Stars of the Grand Ole Opry
# Stars of the Grand Ole Opry

Stars of the Grand Ole Opry is fourteenth studio album by American country music artist Jan Howard. It was released in April 1981 via First Generation Records and was produced by Pete Drake. It was Howard's first studio album to be released in five years and her only album to be recorded with the First Generation label. The album spawned one single upon its release. In addition, the album has been reissued in both compact disc and music download formats since its initial release.

## Background, release and reception

Stars of the Grand Ole Opry was produced by Pete Drake. Drake asked Howard if she wanted to record an album as part of a series of releases made to promote members of the Grand Ole Opry. Howard agreed and recorded the sessions for the album at Pete's Place, a studio owned by Drake. The record contains re-recordings of songs Howard previously cut. This includes her major hits from the 1960s: "Bad Seed", "Evil on Your Mind" and "The One You Slip Around With". The album also included new material, such as Howard's composition entitled "The Life of a Country Girl Singer". Other new material included the song "Cowboy's Last Ride", which was written by Howard's friend Johnny Cash.

Stars of the Grand Ole Opry was first released in 1981 on First Generation Records in a vinyl record format. Five songs were included on the record's A-side and five on its B-side as well. Stars of the Grand Ole Opry did not reach major chart positions following its original release, notably the Billboard Top Country Albums, where Howard placed many studio albums. The album was later reissued on First Generation Records in September 1998 in compact disc format and in 2011 in a music download format. The album received four of five stars from Allmusic upon its reissue in 1998.

## Personnel

All credits are adapted from the liner notes of Stars of the Grand Ole Opry.

Musical personnel

* Hayword Bishop – drums
* Jimmy Capps – guitar
* Jimmie Crawford – steel guitar
* Pete Drake – steel guitar
* Bobby Emmons – piano
* Jan Howard – lead vocals
* Bill Hullett – guitar
* The Jordanaires – background vocals
* Shane Keister – piano
* Jerry Kroon – drums
* Bob Moore – bass
* Hargus "Pig" Robbins – piano
* Pete Wade – guitar
* Tommy Williams – fiddle

Technical personnel

* Randy Best – engineering
* Johnny Drake – engineering
* Pete Drake – producer
* Al Pachucki – engineering

## Release history

| Region | Date | Format | Label |
| - | - | - | - |
| United States | April 1981 | Vinyl | First Generation |
| United States | September 28, 1999 | Compact disc | First Generation |
| United States | 2011 | Music download | First Generation |
