Starting Over is the fourth studio album by American musician Chris Stapleton. The album was released on November 13, 2020, by Mercury Nashville. At the 64th Grammy Awards it won the award for Best Country Album.
Composition The singer-songwriter's fourth recording project consists of fourteen tracks produced with Dave Cobb, and features writing by John Fogerty, Mike Henderson, Mike Campbell, Susanna Clarke and Guy Clark. Interviewed by Vulture Magazine, Stapleton said: "There’s a lot on this record that I’m finding out, as I’m starting to talk about it a bit, was very reactionary and in the moment. On previous records, there was songwriting that probably took place in a working songwriter vacuum, that sat around for a number of years and found a purpose when it was time to make a record. [...] This project is much more about my current day-to-day life."
Critical reception
Starting Over received generally positive reviews from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from critics, the album received an average score of 81, which indicates "universal acclaim", based on 10 reviews.
Jonathan Bernstein of Rolling Stone reports that "Starting Over feels comfortable experimenting with whatever its author throws at it" as Stapleton "digs deep into familiar territory, spinning a fiery tale of liberation", finding it a "sincere tale".
Chris Willman of Variety finds that "Starting Over is not intended to live up to its title; if anyone is so solid in his musical convictions that he could never try to reinvent himself, it's Stapleton. But it would be hard to consider an album that contains not just one but two Guy Clark covers that pay homage to one of Stapleton's songwriting heroes as banal".
Jeremy Winograd of Slant Magazine finds the arrangements of the songs "sparse and uncluttered" leaving the singer-songwriter's voice "raw". Although he finds the vocal presence of his wife Morgane a testament to the songs' authenticity, he writes that "predictably, it only shifts his focus from love and tenderness to mild hedonism" finding them "largely limited".
Awards +Awards and nominations for Starting OverYearAwardCategoryResult2021Country Music Association AwardsAlbum of the YearAcademy of Country Music AwardsAlbum of the Year2022Grammy AwardsBest Country Album
Commercial performance Starting Over debuted at number three on the US Billboard 200 selling 103,000 units in its first week.
Track listing All tracks are produced by Dave Cobb and Chris Stapleton.
Personnel Adapted from liner notes.
Chris Stapleton − lead vocals (all tracks), background vocals (tracks 5, 7, 10), acoustic guitar (tracks 1–3, 6–8, 10, 11, 14), electric guitar (tracks 2–7, 9–13), mandolin (track 2), octophone (track 7), string arrangements (track 3) Dave Cobb − acoustic guitar (all tracks except 10 and 14), percussion (track 5), string arrangements (track 3) J.T. Cure − bass guitar (all tracks except 14), upright bass (track 14) Derek Mixon − drums (all tracks), percussion (track 5), tambourine (track 3) Morgane Stapleton − background vocals (tracks 1, 3, 4, 8, 10, 11, 13, 14), tambourine (tracks 2, 5, 10, 13) Additional Personnel Benmont Tench − Hammond B-3 organ (tracks 1, 3, 6, 8, 11, 13, 14), piano (tracks 3, 8, 11), upright piano (track 5), Wurlitzer (tracks 1, 8) Mike Campbell − electric guitar (tracks 5, 12) Paul Franklin − pedal steel guitar (tracks 10, 14) Stephen Lamb − copyist (track 3)
String section (track 3) David Angell − violin Jenny Bifano − violin David Davidson − violin Conni Ellisor − violin Alicia Engstrom − violin Mary Kathryn Vanosdale − violin Karyn Winkleman − violin Kevin Bates − cello Austin Hoke − cello Carole Rabinowitz − cello Sari Reist − cello Kris Wilkinson − viola, string arrangements Choir (track 12) Traneshia Chiles Tamika Harris Jordan Holland Lauren McClinton Marqo Patton Lenesha Randolph Shannon Sanders Melody Sheppard
Charts
Weekly charts + Weekly chart performance for Starting Over Chart (2020) Peakposition
Year-end charts + 2021 year-end chart performance for Starting Over Chart (2021) Position Canadian Albums (Billboard) 32 US Billboard 200 32 US Top Country Albums (Billboard) 4 + 2022 year-end chart performance for Starting Over Chart (2022) Position US Billboard 200 51 US Top Country Albums (Billboard) 7 + 2023 year-end chart performance for Starting Over Chart (2023) Position US Billboard 200 77 US Top Country Albums (Billboard) 17 + 2024 year-end chart performance for Starting Over Chart (2024) Position Australian Country Albums (ARIA) 24 US Billboard 200 95 US Top Country Albums (Billboard) 22 + 2025 year-end chart performance for Starting Over Chart (2025) Position US Billboard 200 115 US Top Country Albums (Billboard) 24
Certifications
References