Higher Ground (John Denver album)

Higher Ground
Studio album by John Denver
Released	June 26, 1988 (AUS); September 29, 1988 (US)
Genre	Country, pop
Length	41:35
Label	Windstar
Producer	John Denver, Roger Nichols
John Denver chronology
One World (1986) Higher Ground (1988) Earth Songs (1990)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[1]

Higher Ground is the twentieth studio album by American singer-songwriter John Denver. Released in September 1988, it was his first studio album on the Windstar label. It was recorded at Denver's private studio in Snowmass, Colorado, with the exception of "For You" and the didjeridu part in "Sing Australia." These were recorded in Sydney. The album shares its title with Denver's television movie "Higher Ground", which uses the album's title song as its opening theme.

Two charting singles were released from the LP, "For You," a Top 40 hit in Australia, and "Country Girl in Paris," a minor hit in the U.S. The album also includes a cover of Guy Clark's song "Homegrown Tomatoes," a 1981 US Country hit.

Track listing

All tracks composed by John Denver; except where indicated

Side one

1. "Higher Ground" (Denver, Lee Holdridge, Joe Henry)
2. "Homegrown Tomatoes" (Guy Clark)
3. "Whispering Jesse"
4. "Never a Doubt"
5. "Deal with the Ladies"
6. "Sing Australia"

Side two

1. "A Country Girl in Paris"
2. "For You"
3. "All This Joy" (Denver, Glen D. Hardin)
4. "Falling Leaves (The Refugees)"
5. "Bread & Roses" (Mimi Fariña, Jim Oppenheim)
6. "Alaska & Me"

Chart performance

Album

Chart (1988)	Peak position
Australian (ARIA Charts)[2]	5
U.S. Billboard Top Country Albums	49

Singles

Year	Single	Peak positions
		US Country	AUS [2]
1988	"Country Girl in Paris"	96	—
	"For You"	—	21

Certification

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[3]	Gold	35,000^^
^^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Personnel

• John Denver – guitar, vocals
• Daryl Burgess - drums
• James Burton – guitar
• Glen Hardin – piano
• Jim Horn - saxophone, flute, recorder
• Richard Mellick – piano on "For You"
• Jerry Scheff – bass
• Lee Holdridge – string arrangements
• Danny Wheatman – mandolin, fiddle, harmonica
• Christy O'Leary – uilleann pipes
• Arthur Lazenby – banjo
• Alf Clausen – string arrangements
• Strings Plus – orchestra
• Jim McGillveray – percussion
• Charlie McMahon – didjeridu

References

1. Higher Ground at AllMusic
2. "australian-charts.com - John Denver - Higher Ground". australian-charts.com. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
3. "John Denver ARIA chart history, received in December 2024". ARIA. Retrieved December 13, 2024 – via Imgur.com. N.B. The High Point number in the NAT column represents the release's peak on the national chart.