Some Hearts is the debut studio album by American singer and songwriter Carrie Underwood, released in the United States on November 15, 2005, by Arista Nashville. The album contains the number one country singles "Jesus, Take the Wheel", "Don't Forget to Remember Me", "Wasted", and "Before He Cheats". The North American version contains the Billboard Hot 100 number one single, "Inside Your Heaven", as a bonus track.
Bolstered by the success of its singles, Some Hearts became the best-selling album of 2006 in all genres in the United States. The album was also the best-selling country album in the United States of both 2006 and 2007, making Underwood the first female artist in Billboard history to earn back-to-back honors for Top Country Album. Additionally, it was the best-selling female country album of 2005, 2006 and 2007. Some Hearts has since been certified 9× platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), and is the fastest-selling debut country album in the history of the Nielsen SoundScan era, the best-selling solo female debut album in country music history, the best-selling country album of the last 10 years, and the best-selling album by an American Idol alumni in the U.S.
It was listed as one of the 100 best-selling albums of all time by the RIAA in 2009. Some Hearts has since sold over 7.45 million copies in the U.S. and over ten million worldwide.[1] In December 2009, Billboard announced that the album was the biggest-selling country album of the decade, as well as the fourteenth biggest-selling album of any genre.
The album and its songs were praised by music critics. It led Underwood to win three Grammy Awards: Best New Artist in 2007 and twice Best Female Country Vocal Performance—for "Jesus, Take the Wheel", in 2007, and for "Before He Cheats", in 2008. Additionally, Some Hearts won Album of the Year at the 2007 Academy of Country Music Awards, while "Jesus, Take the Wheel" and "Before He Cheats" both won Single of the Year at the 2006 Academy of Country Music Awards and 2007 Country Music Association Awards, respectively.
About the song "Jesus, Take the Wheel", co-writer Brett James said it was written at Hillary Lindsey's house, with the original title being "When Jesus Takes the Wheel", and that there was no specific artist in mind to record the song.[2] In 2016, singer Hillary Scott said she was initially offered the song while Underwood was on American Idol.[3] Following her Idol win, Underwood traveled back to her home in Oklahoma before heading again to Los Angeles for the American Idols Live tour rehearsals.[4] At the time, Underwood told People, "This is my time to see the world. Home will be there when I get back." She later bought her first home in the Nashville suburb of Franklin, TN in November 2005 before selling it in 2007.[5] A Billboard article from October 2005 first announced the name of the debut album, but mentioned "I Ain't in Checotah Anymore" and "What Else You Got" as tracks, with the latter being cut from the finished record.[6] According to co-writer Chris Tompkins, the song "Before He Cheats" was written in two hours at his home, and was initially meant for Gretchen Wilson's second album, with a more humorous delivery, until Underwood recorded it.[7] Recording of the album took place in three months, while Underwood was touring, and she met with writers such as Hillary Lindsey and Rivers Rutherford at Karian Studios during a writing session.[8]
Carrie Underwood's American Idol winning single "Inside Your Heaven", which debuted at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 five months before the release of Some Hearts, is included on the album as a bonus track. The song is Underwood's only number 1 on the Hot 100. The song has sold 880,000 copies.