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# <li value="0"> "The Real Song for the Deaf" ([[Joshua Homme]])
# <li value="0"> "The Real Song for the Deaf" ([[Joshua Homme]])
#* This is a [[pregap]] [[hidden track]].
#* This is a [[pregap]] [[hidden track]].
# "You Think I Ain't Worth a Dollar, But I Feel Like a Millionaire" (Homme, [[Nick Oliveri]]) – 3:12
# "You Think I Ain't Worth a Dollar, But I Feel Like a Millionaire" (Homme, Mario Lalli) – 3:12
# "[[No One Knows]]" (Homme, [[Mark Lanegan]], Oliveri) – 4:38
# "[[No One Knows]]" (Homme, [[Mark Lanegan]]) – 4:38
# "[[First It Giveth]]" (Homme, Oliveri) – 3:18
# "[[First It Giveth]]" (Homme, Oliveri) – 3:18
# "A Song for the Dead" (Homme, Lanegan, Oliveri) – 5:52
# "Song for the Dead" (Homme, Lanegan) – 5:52
# "The Sky Is Fallin'" (Homme, Oliveri) – 6:15
# "The Sky Is Fallin'" (Homme, Oliveri) – 6:15
# "Six Shooter" (Homme, Oliveri) – 1:19
# "Six Shooter" (Homme, Oliveri) – 1:19
# "Hangin' Tree" (Homme, Lanegan, [[Alain Johannes]], Oliveri) – 3:06
# "Hangin' Tree" (Homme, Lanegan, [[Alain Johannes]]) – 3:06
# "[[Go with the Flow]]" (Homme, Oliveri) – 3:09
# "[[Go with the Flow]]" (Homme, Oliveri) – 3:09
# "Gonna Leave You" (Homme, Oliveri) – 2:50
# "Gonna Leave You" (Homme, Oliveri) – 2:50
Line 304: Line 304:
# "God Is in the Radio" (Homme, Lanegan, Oliveri) – 6:04
# "God Is in the Radio" (Homme, Lanegan, Oliveri) – 6:04
# "Another Love Song" (Homme, Oliveri) – 3:16
# "Another Love Song" (Homme, Oliveri) – 3:16
# "A Song for the Deaf" (Homme, Lanegan, Oliveri) – 6:42
# "Song for the Deaf" (Homme, Lanegan, Oliveri) – 6:42
#* Contains an incomplete version of "[[Feel Good Hit of the Summer]]", that features all of the lyrics replaced with rhythmic laughing, toward the end of the track, after about 30 seconds of silence.
#* Contains an incomplete version of "[[Feel Good Hit of the Summer]]", that features all of the lyrics replaced with rhythmic laughing, toward the end of the track, after about 30 seconds of silence.
# "Mosquito Song" (Homme, [[Dean Ween|Michael Melchiondo]], Oliveri) – 5:37
# "Mosquito Song" (Homme, [[Dean Ween|Michael Melchiondo]], Oliveri) – 5:37

Revision as of 19:57, 4 October 2008

Untitled

Songs for the Deaf is the third studio album by American hard rock band Queens of the Stone Age. Released in 2002, the album features Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl as a guest drummer.[1] Like their other albums, Songs for the Deaf has a large number of guest musicians, a signature of the band's releases. Following the breakthrough Rated R, this album is widely regarded as Queens of the Stone Age's magnum opus, garnering universal acclaim from critics,[2] whilst earning the band's first gold record certification in the U.S., having sold 986,000 copies in the country.[3] Songs for the Deaf is loosely considered as a concept album, taking the listener on a drive from Los Angeles to the Mojave Desert while tuning into radio stations from towns on the way such as Banning, California and Chino Hills, California.

Overview and background

Contributors

Songs for the Deaf was the first and only Queens of the Stone Age album that featured Dave Grohl, of Nirvana and Foo Fighters, on drums, who also toured with the band. He replaced the previous drummer, Gene Trautmann, who started working on other projects. Grohl had been a keen admirer of Queens of the Stone Age since the band opened for Foo Fighters on tour, and originally wanted to appear on Rated R.[1] He joined Queens of the Stone Age in October 2001 when he received a phone call from Josh Homme, with whom he had been friends since 1992 when Homme was the guitarist for Kyuss. Grohl admitted that he had not drummed for a long time, and added that fronting a band was "tiring".[4] Grohl put Foo Fighters on temporary hiatus,[5][6] delaying their upcoming album, One By One, to October 22, 2002,[7] because of touring duties with Queens of the Stone Age in support of the album. Grohl's first performance with the band occurred at March 7, 2002 in The Troubadour, Los Angeles, and his last performance was at the Fuji Rock Festival on July 28, 2002. He returned to the Foo Fighters soon after, initially being replaced in Queens of the Stone Age by Kelli Scott of Blinker the Star before Danzig drummer Joey Castillo was eventually announced as his long-term replacement in August 2002.[8][9]

Songs for the Deaf marks the last appearances on a Queens of the Stone Age record of former members Brendon McNichol (lap steel) and Gene Trautmann (drums). The album also included the first musical contribution to a Queens of the Stone Age album by multi-instrumentalists Natasha Shneider and Alain Johannes (who co-wrote the track "Hangin' Tree" with Homme). Jeordie White (of Marilyn Manson fame) reportedly auditioned for the band in 2002, but lost out to Troy Van Leeuwen,[10] who joined the band as a touring member in support of Songs for the Deaf'. White did appear on the album, however, making a brief cameo appearance as a radio DJ. Shneider, Johannes and Van Leeuwen would subsequently become full time Queens of the Stone Age members and contribute to the follow-up album Lullabies to Paralyze (2005).

Another change in personnel came with the arrival of producer Eric Valentine, who had previously worked on a pair of Dwarves albums with Oliveri.[11] Valentine was actually a requirement by Interscope and didn't do his job according to Homme, who commented that "[Valentine] just recorded it actually, it says production, he was only there to record the beginning of it."[12]

Template:Sample box start variation 1 Template:Multi-listen start Template:Multi-listen item Template:Multi-listen item Template:Multi-listen item Template:Multi-listen end Template:Sample box end

Production and release

In September 2002, Josh Homme explained the band's goals with the release of the album:

I've been thinking of this album since the first album, not necessarily the radio thing, but to me that isn't the full concept, the full concept is the diversity of it all, I think we're supposed to be pushing buttons over the three records. I've always looked at our first three records as a set: the first one was to distance ourselves from Kyuss, the second album fanned out the music into different areas and this one takes that out even a little further, I think.[13]

In the same month, Nick Oliveri explained the band's aims in an interview with retail company HMV:

We're still doin' the same thing we always did, which is play music that we wanna hear but we can't buy it in the stores so we have to make it. We're not trying to cater to anybody—I wouldn't know how to do that because I've never sold records, you know what I mean? 'Let's write a single!' I don't know what that is—I've never had one.[14]

Between them, Homme and Oliveri had different opinions on the usage of fake radio excerpts between tracks on the album, the former believing it gave the album "fluidity". According to Oliveri, they are a jibe at, "how a lot of stations play the same thing over and over. We don't get played on the radio, so I figure we should talk shit about them."[15]

Several songs that appeared on the album (in re-worked form) were previously recorded and released on the Desert Sessions, a side project of Josh Homme with various guest collaborators. "You Think I Ain't Worth a Dollar, But I Feel Like a Millionaire" was the opening track of Volumes 5 & 6, with vocals originally performed by Mario Lalli instead of Oliveri and "Hangin' Tree" first appeared on Volumes 7 & 8.[16] Also, both "A Song for the Deaf" and "Go with the Flow" were previously performed as early as 2001 with the former having quite different lyrics and vocals completely by Mark Lanegan.[17]

The album was initially planned for release on August 13, 2002,[18] but was eventually postponed for two weeks.[19]

Release and reception

Nick Oliveri performing with Queens at V2003 in support of Songs for the Deaf

Songs for the Deaf was the band's breakout album. Upon its release in August 2002, Songs for the Deaf peaked at number seventeen on the Billboard 200 album chart. The album granted Queens of the Stone Age international recognition.

The album would be released worldwide in late August, 2002. The album would peak at the top twenty on most of the charts it appeared on. Songs for the Deaf would continue the trend of higher charting albums after its release. Songs for the Deaf reached the top ten in the Norway, United Kingdom, Belgia and Australia, it was a moderate top twenty success in United States, Finland, Italy, and Sweden and the album reached the top thirty in Ireland, France and Denmark.

Like its predecessor, Songs for the Deaf received very positive reviews, aggregated as a total score of 89 out of 100 ("universal acclaim") on Metacritic,[2] making the album the third highest rated on the site from 2002.[20] Entertainment Weekly called it "The year's best hard-rock album", giving it an A.[21] Splendid said, "The bottom line is that QOTSA turns in another genre-demolishing, hard-as-titanium album in Songs for the Deaf. This is not your father's metal. It's better." Mojo listed the album as the year's third best, while Playlouder and Spin placed it at fourth. NME placed the album as the sixth best, with the three singles each making the magazine's Tracks of the Year list over the course of 2002/2003.[22] Kerrang! rated the album at number 1 on its "Best albums of 2002" list.[23]

The album met with great success earning band's first gold certification in the U.S. on January 27, 2003 shifting over 500,000 copies (as of June 2007 the total amount of sold copies is estimated at 986,000 according to Nielsen Soundscan),[3], platinum certification in UK on September 20, 2002 with sales exceeding 100,000 of units sold.[24] and platinum status in Canada.[25]

The album received two Best Hard Rock Performance Grammy nominations for singles "No One Knows" (2003),[26] and "Go with the Flow" (2004).[27]

Accolades

The information regarding accolades attributed to Songs for the Deaf is adapted from AcclaimedMusic.net.[28]

Publication Country Accolade Year Rank
Dagsavisen Norway The 21 Best Albums of the 21st Century[29] 2005 16
VPRO Netherlands 299 Nominations of the Best Album of All Time[30] 2006 *
HARP United States 50 Most Essential Albums since 2001"[31] 2006 48
Amazon.com United States The Best of the Decade in Music... So Far[32] 2006 *

* denotes an unordered list

Artwork

The cover art for the U.S. double LP version of the album is quite different, featuring a red Q (with a sperm cell as the line in the Q) on a black background with no other text. It was released on red vinyl. The UK vinyl version cover is the same as the CD cover. The dashboard/interior with superimposed logos is that of a Fiat 124 Sport Spider, a 1960s–1980s mass market Italian sports car. The person on the album disc is musician Dave Catching, who performs on the album.[33]

Track listing

Josh Homme performing with Queens at V2003 in support of Songs for the Deaf
  2. "The Real Song for the Deaf" (Joshua Homme)
  3. "You Think I Ain't Worth a Dollar, But I Feel Like a Millionaire" (Homme, Mario Lalli) – 3:12
  4. "No One Knows" (Homme, Mark Lanegan) – 4:38
  5. "First It Giveth" (Homme, Oliveri) – 3:18
  6. "Song for the Dead" (Homme, Lanegan) – 5:52
  7. "The Sky Is Fallin'" (Homme, Oliveri) – 6:15
  8. "Six Shooter" (Homme, Oliveri) – 1:19
  9. "Hangin' Tree" (Homme, Lanegan, Alain Johannes) – 3:06
  10. "Go with the Flow" (Homme, Oliveri) – 3:09
  11. "Gonna Leave You" (Homme, Oliveri) – 2:50
  12. "Do It Again" (Homme, Oliveri) – 4:04
  13. "God Is in the Radio" (Homme, Lanegan, Oliveri) – 6:04
  14. "Another Love Song" (Homme, Oliveri) – 3:16
  15. "Song for the Deaf" (Homme, Lanegan, Oliveri) – 6:42
    • Contains an incomplete version of "Feel Good Hit of the Summer", that features all of the lyrics replaced with rhythmic laughing, toward the end of the track, after about 30 seconds of silence.
  16. "Mosquito Song" (Homme, Michael Melchiondo, Oliveri) – 5:37
    • Mentioned on the track listing, but labeled as a hidden track.

The intro to track #4, "A Song for the Dead", is an homage to Black Flag; the drums in that segment are lifted directly from the Black Flag song "Slip It In."[34] The band's subsequent studio album, Lullabies to Paralyze, got its name from a line in "Mosquito Song".[35]

Variations

The UK and Japanese version of the limited edition album includes the cover "Everybody's Gonna Be Happy" (2:35, Davies), originally written and performed by The Kinks, and a live version of "The Lost Art of Keeping a Secret" recorded at The Troubadour in Los Angeles on March 7, 2002. A cover of Roky Erickson's "Bloody Hammer" appears on the U.S. double LP released by Ipecac Recordings.

A second version of "Gonna Leave You" dubbed "Te Voy a Dejar" was recorded with Nick Oliveri singing in Spanish, and is available as a B-side on the UK version of the "No One Knows" CD single.[36] A hidden track can be found on this CD by rewinding the first track. Starting at 0:00 on track one, rewind the track roughly 1:30 and listen. A voice says: "Huh? What?" and a pattern of bass kicks in. This is widely known as "The Real Song for the Deaf". This track, as well as being omitted from some pressings of the album (see track listing), is difficult to listen to on all but conventional CD players—most software CD players do not allow rewinding of this nature, and most MP3 "ripping" software will not include the data. Initial pressings of the album came with a bonus DVD, which featured behind the scenes footage of the group recording album, live performances (many of which were taken from the Troubador live show), and interview footage.[37] A limited tour edition of the album was released on June 2, 2007, with a second disc of five songs recorded live at the Ancienne Belgique in Brussels.[38]

Limited-edition bonus DVD track listing

  1. "Monsters in the Parasol" (Live at The Troubadour)
  2. "No One Knows (Live at The Troubadour)
  3. "Lost Art of Keeping a Secret" (Live at The Troubadour)
  4. "Quick and to The Pointless" (Live at Vintage Vinyl)
  5. "Queens of the Fucking Stone Age"

Personnel

The following people contributed to Songs for the Deaf:[33]

Band

Additional musicians

Radio DJs

The songs on Songs for the Deaf are often interluded by staged bits of radio chatter.

Producers

Recording personnel

  • Mixing – Adam Kasper at Conway Recording Studio
  • Recording – Alain Johannes ("Everybody's Gonna Be Happy") at Sound City Recording Studio, Van Nuys, CA.
  • Mastering – Brian Gardner at Bernie Grundman Mastering, Hollywood CA.
  • Guitar technician – Dan Druff
  • Sound technician – Hutch
  • Pre-production – Bob Brunner "Mates"

Chart positions

Album

Year Chart Peak Ref.
2002 Billboard 200 17 [39]
Australian ARIA Albums Charts 7 [40]
Belgian Albums Chart 9 [40]
Canadian Albums Chart 18 [41]
Denmark Albums Chart 33 [40]
Dutch Albums Chart 40 [42]
Finnish Albums Chart 33 [42]
French Albums Chart 32 [40]
German Albums Chart 9 [43]
Irish Albums Chart 32 [42]
New Zealand RIANZ Albums Chart 13 [40]
Norwegian Albums Chart 28 [42]
Swedish Albums Chart 58 [42]
UK Album Chart 4 [44]


Singles

Year Single Chart Peak Ref.
2002 "No One Knows" US Mainstream Rock Tracks 5 [45]
US Modern Rock Tracks 1 [45]
US Billboard Hot 100 51 [45]
Dutch Singles Chart 39 [46]
UK Singles Chart 15 [47]
2003 "Go with the Flow" US Mainstream Rock Tracks 24 [45]
US Modern Rock Tracks 7 [45]
US Billboard Hot 100 116 [45]
Australian Singles Chart 39 [48]
Irish Singles Chart 26 [49]
Dutch Singles Chart 50 [46]
UK Singles Chart 21 [47]
"First It Giveth" UK Singles Chart 4 [47]

References

  1. ^ a b Robert Mancini (2000-09-21). "Queens of the Stone Age Hook Up With Foo Fighters". MTV. Retrieved 2007-06-19. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  2. ^ a b "Songs for the Deaf by Queens of the Stone Age". Metacritic. Retrieved 2008-07-10.
  3. ^ a b Jonathan Cohen (2007-06-02). "Queens of the Stone Age enter new "Era"". Billboard. Retrieved 2008-07-10. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  4. ^ Jon Wiederhorn (2002-06-04). "Queens of the Stone Age Flex Their Star Power". MTV. Retrieved 2007-06-19. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  5. ^ Joe D'Angelo (2002-04-18). "Grohl Puts Foos On Hold, Returns To Drumkit With Queens". MTV. Retrieved 2007-06-19. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  6. ^ Matt Ashare (2002-04-19). "Grohl Drums For Queens of the Stone Age, Foos Take A Break". Yahoo. Retrieved 2007-06-19. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  7. ^ Brett Anderson (2002-07-10). "Foo Fighters' New Release Set For October 22". Yahoo. Retrieved 2007-06-19. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  8. ^ "QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE Announce Touring Drummer". Blabbermouth. 2002-08-24. Retrieved 2007-06-20. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  9. ^ "Former DANZIG Drummer Lands In QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE". Blabbermouth. 2002-08-29. Retrieved 2007-06-20. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  10. ^ "TWIGGY RAMIREZ Auditions For QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE". Blabbermouth. 2002-06-18. Retrieved 2007-06-19. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  11. ^ Martijn ter Haar (2002-10-19). "Kinda Muzik interview". Kinda Muzik. Retrieved 2007-06-21.
  12. ^ Nick Anderson (2002-8). "Interview with Nick Anderson". thefade.net. Retrieved 2007-06-21. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  13. ^ Albert Mudrian (2002-08). "Gallery of Sound: The Modern Stone Age Family". thefade.net. Retrieved 2007-06-20. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  14. ^ Barry Walsh (2002-08). "HMV: Killer Queens". thefade.net. Retrieved 2007-06-20. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  15. ^ "QOTSA Enjoying Life With Dave". Rolling Stone. 2002-05-03. Retrieved 2007-06-21. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  16. ^ "Ipecac Recordings: Desert Sessions". Ipecac Recordings. Retrieved 2007-06-19.
  17. ^ "Queens perform "A Song for the Dead" at the Bizzare Festival". YouTube. 2001. Retrieved 2007-06-20. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  18. ^ "QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE Finalize Release Date, Track Listing For "Songs for the Deaf"". Blabbermouth. 2002-06-09. Retrieved 2007-06-20. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  19. ^ "QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE Push Back Album Release Date". Blabbermouth. 2002-06-25. Retrieved 2007-06-20. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  20. ^ "Best of 2002: The 30 best reviewed albums of the year". Metacritic. Retrieved 2007-06-18.
  21. ^ "Entertainment Weekly review of Songs for the Deaf". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2007-06-19.
  22. ^ "NME Albums of the Year". NME. Retrieved 2007-06-19.
  23. ^ "Kerrang! End of year lists". Kerrang!. Retrieved 2008-07-10.
  24. ^ "QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE , SONGS FOR THE DEAF , Gold , Fri Sep 20 2002". British Phonographic Industry. 2002-09-20. Retrieved 2007-06-11.
  25. ^ "CRIA Certifications". Canadian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
  26. ^ "45th Grammy Awards". Rockonthenet. Retrieved 2007-06-20.
  27. ^ "46th Grammy Awards". Rockonthenet. Retrieved 2007-06-20.
  28. ^ "Songs for the Deaf's accolades". Acclaimed Music. Retrieved 2007-11-04.
  29. ^ "Dagsavisen: The 21 Best Albums of the 21st Century". Dagsavisen. Retrieved 2008-07-22. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  30. ^ "299 Nominations of the Best Album of All Time (2006)". VPRO. Retrieved 2008-07-22. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  31. ^ "50 Most Essential Albums since 2001"". HARP. Retrieved 2008-07-22. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  32. ^ "The Best of the Decade in Music... So Far". Amazon.com. Retrieved 2008-07-22.
  33. ^ a b Daniel Yuri. "Songs for the Deaf Overview". Retrieved 2008-07-10.
  34. ^ Foo Archive article
  35. ^ "Queens of the Stone Age Interview". Vertigo. Retrieved 2005-05-18. I also like that the title bridges this record and the last record in that it's a lyric from "Mosquito Song". (Homme)
  36. ^ "No One Knows CD Single". Amazon.co.uk. Retrieved 2008-07-10.
  37. ^ "For The Record: Quick News On Jay-Z, Janet Jackson, Cam'ron, Brandy, QOTSA, Ludacris, Björk, Pavement & More". MTV.com. 2002-08-01. Retrieved 2007-06-19.
  38. ^ "Songs for the Deaf: Tour Edition". Retrieved 2008-07-13. {{cite web}}: Text "Amazon.co.uk" ignored (help); Text "publisher" ignored (help)
  39. ^ "Romancing the Stone Age". ew.com. 2002-08-11. Retrieved 2008-07-10.
  40. ^ a b c d e "Songs for the Deaf Australian Charts". Australian-charts.com. Retrieved 2008-07-10.
  41. ^ "Canadian Music Charts". Chartattack.com. 2002-09-08. Retrieved 2008-07-10.
  42. ^ a b c d e "Queens of the Stone Age - Songs for the Deaf - Music Charts". αCharts.us. Retrieved 2008-07-10.
  43. ^ "German Chart". Charts-Surfer. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
  44. ^ "Queens of the Stone Age UK Chart placings". everyHit.com. Retrieved 2008-07-11.
  45. ^ a b c d e f "Artist Chart History - Queens of the Stone Age". Billboard. Retrieved 2008-02-19. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  46. ^ a b "Dutch Album Chart". dutchcharts.com. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
  47. ^ a b c "British Chart". Chart Stats. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
  48. ^ "Australian Chart". australian-charts.com. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
  49. ^ "Irish Singles Chart". The Irish Charts. Retrieved 2008-06-24.

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Songs_for_the_Deaf&oldid=243019701"