Pelago (album)

Not to be confused with the Stefano Battaglia album Pelagos.

Pelago is the debut studio album by American country music artist Ryan Hurd. It was released on October 15, 2021, via Sony Music Nashville.^[1] Its lead single, "Chasing After You", is certified Platinum by the RIAA.^[2]

Pelago
Studio album by Ryan Hurd
Released	October 15, 2021 (2021-10-15)
Genre	Country
Length	38:46 (standard version) 51:32 (streaming version)
Label	Sony Music Nashville
Producer	Aaron Eshuis (all tracks) Teddy Reimer (track 3) Jesse Frasure (track 9)
Ryan Hurd chronology
EOM EP (2020) Pelago (2021)
Singles from Pelago
"Chasing After You" Released: February 12, 2021 "Pass It On" Released: February 22, 2022

Content

The album's release was preceded by the single "Chasing After You" with Maren Morris.^[3] The song reached number two on Country Airplay, giving Hurd his first top 5 single on the chart.^[4] "Pass It On" was released as the album's second single on February 22, 2022. Hurd co-wrote all but one of the album's tracks. "Tab With My Name on It" was previously recorded by Dallas Smith on his 2016 album, Side Effects.^[5]

Critical reception

Nicole Piering of Country Swag wrote that with Hurd "having co-written ten of the album’s eleven tracks, Pelago truly continues" his "introduction as both a brilliant songwriter and an incredibly talented artist" and that "while it would be easy for Ryan Hurd to make a living as a writer, evidenced by his ever-growing and impressive body of work, he’s even more magical as an artist."^[6] Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic similarly wrote that the album "is filled with easy melodies, gilded surfaces, and soft R&B rhythms, a warm setting that allows Hurd to sound empathetic yet masculine."^[7]

Commercial performance

Pelago debuted at number 11 on the Top Country Albums chart,^[8] and peaked at number 71 on the Billboard 200.^[9]

Track listing

Pelago — CD/digital download versions

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Pass It On"	Ryan Hurd Michael Hardy Maren Morris Jordan Schmidt	2:59
2.	"Coast"	Hurd Aaron Eshuis	3:50
3.	"Chasing After You" (with Maren Morris)	Brinley Addington Jerry Flowers	3:27
4.	"June, July, August"	Hurd Zach Crowell Chase McGill	3:01
5.	"Palm Trees in Ohio"	Hurd Joe Clemmons Eshuis	3:35
6.	"If I Had Two Hearts"	Hurd Randy Montana Will Weatherly	3:29
7.	"Tab with My Name on It"	Hurd Eshuis Joey Hyde	4:18
8.	"What Are You Drinking"	Hurd Andy Albert Troy Cartwright Eshuis	3:24
9.	"Hell Is an Island"	Hurd Eshuis Shane McAnally Matt McGinn	3:19
10.	"The Knife or the Hatchet"	Hurd Jimmy Robbins Laura Veltz	3:34
11.	"I Never Said I'm Sorry"	Hurd Clemmons Eshuis	3:50

Pelago — Streaming-exclusive bonus tracks^[10]

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
12.	"Platonic"	Hurd McGinn Nathan Spicer Ryan Beaver	2:32
13.	"Every Other Memory"	Hurd Cole Taylor Spicer	3:39
14.	"To a T"	Hurd Veltz Spicer	2:58
15.	"Diamonds or Twine"	Hurd Veltz Mark Trussell	3:31

Personnel

Tracks 1-11 adapted from Pelago liner notes.^[11] Tracks 12-15 adapted from Spotify.^[10]

Musicians

• Ryan Hurd — lead/background vocals
• Phil Lawson — drums/percussion
• Tony Lucido — bass
• Ilya Toshinsky — acoustic guitar, dobro, ukulele
• Aaron Eshuis — acoustic guitar, electric guitar, keyboards, programming, background vocals
• Matthew McGinn — acoustic guitar, electric guitar, keyboards, programming, background vocals
• Joe Clemmons — acoustic guitar
• Derek Wells — electric guitar
• Teddy Reimer — guitars, synth, programming
• Dave Cohen — keyboards
• Jesse Frasure — synth, programming
• Justin Niebank — programming
• Jason Saenz — trumpet
• Charlie Judge — strings
• Jun Iwasaki — violin
• David Davidson — violin
• Dave Angell — violin
• Alicia Enstrom — violin
• Kristin Wilkinson — viola
• Monisa Angell — viola
• Kevin Bate — cello
• Carole Rabinowitz — cello
• Katie Ohh — background vocals
• Maren Morris — duet vocals (track 3), background vocals
• Ben Caver — background vocals
• Michael Hardy — background vocals

Technical

• Aaron Eshuis — producer (all tracks), digital editing
• Teddy Reimer — producer (track 3)
• Jesse Frasure — producer (track 9)
• Dann Huff — producer (tracks 12 and 14)
• Mark Trussell — producer (track 15)
• Chris Small — digital editing
• Mike Stankiewicz — digital editing
• Manny Marroquin — mixing
• Nathan Dantzler — mastering
• Mike Griffith — production coordinator

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (2021) Peak position US Billboard 200[12] 71 US Top Country Albums (Billboard)[13] 11

Year-end charts Chart (2022) Position US Top Country Albums (Billboard)[14] 48

References

1. "Pelago – Ryan Hurd". Amazon. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
2. "American certifications – Ryan Hurd – Chasing After You". Recording Industry Association of America.
3. "Chasing After You (with Maren Morris)". Spotify. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
4. "Country Airplay – Week of November 20, 2021". Billboard. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
5. Side Effects (CD booklet). Dallas Smith. 604 Records / Sony Music Canada. 2016. 25396 10252.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
6. Piering, Nicole (October 15, 2021). "Ryan Hurd: 'Pelago' – Album Review". Retrieved February 2, 2022.
7. "Ryan Hurd – Pelago (review)". AllMusic. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
8. "Top Country Albums – Week of October 30, 2021". Billboard. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
9. "The Billboard 200 – Week of October 30, 2021". Billboard. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
10. "Pelago – Ryan Hurd". Spotify. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
11. Pelago (CD booklet). Ryan Hurd. Sony Music Nashville/Arista Nashville. 2021. 88985376642.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
12. "Ryan Hurd Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard.
13. "Ryan Hurd Chart History (Top Country Albums)". Billboard.
14. "Top Country Albums – Year-End 2022". Billboard. Retrieved March 5, 2023.