Killin' Time (Clint Black album)

Killin' Time
Killin' Time
Studio album by Clint Black
Released	May 2, 1989
Recorded	1988
Studio	Digital Services (Houston, Texas); Eleven Eleven (Nashville, Tennessee); House of David (Nashville, Tennessee); Sound Stage (Nashville, Tennessee); Woodland (Nashville, Tennessee); Reflections (Nashville, Tennessee);
Genre	Neotraditional country; Texas country; Western swing;
Length	30:35
Label	RCA Nashville
Producer	James Stroud, Mark Wright
Clint Black chronology
Singles from Killin' Time
	"A Better Man"; Released: February 18, 1989; "Killin' Time"; Released: July 15, 1989; "Nobody's Home"; Released: October 1989; "Walkin' Away"; Released: February 19, 1990; "Nothing's News"; Released: June 18, 1990;

Killin' Time is the debut studio album by American country music singer-songwriter Clint Black. It was released on May 2, 1989, by RCA Nashville. The album, buoyed by the chart-topping success of its first four singles, was a huge hit upon its release, and established Black as one of the biggest new stars in country music. The album is currently certified triple platinum by the RIAA.

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	^[1]
Chicago Tribune	^[2]
Christgau's Record Guide	A−^[3]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music	^[4]
Q	^[5]
Rolling Stone	^[6]

"A Better Man", "Nothing's News", "Walking Away", "Nobody's Home", and "Killin' Time" were all huge hit songs. All of these except "Nothing's News" reached Number One on the Billboard Hot Country Singles and Hot Country Singles & Tracks (now Hot Country Songs) chart, while "Nothing's News" reached No. 3. In addition, "A Better Man" and "Nobody's Home" were declared the Number One songs of 1989 and 1990, respectively, according to Billboard.

Critical reception

The Los Angeles Times wrote that "Black has a winning vocal style that evokes a very young Merle Haggard at times, and musically he can Western swing just as hard as fellow Texan George Strait, which he proves on the delightful 'Straight From the Factory'."^[7]

Musical style and composition

Killin' Time has been described musically as neotraditional country,^[6]^[2]^[3] Texas country,^[1] Western swing.^[7] It has been compared to the musical style of classic country music artists such as Merle Haggard and as neotraditional country contemporaries such as George Strait and Randy Travis.^[2]^[6]^[5]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Clint Black and Hayden Nicholas except where noted

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Straight from the Factory"		2:18
2.	"A Better Man"		3:04
3.	"Nobody's Home"	Black	3:29
4.	"Walkin' Away"	Black, Nicholas, Dick Gay	2:47
5.	"You're Gonna Leave Me Again"		3:43
6.	"I'll Be Gone" (Omitted from LP/Cassette version)		2:28
7.	"Nothing's News"	Black	3:02
8.	"Winding Down"	Black	3:38
9.	"Killin' Time" (Track 6 on LP/Cassette version)		2:47
10.	"Live and Learn"	Black	3:14

Personnel

Band

Clint Black – acoustic guitar, harmonica, lead vocals, background vocals
Dick Gay – drums
Rob Hajacos – fiddle
Jana King – background vocals
Randy McCormick – keyboards
Craig Morris – background vocals
Hayden Nicholas – acoustic guitar, electric guitar, background vocals
Mark O'Connor – fiddle
John Permenter – fiddle
Jeff Peterson – Dobro, steel guitar
Jim Photoglo – background vocals
Donna Rhodes – background vocals
Brent Rowan – electric guitar
Harry Stinson – background vocals
Wendy Waldman – background vocals
Jake Willemain – bass guitar
Reggie Young - electric guitar

Production

Milan Bogdan – editing
Bill Ham – executive producer
Steve Lindsey – production coordinator
Glenn Meadows – mastering
Lynn Peterzell – engineer, mixing
Scott Poston – production coordinator
James Stroud – producer
Mark Wright – producer

Chart positions

Weekly charts

Chart (1989–1990)	Peak position
Canadian Albums (RPM)	93
Canadian Country Albums (RPM)	6
US Billboard 200^[8]	31
US Top Country Albums (Billboard)^[9]	1

Year-end charts

Chart (1989)	Position
US Top Country Albums (Billboard)^[10]	16
Chart (1990)	Position
US Billboard 200^[11]	52
US Top Country Albums (Billboard)^[12]	1
Chart (1991)	Position
US Top Country Albums (Billboard)^[13]	6
Chart (1992)	Position
US Top Country Albums (Billboard)^[14]	50

Singles

Year	Single	Peak positions
Year	Single	US Country	CAN Country
1989	"A Better Man"	1	1
	"Killin' Time"	1	1
	"Nobody's Home"	1	1
1990	"Walkin' Away"	1	1
1990	"Nothing's News"	3	1

Certifications


Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)^[15]	Platinum	100,000^{^}
United States (RIAA)^[16]	3× Platinum	3,000,000^{^}
^{^} Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

^ ^a ^b Mansfield, Brian. Killin' Time at AllMusic
^ ^a ^b ^c Hurst, Jack (May 4, 1989). "Clint Black Killin' Time (RCA)". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved April 27, 2013.
^ ^a ^b Christgau, Robert (1990). "B". Christgau's Record Guide: The '80s. Pantheon Books. ISBN 0-679-73015-X. Archived from the original on July 10, 2020. Retrieved August 17, 2020 – via robertchristgau.com.
^ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 1. MUZE. pp. 641–642.
^ ^a ^b "Clint Black - Killin' Time CD Album". CD Universe. Archived from the original on December 23, 2011. Retrieved April 27, 2013.
^ ^a ^b ^c Gleason, Holly (August 24, 1989). "Clint Black: Killin' Time : Music Reviews". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on August 30, 2008. Retrieved April 27, 2013.
^ ^a ^b "Black Is Bountiful". Los Angeles Times. July 9, 1989. Archived from the original on 2020-11-28. Retrieved 2021-03-08.
^ "Clint Black Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
^ "Clint Black Chart History (Top Country Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
^ "Top Country Albums – Year-End 1989". Billboard. Archived from the original on December 11, 2007. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
^ "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1990". Billboard. Archived from the original on May 13, 2021. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
^ "Top Country Albums – Year-End 1990". Billboard. Archived from the original on October 20, 2006. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
^ "Top Country Albums – Year-End 1991". Billboard. Archived from the original on December 11, 2007. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
^ "Top Country Albums – Year-End 1992". Billboard. Archived from the original on October 20, 2006. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
^ "Canadian album certifications – Clint Black – Killin' Time". Music Canada. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
^ "American album certifications – Clint Black – Killin' Time". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved January 3, 2021.

Killin' Time [CD liner notes]. 1989. RCA Records.
Artist Chart History (Singles). Billboard. Retrieved on March 10, 2003.
Artist Chart History (Albums). Billboard. Retrieved on March 10, 2003.

[amg-1] Mansfield, Brian. Killin' Time at AllMusic

[hurst-2] Hurst, Jack (May 4, 1989). "Clint Black Killin' Time (RCA)". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved April 27, 2013.

[christgau-3] Christgau, Robert (1990). "B". Christgau's Record Guide: The '80s. Pantheon Books. ISBN 0-679-73015-X. Archived from the original on July 10, 2020. Retrieved August 17, 2020 – via robertchristgau.com.

[CL-4] Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 1. MUZE. pp. 641–642.

[Q-5] "Clint Black - Killin' Time CD Album". CD Universe. Archived from the original on December 23, 2011. Retrieved April 27, 2013.

[rs-6] Gleason, Holly (August 24, 1989). "Clint Black: Killin' Time : Music Reviews". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on August 30, 2008. Retrieved April 27, 2013.

[latimes-7] "Black Is Bountiful". Los Angeles Times. July 9, 1989. Archived from the original on 2020-11-28. Retrieved 2021-03-08.

[ac_Billboard200_Clint_Black-8] "Clint Black Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved January 3, 2021.

[ac_BillboardCountry_Clint_Black-9] "Clint Black Chart History (Top Country Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved January 3, 2021.

[10] "Top Country Albums – Year-End 1989". Billboard. Archived from the original on December 11, 2007. Retrieved January 3, 2021.

[11] "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1990". Billboard. Archived from the original on May 13, 2021. Retrieved January 3, 2021.

[12] "Top Country Albums – Year-End 1990". Billboard. Archived from the original on October 20, 2006. Retrieved January 3, 2021.

[13] "Top Country Albums – Year-End 1991". Billboard. Archived from the original on December 11, 2007. Retrieved January 3, 2021.

[14] "Top Country Albums – Year-End 1992". Billboard. Archived from the original on October 20, 2006. Retrieved January 3, 2021.

[CanadaClint_BlackKillin'_TimealbumCertRef-15] "Canadian album certifications – Clint Black – Killin' Time". Music Canada. Retrieved January 3, 2021.

[United_StatesClint_BlackKillin'_TimealbumCertRef-16] "American album certifications – Clint Black – Killin' Time". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved January 3, 2021.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

[16]