| Artist | Eli Young Band |
|---|---|
| Cover | lifeatbest.jpg |
| Released | August 16, 2011 |
| Studio | Dark Horse Recording (Franklin, TN) Wrucke's House (Nashville, TN) |
| Genre | Country |
| Label | Republic Nashville |
| Producer |
|
| Prev year | 2008 |
| Next year | 2014 |
Life at Best is the third studio album by American country music group Eli Young Band. It was released on August 16, 2011 via Republic Nashville. The album includes the number one singles "Crazy Girl" and "Even If It Breaks Your Heart" as well as "Say Goodnight", which peaked at number 22 on the Country Airplay Chart. According to HITS Daily Double, the album sold 348,000 copies as of February 2014. A "15 Years Deluxe" reissue was released on May 15, 2026.
Reception
Critical
Giving it four stars out of five, Steve Morley of Country Weekly said that the album "rings with roots-rock guitars and meaty, often melancholy themes".[1] A less favorable review came from Andrew Leahey of AllMusic, who thought that it was a "step backwards" because he did not consider its songs as memorable as those on Jet Black & Jealous.[2]
Personnel
Adapted from the Life at Best liner notes.[3]
- Eli Young Band
- Mike Eli – guitar, lead vocals
- Jon Jones – bass guitar, background vocals
- Chris Thompson – drums, percussion
- James Young – lead guitar, harmonica, background vocals
- Production
- Eric Tonkin – assistant engineer
- Nick Kallstrom – assistant engineer
- Mark Dobson – digital editing
- Mike Wrucke – mixing
- Richard Dodd – mastering
- Additional musicians
- Eric Darken – percussion
- Fred Eltringham – percussion
- Kree Harrison – background vocals
- Natalie Hemby – background vocals
- Greg Leisz – steel guitar
- Tony Obrohta – guitar
- Russ Pahl – steel guitar
- Oran Thornton – guitar
- Michael Webb – Hammond B-3 organ, keyboards
- Mike Wrucke – guitar, steel guitar, harmonica, mandolin, background vocals
Chart performance
Weekly charts
| Chart (2011–12) | Peak position |
|---|
Year-end charts
| Chart (2011) | Position |
|---|---|
| US Top Country Albums (Billboard)[4] | 55 |
| Chart (2012) | Position |
| US Top Country Albums (Billboard)[5] | 33 |
Singles
| Year | Single | Peak chart positions | Certifications (sales threshold) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Country [6] | US Country Airplay [7] | US [8] | CAN [9] | |||
| 2011 | "Crazy Girl" | 1 | — | 30 | 66 | |
| 2012 | "Even If It Breaks Your Heart" | 1 | — | 29 | 56 |
|
| "Say Goodnight" | 31 | 22 | 110 | — | ||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | ||||||
References
- ^ Morley, Steve (August 10, 2011). "Life at Best review". Country Weekly. Retrieved August 17, 2011.
- ^ Leahey, Andrew. "Life at Best review". AllMusic. Retrieved August 19, 2011.
- ^ Life at Best (booklet). Republic Nashville. 2011. B001585602.
- ^ "Top Country Albums – Year-End 2011". Billboard. Archived March 1, 2021 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved April 7, 2021.
- ^ "Top Country Albums – Year-End 2012". Billboard. Archived November 24, 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved April 7, 2021.
- ^ "Eli Young Band Album & Song Chart History - Country Songs". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Archived from the original on October 2, 2011. Retrieved August 17, 2011.
- ^ "Eli Young Band Album & Song Chart History - Country Airplay". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Archived from the original on October 2, 2011. Retrieved November 8, 2012.
- ^ "Eli Young Band Album & Song Chart History - Hot 100". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved August 17, 2011.
- ^ "Eli Young Band Album & Song Chart History - Canadian Hot 100". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Archived from the original on October 2, 2011. Retrieved October 26, 2011.