In The County of Kings

In The County Of Kings is the fifth album (fourth full-length album) from the Eric Stuart Band, in which Eric Stuart is the songwriter and lead singer. This album was released in 2007 under Stuart's own independent label, Widow's Peak Records. The title of the album comes from Kings County, Brooklyn, where Stuart was born and raised. In addition, the front cover art depicts the Brooklyn Bridge and New York City in juxtaposition with the Great Pyramid, the Sphinx of Giza, and the Valley of the Kings, which are in Egypt. The musical style of In The County Of Kings is more country-sounding than any previous Eric Stuart Band album, and is described by Eric Stuart as "Concrete Country." With regard to this, Stuart writes,

I was trying to come up with a way to explain the type of music I play. Americana was too rootsy, Folk-Rock only touched on a part of my sound and County/Rock made it sound like I wore a cowboy hat. I am born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, but I play music with a strong lyrical, melodic, story based approach. There are many country elements as well. I thought the combination of "Concrete" to connect with the sidewalks and buildings I grew up around as well as the rock connotations that word brings plus the "Country" would show I was touching on string songwriting and storytelling that went with country music.

In The County Of Kings includes a re-release of Stuart's songs "The Bottom Line" (1996, from the album Picture Perfect World), and "Paint the Town Tonight" (2000, from the album BombShellShocked). The album also incorporates more guest musicians than in previous ESB albums. Stuart sings with his sister Barbara Brousal in "The Land Of What Might Have Been." Not all the songs call in numerous accompaniments however; in "This Love," Stuart is only accompanied by band members Jenna Malizia (background vocals) and Questar Welsh (background vocals and keyboards).