Back from Rio

Back from Rio
Back from Rio
Studio album by Roger McGuinn
Released	January 8, 1991
Recorded	Capitol (Hollywood)
Genre	Rock
Length	41:44
Label	Arista
Producer	David Cole; Roger McGuinn;
Roger McGuinn chronology
Alternative cover
	Cover of European release
Singles from Back from Rio
	"King of the Hill"; Released: 1990; "Someone to Love"; Released: 1991;

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	^[1]
Entertainment Weekly	B^[2]
The Great Rock Discography	6/10^[3]
MusicHound	2/5^[4]
Orlando Sentinel	^[5]
Rolling Stone	^[6]

Back from Rio is the sixth studio album by American singer-songwriter, guitarist and co-founder of the Byrds Roger McGuinn. It was released on January 8, 1991, more than a decade after McGuinn's previous solo album, Thunderbyrd.^[7] The album was issued following the release of the Byrds box set and musically it leans on the sound of the Byrds thanks to McGuinn's ringing 12-string electric guitar and vocal contributions from ex-Byrds members David Crosby and Chris Hillman. Also prominent on the album are Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, with Petty co-authoring and duetting with McGuinn on the album's lead single "King of the Hill". In addition, several members of the Heartbreakers provide musical backing on a number of the album's tracks. Other prominent songwriters on the album—besides McGuinn and his wife Camilla—are Elvis Costello, Jules Shear and Dave Stewart of the Eurythmics.

The album was generally well received by music critics and it peaked at No. 44 on the Billboard 200 album chart. ^[8] Two singles were drawn from the album: "King of the Hill" and "Someone to Love", which peaked at #2 and #12 respectively, on the Billboard Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart. ^[9]

In Europe, Back from Rio was released in February 1991^[7] and featured different cover artwork.

Track listing

Side one

"Someone to Love" (Roger McGuinn, Camilla McGuinn) – 3:32
"Car Phone" (feat. Stan Ridgway) (Mike Campbell, R. McGuinn) – 4:33
"You Bowed Down" (Elvis Costello) – 3:52
"Suddenly Blue" (Scott Cutler, R. McGuinn, Dennis Morgan) – 3:49
"The Trees Are All Gone" (R. McGuinn, C. McGuinn) – 3:51

Side two

"King of the Hill" (duet with Tom Petty) (R. McGuinn, Tom Petty) – 5:27
"Without Your Love" (R. McGuinn, C. McGuinn) – 3:59
"The Time Has Come" (Scott Cutler, R. McGuinn) – 3:45
"Your Love Is a Gold Mine" (R. McGuinn, Dave Stewart) – 4:06
- Includes "Back from Rio Interlude" (R. McGuinn, Petty, Jeff Lynne)
"If We Never Meet Again" (Jules Shear) – 4:28

Personnel

Mike Campbell – electric guitar, slide guitar, baritone guitar
David Cole – percussion, piano, acoustic guitar, MPC-60
Elvis Costello – backing vocals
David Crosby – vocals, backing vocals
George Hawkins – bass guitar
Dan Higgins – saxophone
Chris Hillman – vocals, background vocals
John Jorgenson – acoustic guitar, electric guitar, baritone guitar, saxophone, bass guitar, mandolin
Stan Lynch – drums, percussion
Roger McGuinn – lead vocals, backing vocals, 12-string electric guitar, 12-string acoustic guitar
Michael Penn – backing vocals, 12-string acoustic guitar
Tom Petty – co-lead vocals ("King of the Hill"), backing vocals
Stan Ridgway – telephone voice
Kimmy Robertson – telephone voice
Timothy B. Schmit – backing vocals
J. Steven Soles – backing vocals
Benmont Tench – organ, keyboards, Hammond B-3
Michael Thompson – electric guitar, acoustic guitar

Production

David Cole – producer, engineer, mixing
Peter Doell – engineer
John Hall – demo engineer, mixing at Firetail-on-the-Hill Studios
Jesse Kanner – mixing
Roger McGuinn – producer, mixing
Wally Traugott – mastering

Charts

Weekly charts

Weekly chart performance for *Back from Rio*
Chart (1991)	Peak
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)^[10]	22
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)^[11]	49
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)^[12]	70
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)^[13]	6
US Billboard 200^[14]	44

Year-end charts

1991 year-end chart performance for *Back from Rio*
Chart (1991)	Rank
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)^[15]	99

Notes

^ AllMusic review
^ Entertainment Weekly review
^ Strong, Martin (2006). The Great Rock Discography. Edinburgh, UK: Canongate. p. 165. ISBN 978-1-84195-827-9.
^ Graff, Gary; Durchholz, Daniel, eds. (1999). MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Farmington Hills, MI: Visible Ink Press. p. 186. ISBN 1-57859-061-2.
^ Gettelman, Parry (February 22, 1991). "Roger McGuinn Back From Rio". Orlando Sentinel. Archived from the original on May 6, 2014. Retrieved May 26, 2018.
^ Rolling Stone review^{[dead link]}
^ ^a ^b Rogan, Johnny (1998). The Byrds: Timeless Flight Revisited (2nd ed.). Rogan House. p. 556. ISBN 0-9529540-1-X.
^ "Roger McGuinn – Discography – Back from Rio". Billboard.com. Archived from the original on November 21, 2021. Retrieved July 2, 2008.
^ "Roger McGuinn – Artist Chart History". Billboard.com. Retrieved July 2, 2008.
^ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 1479". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved May 24, 2022.
^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Roger McGuinn – Back From Rio" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 24, 2022.
^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Roger McGuinn – Back From Rio" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved May 24, 2022.
^ "Norwegiancharts.com – Roger McGuinn – Back From Rio". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 24, 2022.
^ "Roger McGuinn Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved May 24, 2022.
^ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 1702". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved May 24, 2022.

[1] AllMusic review

[2] Entertainment Weekly review

[3] Strong, Martin (2006). The Great Rock Discography. Edinburgh, UK: Canongate. p. 165. ISBN 978-1-84195-827-9.

[4] Graff, Gary; Durchholz, Daniel, eds. (1999). MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Farmington Hills, MI: Visible Ink Press. p. 186. ISBN 1-57859-061-2.

[5] Gettelman, Parry (February 22, 1991). "Roger McGuinn Back From Rio". Orlando Sentinel. Archived from the original on May 6, 2014. Retrieved May 26, 2018.

[6] Rolling Stone review^{[dead link]}

[timeless-7] Rogan, Johnny (1998). The Byrds: Timeless Flight Revisited (2nd ed.). Rogan House. p. 556. ISBN 0-9529540-1-X.

[8] "Roger McGuinn – Discography – Back from Rio". Billboard.com. Archived from the original on November 21, 2021. Retrieved July 2, 2008.

[9] "Roger McGuinn – Artist Chart History". Billboard.com. Retrieved July 2, 2008.

[group=-10] "Top RPM Albums: Issue 1479". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved May 24, 2022.

[ac_Netherlands_Roger_McGuinn-11] "Dutchcharts.nl – Roger McGuinn – Back From Rio" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 24, 2022.

[ac_Germany_Roger_McGuinn-12] "Offiziellecharts.de – Roger McGuinn – Back From Rio" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved May 24, 2022.

[ac_Norway_Roger_McGuinn-13] "Norwegiancharts.com – Roger McGuinn – Back From Rio". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 24, 2022.

[ac_Billboard200_Roger_McGuinn-14] "Roger McGuinn Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved May 24, 2022.

[CANYE91-15] "Top RPM Albums: Issue 1702". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved May 24, 2022.

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v t e Roger McGuinn
Studio albums	Roger McGuinn Peace on You Roger McGuinn & Band Cardiff Rose Thunderbyrd Back from Rio Limited Edition Sweet Memories
Compilations	Born to Rock and Roll
Related articles	The Byrds "You Bowed Down"

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