Elbert West
Elbert Lee West (July 15, 1967 – May 18, 2015) was an American country music artist. Initially a session songwriter in Nashville, Tennessee, West saw his first chart success in the 1990s as a co-writer on singles for country singer Tracy Lawrence, including the Number Ones "Sticks and Stones" and "Can't Break It to My Heart".[2][3] West co-wrote album tracks for other artists, including tracks for Tim McGraw and John Michael Montgomery.[4]
By 2001, West had signed to Broken Bow Records, then a newly formed independent label, and his debut album, Livin' the Life, was released that year.[2] West co-wrote ten of the album's thirteen tracks,[4] while others — including "(This One's Gonna) Leave a Mark", previously recorded by John Michael Montgomery — were co-written by Randy Archer and Johnny Park, formerly of the duo Archer/Park. "Diddley", which peaked at No. 56 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks charts, was the album's lead single and West's only single to chart. "Diddley" was also made into a music video, which aired on CMT.[3] Erik Hage of Allmusic gave the album four stars out of five, saying, "West has a big, husky baritone, a keen songwriting ability, a defiant attitude, and is a major country talent."[5]
Death
West died on May 18, 2015, aged 47 (his age was initially misreported as 46), from undisclosed causes..[6]
Discography
Livin' the Life (2001)
Track listing
- "Crawlin' Time" (Judy Hoffman, Elbert West) – 3:22
- "Side of the Road" (D. Scott Miller, Elbert West) – 3:46
- "Diddley" (Doc James Shapiro, C.B. Carter) – 2:52
- "Neon Light" (Elbert West, Earl Clark) – 3:35
- "(This One's Gonna) Leave a Mark" (John Michael Montgomery, David Lee, Johnny Park, West) – 3:34
- "Unpredicatable" (D. Scott Miller, Elbert West) – 2:35
- "Livin' the Life" (Randy Archer, West) – 3:33
- "Robin Loves to Hear Me Sing" (D. Scott Miller, John Ramey) – 4:21
- "My Last Resort" (D. Scott Miller) – 3:08
- "Sinner" (Miller, Elbert West, Ken Prueitt) – 3:46
- "Middle of the Line" (Lee, Elbert West) – 3:14
- "Everything That He's Not" (D. Scott Miller, Elbert West, Stewart Harris) – 5:23
- "Kiss My Lips Goodbye" (D. Scott Miller, Elbert West, Even Stevens) – 2:57
Personnel
- Steve Brewster - drums, percussion
- Gary Burnette - six-string bass guitar, electric guitar, mandolin
- John Cowan - background vocals
- Steve Mackey - bass guitar, tic tac bass
- Russ Pahl - six-string bass guitar, banjo, dobro, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, steel guitar, gut string guitar, sitar, talk box guitar, tic tac bass
- James Pennebaker - fiddle, electric guitar, steel guitar
- Laura Vida - background vocals
- Barry Walsh - piano
- Elbert West - lead vocals
Singles
Music videos
References