Wanna Be Your Joe

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Wanna Be Your Joe is the ninth studio album by Billy Ray Cyrus, released July 17, 2006 on New Door Records and UMe. It was his first country album since 2000’s Southern Rain and his first non-gospel release in three years. The publicity from Hannah Montana helped bring attention to the project.

The album did okay on the charts, debuting at #24 on the Billboard Top Country Albums, and reaching #113 on the Billboard 200 and #118 on the Billboard Top Comprehensive Albums. Despite solid sales, no single from the album became a hit on country radio. The title track “Wanna Be Your Joe” and the song “I Want My Mullet Back” were released as singles but did not chart on Hot Country Songs.

There are several collaborations: Cyrus’s daughter Miley is on the track “Stand,” which had a music video but was not released as a single. The song “Country Music Has the Blues” features George Jones and Loretta Lynn and was co-written with Trace Cyrus, Billy Ray’s son. “The Freebird Fell” was co-written with Lynyrd Skynyrd’s Ed King and Artimus Pyle. Mark Collie contributed to “What About Us,” co-written with Cyrus and Terry Shelton. The album also includes two hidden tracks: “Without You” (originally from Southern Rain) and “One Night,” a nod to Elvis Presley’s 1958 UK chart-topper.

AllMusic gave the album 3.5 out of 5 stars, noting that it is carefully crafted and revised. The songs mix romantic ballads with personal, country-flavored songs.

After the album’s middling performance, Cyrus left New Door Records by the end of 2006 and signed with Walt Disney Records. All tracks were written by Billy Ray Cyrus, with several additional contributors.