Good News

Good News is a studio album by American country artist, Kathy Mattea. It was released on September 21, 1993, via Mercury Records and the PolyGram label. It was the eighth studio album of Mattea's career and her first collection of Christmas music. The project featured mostly new recordings that embedded gospel music sounds. Good News made the American country albums chart in 1993 and received an accolade from the Grammy Awards in 1994. Critics and writers remarked positively of the album and highlighted its uniqueness as compared to other Christmas album projects. Background, recording and content By 1993, Kathy Mattea had reached peak success in her country music career. She had four number one singles and several more that placed in the top 20 of the North American country charts. She also won top honors from the Country Music Association and received the Grammy Award for Best Female Country Vocal Performance for 1989's "Where've You Been". In 1993, she released her first album of Christmas music titled Good News. The album was recorded at two separate studios: Creative Recording and Jack's Tracks. It was produced mostly by Brent Maher, with one track produced by Allen Reynolds. The album was a collection of ten tracks, most of which were original material. The album's second track, "There's a New Kid in Town", was a song first recorded by Keith Whitley that Mattea found several years prior. "It's just so sweet, and it really got me musically from the beginning," she told the Chicago Tribune. There were also some covers featured on the album such as "Brightest and Best", "Mary, Did You Know?" "Christ's Child's Lullabye". According to the Chicago Tribune, it was the only Christmas carol composed in the Gaelic language of Ireland. The album's title track was written by pop musician, Rob Mathes. Release, chart performance and reception