razor & Tie	^[9]
	April 22, 1997	Cassette		^[10]
	2010s	Music download streaming		^[11]

References

^ "It Works for Me: Barbara Mandrell: Songs, reviews, credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
^ Wolff, Kurt (2000). Country Music: The Rough Guide. London: Penguin Books. p. 438. ISBN 1-85828-534-8.
^ ^a ^b ^c Ankeny, Jason. "Barbara Mandrell Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
^ Morris, Edward (April 16, 1994). "Nashville Scene: Tritt Is the Latest to Sing Song of Himself". Billboard. p. 38. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Mandrell, Barbara (April 21, 1994). "It Works for Me (CD Liner Notes and Album Information)". Direct Records. DRD-004.
^ ^a ^b Jeffrey, Don (April 23, 1994). "Mandrell Infomercial Coming to TV: Direct Records Bypasses Retail for New CD's". Billboard. p. 24. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
^ Tippin, Aaron (November 21, 1995). "Tool Box (CD Liner Notes and Album Information)". RCA Records. 07863-66740-2.
^ Flippo, Chet (March 22, 1997). "Nashville Scene". Billboard. p. 32.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Mandrell, Barbara (April 22, 1997). "It Works for Me (CD Liner Notes and Album Information)". Razor & Tie. RT-2828-2.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Mandrell, Barbara (April 22, 1997). "It Works for Me (Cassette Liner Notes and Album Information)". Razor & Tie. RTC-2828-2.
^ ^a ^b ^c "It Works for Me". Spotify. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
^ Carter, Brooke (July 9, 2018). "What Happened to Barbara Mandrell? – 2018 Update". Gazette Review. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
^ "It Works for Me: Barbara Mandrell: Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 9 January 2022.

[AllMusic-1] "It Works for Me: Barbara Mandrell: Songs, reviews, credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 29 January 2022.

[Wolff-2] Wolff, Kurt (2000). Country Music: The Rough Guide. London: Penguin Books. p. 438. ISBN 1-85828-534-8.

[Allmusicbio-3] Ankeny, Jason. "Barbara Mandrell Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved 25 January 2022.

[4] Morris, Edward (April 16, 1994). "Nashville Scene: Tritt Is the Latest to Sing Song of Himself". Billboard. p. 38. Retrieved 25 January 2022.

[Liner_Notes-5] Mandrell, Barbara (April 21, 1994). "It Works for Me (CD Liner Notes and Album Information)". Direct Records. DRD-004.

[Billboard-6] Jeffrey, Don (April 23, 1994). "Mandrell Infomercial Coming to TV: Direct Records Bypasses Retail for New CD's". Billboard. p. 24. Retrieved 25 January 2022.

[7] Tippin, Aaron (November 21, 1995). "Tool Box (CD Liner Notes and Album Information)". RCA Records. 07863-66740-2.

[8] Flippo, Chet (March 22, 1997). "Nashville Scene". Billboard. p. 32.

[Liner_Notes_2-9] Mandrell, Barbara (April 22, 1997). "It Works for Me (CD Liner Notes and Album Information)". Razor & Tie. RT-2828-2.

[Liner_Notes_3-10] Mandrell, Barbara (April 22, 1997). "It Works for Me (Cassette Liner Notes and Album Information)". Razor & Tie. RTC-2828-2.

[Spotify-11] "It Works for Me". Spotify. Retrieved 29 January 2022.

[12] Carter, Brooke (July 9, 2018). "What Happened to Barbara Mandrell? – 2018 Update". Gazette Review. Retrieved 29 January 2022.

[13] "It Works for Me: Barbara Mandrell: Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 9 January 2022.

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