Jana Pendragon of AllMusic gave the album four-and-a-half stars out of five, comparing it to Dwight Yoakam's Hillbilly Deluxe in style and saying, 'Stuart kicks country-pop in its well-defined hindquartersBut Stuart is just as deadly when he slows things down and does a ballad.' Īlso in 1991, Stuart co-wrote a song with Travis Tritt called ' The Whiskey Ain't Workin''. Kennerley and Kostas contributed as both songwriters and backing vocalists also performing backing vocals on some tracks were Billy Thomas and Ray Herndon, who were also recording on MCA in McBride & the Ride at the time. Bennett and Brown stayed on as producers, with the former also contributing alongside Stuart on both guitar and mandolin. The album charted four singles on Hot Country Songs between 19: ' Little Things', ' Till I Found You', ' Tempted', and ' Burn Me Down', of which all except 'Till I Found You' reached the top ten.

His second MCA album, Tempted, followed in 1991. Hillbilly Rock was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in 1997 for shipments of 500,000 copies. The album's final release was ' Western Girls', which Stuart also co-wrote. While these were unsuccessful on the charts, the album's title track (written by Paul Kennerley) became Stuart's first top-ten country hit in 1990. First was a cover of Cash's ' Cry! Cry! Cry!', followed by 'Don't Leave Her Lonely Too Long', which Stuart wrote with Kostas. Co-produced by Tony Brown and session guitarist Richard Bennett, the album charted four singles on Hot Country Songs.

That label issued the album Hillbilly Rock that year. 1989-91: Beginning of MCA Records Īfter briefly rejoining the Sullivans, he returned to Nashville and signed with MCA Records in 1989. Due to the underperformance of the singles, Columbia chose not to release the album, and Stuart exited the label to return to Mississippi. AllMusic writer Jim Worbois gave the album a mixed review, stating that it was 'Not a great album, but made somewhat more interesting by some of the people appearing on the record and the inclusion of two Steve Forbert songs.' He recorded a second album for Columbia titled Let There Be Country, which charted two singles in 1988: the Merle Haggard composition 'Mirrors Don't Lie' and 'Matches'. However, these songs were less successful on the charts. Three other singles charted from the album in 1986: 'Honky Tonker' and 'All Because of You', both written by Steve Forbert, and Stuart's own 'Do You Really Want My Lovin''. The album accounted for Stuart's first chart entry on Billboard Hot Country Songs charts with his first single release, ' Arlene'. Stuart released his self-titled debut album on Columbia in 1985. Later that year, Stuart left Cash's band and landed a recording contract with Columbia Records. At the end of the session, Perkins presented Stuart with his guitar. In 1985, Stuart accompanied Johnny Cash to Memphis and played on the Class of '55 album that also featured Carl Perkins, Roy Orbison, and Jerry Lee Lewis. The album was composed of a jam session that included a number of country and bluegrass performers such as Cash, Watson, and Earl Scruggs. In 1982, he released a second album called Busy Bee Cafe on Sugar Hill Records. After this, Stuart performed with Vassar Clements and Doc Watson before joining Johnny Cash's band in 1980. He continued to tour in this capacity until Flatt retired in 1978, and recorded an independent album called With a Little Help from My Friends that same year.

While a member of this band, Stuart met mandolinist Roland White, a member of Lester Flatt's backing band White invited Stuart to perform with Flatt at a concert in Delaware in 1972, which led to him becoming a regular member of that band. Stuart learned to play guitar and mandolin as a child and, by age 12, he had joined a gospel band called The Sullivans.

John Marty Stuart was born in Philadelphia, Mississippi, on September 30, 1958. Marty Stuart: Keeper Of Country Music's Cowboy Couture, interviewed by Terry Gross on Fresh Air, 51:08, October 1, 2014.

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