Jump to content

A Curious Thing: Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous editNext edit →
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
H3llBot (talk | contribs)
Bots
134,512 edits
m BOT: Checking dead links; Marked 1 link with {{Dead link}} (Further info: WP:DEADLINK)
→‎Track listings: this is not a cover sleeve
Line 76: Line 76:


==Track listings==
==Track listings==
All tracks written by Amy Macdonald except where shown.
All tracks were written by Amy Macdonald except where shown.


===Standard edition===
===Standard edition===

Revision as of 16:35, 25 November 2010

Untitled

A Curious Thing is the second album by Scottish singer-songwriter Amy Macdonald, and was released on March 8, 2010.[1] The album's lead single, "Don't Tell Me That It's Over" (containing "Young lovers" as b-side), was released on March 1, 2010.[2][3]

The album was confirmed in late 2009, and the album's title and track listing was confirmed in January 2010.

Background

Macdonald began writing songs for her second album in spring 2009, in a brief break from her touring commitments. For the first time she began poring through her old notebooks, looking at song ideas, unlike her debut which consists mainly of songs that she wrote straight away.[4] Many of the tracks were inspired by real-life personalities or events from her everyday life. She wrote "Spark" for murdered toddler Jamie Bulger, after watching a TV program on his violent death.[2] "What Happiness Means to Me" is dedicated to her footballer fiancé Steve Lovell,[2] while "An Ordinary Life" is inspired by the "Z-list celebs" she saw flocking around Scots-born Hollywood actor Gerard Butler at a party he held in Glasgow late 2009 to mark the opening of his film Law Abiding Citizen.[4] "My Only One" is partly about her late grandparents and partly about Michael Jackson.[2] The tracks were recorded at Weller's BlackBarn Studios in Surrey.[1]

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[5]
BBC Music(very positive)[6]
The Daily Telegraph[7]
Daily Express[8]
The Guardian[9]
MusicOMH[10]
NME[11]
The Press[12]
The Scotsman[13]
The Times[14]

The album has garnered mixed to generally positive reviews. Paul Lester of BBC Music gave the album a glowing review, calling it "a triumphant return" and went on to add that "it is a bold, grand statement of intent, full of songs of epic sweep that build to undeniable choruses, to be enjoyed by the largest possible audiences". He also praised Macdonald's vocal performance comparing it to the likes of Dolores O'Riordan and Sinéad O'Connor.[6] MusicOMH's Jenni Cole complimented Macdonald's songwriting ability, stating that her lyrics "display a maturity way beyond her years, which she marries to a wistfulness the most hardened bluesman would envy". She continued by saying that "her songwriting (in both style and substance) recalls the early days of Kirsty MacColl, while her deeper vocals have more in common with Alison Moyet. It's a match made in heaven."[10] Ian Sime of The Press noticed that the record "is very similar in feel and approach to its predecessor and should appeal to those who enjoyed This Is The Life" and that it has "an earthy rock edge comparable to Travis, Keane and The Killers."[12] Sarah-Louise James of the Daily Star commented on Macdonald's voice: "her galloping guitar pop-rock and husky Celtic voice combo sounds richer, bigger and more confident than on her monster debut",[15] while Simon Gage from Daily Express hailed the album's lead single Don't Tell Me That It's Over, saying that it "sets a furious pace with guitars and drums that frame her strong, slightly Irish-sounding voice" and concluded by stating that "the rest of the album follows suit with songs that stand up on their own, even without Amy’s obvious talent as a singer."[8]

Caroline Sullivan and Neil McCormick of The Guardian and The Daily Telegraph respectively, both gave the album favourable reviews, however they agreed that it doesn't really manage to stand out. Sullivan spotted that the "heartfelt, songwriterly tunes ... burrow into your consciousness but somehow fail to register on a deeper level"[9] and McCormick felt that it is lacking "anything truly distinctive or original to lift her above the massed ranks of young singer-songwriters."[7] The Times's Kaya Burgess did not share the other reviewers' excitement about the lyrics, saying that they "don’t quite match the striking power of Macdonald’s vocals", however he observed that "when the melodrama and crashing drums fade away on the piano-led What Happiness Means to Me we glimpse the soul behind the big voice."[14]

Noel Gardner of the NME gave the album a mixed review, saying that it is "a more predictable thing that you'd imagine" and felt that it was too "Scottish", in the sense that its "folkish Ford Mondeo pop upholds the nation’s legacy of pleasantly anthemic drivetime belters.[11] Fiona Shepherd of The Scotsman gave the album a negative review, stating that the artist "seems to take a step backwards on her second album with an anachronistic 1980s sound and predictable lyrics about the pressures of fame (An Ordinary Life), the perils of hype (Next Big Thing) and the culture of image-over-talent (This Pretty Face)."[13]

Release

A Curious Thing was released in the United Kingdom on Monday 8 March 2010.

Singles

  • "Don't Tell Me That It's Over" is the lead single from the album, it was released on the 26th February 2010 in Germany and 1 March 2010 in the UK. Although it only managed to peak at #48 in the UK, it has so far made the Top 10 in Belgium, Germany, Switzerland and Austria.
  • "Spark" is the confirmed 2nd single from the album. Amy Macdonald herself said on a gig she filmed the video the 23rd of March in Loch Lomond. The Amy Macdonald website revealed that Spark will be released on the 10th May 2010 [16], and the video has also been released for it [17]
  • "This Pretty Face" is the confirmed third single from the album, to be released on July 19, 2010. The music video for the song has been created and is available to view through Macdonald's official website and Youtube channel.[18]
  • "Love Love" is the confimed fourth single from the album. It was released as a digital download EP on 4th October 2010.[19] The music video was released on September 23, 2010.[20]

Track listings

All tracks were written by Amy Macdonald except where shown.

Standard edition

A Curious Thing – standard edition
No.TitleLength
1."Don't Tell Me That It's Over"3:15
2."Spark"3:07
3."No Roots"4:30
4."Love Love"3:17
5."An Ordinary Life"3:36
6."Give It All Up"2:55
7."My Only One"3:32
8."This Pretty Face"3:57
9."Troubled Soul"4:47
10."Next Big Thing"3:31
11."Your Time Will Come"4:32
12."What Happiness Means to Me / Dancing in the Dark" (hidden track)9:21

Deluxe edition

The Deluxe 2-disc-set includes the standard version of the album and the full live recording from Amy’s homecoming show at Glasgow Barrowlands in December 2007.

Deluxe edition CD 1
No.TitleLength
1."Don't Tell Me That It's Over"3:16
2."Spark"3:07
3."No Roots"4:30
4."Love Love"3:17
5."An Ordinary Life"3:36
6."Give It All Up"2:56
7."My Only One"3:32
8."This Pretty Face"3:57
9."Troubled Soul"4:47
10."Next Big Thing"3:31
11."Your Time Will Come"4:32
12."What Happiness Means to Me / Dancing in the Dark" (hidden track)9:21


Deluxe edition CD 2
No.TitleLength
1."Poison Prince"3:40
2."The Youth Of Today"4:03
3."L.A."3:47
4."Footballer's Wife"5:12
5."Mr Rock & Roll"3:37
6."Mr. Brightside" (written by The Killers)4:12
7."The Road To Home"2:27
8."This Is The Life"3:14
9."Run"3:48
10."Rock 'n' Roll Star"5:07
11."Let's Start A Band"5:31
12."Caledonia"2:32
13."Fairytale Of New York"5:48
14."Barrowland Ballroom"4:40

Personnel

  • Mixed by - Danton Supple
  • Producer, arranged by - Pete Wilkinson
  • Written by, vocals, guitar - Amy Macdonald

Charts and certifications

The album entered the UK Albums Chart on 14 March 2010 at number 4. It entered the Swiss Albums Chart at number 1 on March 21, 2010, making it her second album to get to number 1 in Switzerland. It also peaked at number 1 in Germany and Austria. The album has sold 455,000 copies. She's the biggest-selling Scottish artist around the world this year. The album has shifted 700,000 copies already, confirmed by The Sun.

Charts

Chart (2010) Peak
position[21] 		Certification Sales/
shipments[22]
Austrian Albums Chart[23] 1 Gold
Belgium (Flanders) Albums Chart[24] 2 Gold[25] 10,000[citation needed]
Belgium (Wallonia) Albums Chart[26] 4
Dutch Albums Chart 2
Danish Albums Chart[27] 7
European Albums Chart[28] 1
French Albums Chart[29] 16
German Albums Chart 1 Platinum [30] 200,000 [31]
Greek International Albums Chart[32] 2
Irish Albums Chart 26
Italian FIMI Albums Chart[33] 25 6,000[34]
Norwegian Albums Chart 22
Polish Albums Chart 11
Swedish Albums Chart[35] 5
Danish Albums Chart[36] 11
Swiss Albums Chart 1 2xPlatinum[37] 60,000[37]
Spanish Albums Chart[38] 13
UK Albums Chart 4 Gold[39] 100,000[40]

Chart procession and succession

Preceded by
Hoodoo by Krokus
1983 by Sophie Hunger
 Swiss Albums Chart number-one album
March 21, 2010 – April 10, 2010 (first run)
April 18, 2010 – May 1, 2010 (second run) 		Succeeded by
1983 by Sophie Hunger
Iron Man 2 (Soundtrack) by AC/DC
Preceded by German Albums Chart number-one album
March 26, 2010 – April 15, 2010 		Succeeded by
Große Freiheit by Unheilig
Preceded by Austrian Albums Chart number-one album
March 26, 2010 – April 22, 2010 		Succeeded by
European Top 100 Albums number-one album
April 3, 2010 – April 23, 2010 		Succeeded by

References

  1. ^ a b "Amy Macdonald: I'm not thinking about marriage yet because it would mean taking break from my career". The Daily Record. Retrieved 2010-03-04.
  2. ^ a b c d Sweeney, Chris (2010-01-20). "Amy Macdonald is back with her second album". The Sun. Retrieved 2010-03-04.
  3. ^ By: (2010-01-26). "Amy Macdonald: Hit or Miss?". Sugarscape. Retrieved 2010-03-04.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link)
  4. ^ a b "Amy Macdonald — Biography". Amymacdonald.co.uk. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
  5. ^ A Curious Thing - Amy MacDonald | AllMusic
  6. ^ a b 7:34pm. "Music - Review of Amy Macdonald - A Curious Thing". BBC. Retrieved 2010-03-22.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  7. ^ a b McCormick, Neil (2010-03-05). "Amy MacDonald: A Curious Thing, CD review". London: Telegraph. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
  8. ^ a b "Home of the Daily and Sunday Express | Music :: Amy Macdonald: A Curious Thing (Melodramatic) album review". Express.co.uk. 2010-03-05. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
  9. ^ a b Caroline Sullivan (2010-03-04). "Amy Macdonald: A Curious Thing | CD review | Music". London: The Guardian. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
  10. ^ a b "Amy Macdonald - A Curious Thing | album reviews". musicOMH. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
  11. ^ a b "Amy Macdonald - Album Review: Amy Macdonald - 'A Curious Thing' (Mercury) - Album Reviews". Nme.Com. 2010-03-12. Retrieved 2010-03-22. [dead link]
  12. ^ a b "Ellie Goulding, Lights (Polydor) ****; Amy MacDonald, A Curious Thing (Melodramatic) *** (From York Press)". Yorkpress.co.uk. 2010-03-12. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
  13. ^ a b Shepherd, Fiona. "Album review: Amy MacDonald - Scotsman.com News". News.scotsman.com. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
  14. ^ a b Burgess, Kaya (2010-03-13). "Amy Macdonald A Curious Thing". The Times. London. Retrieved 2010-04-23.
  15. ^ By Sarah-Louise James (2010-03-08). "Simply The Best 7 Days A Week :: Music Reviews :: Review - Amy MacDonald: A Curious Life". Daily Star. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
  16. ^ Watch Amy’s video for her next single ‘Spark’ — News — Amy Macdonald
  17. ^ YouTube
  18. ^ Videos - Amy MacDonald
  19. ^ amymacdonald.co.uk: 'Love Love out now'
  20. ^ amymacdonald.co.uk: 'Amys new video for "Love Love"'
  21. ^ "Amy Macdonald - A Curious Thing - Music Charts". Acharts.us. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
  22. ^ Certification award levels IFPI. Retrieved August, 2009.
  23. ^ Amy MacDonald / A Curious Thing
  24. ^ "Amy Macdonald - A Curious Thing". ultratop.be. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
  25. ^ "2010 Belgian certifications". Ultratop.
  26. ^ "Amy Macdonald - A Curious Thing". ultratop.be. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
  27. ^ Steffen Hung. "Amy Macdonald - A Curious Thing". danishcharts.com. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
  28. ^ http://www.billboard.com/#/charts/european-albums?chartDate=2010-04-03
  29. ^ A Curious Thing on French charts
  30. ^ Template:Cite gold platin
  31. ^ Template:Cite gold platin
  32. ^ greekcharts.com - Amy Macdonald - A Curious Thing
  33. ^ FIMI - Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana - Classifiche
  34. ^ A Curious Thing
  35. ^ A Curious Thing on Swedish charts
  36. ^ Steffen Hung. "Amy Macdonald - A Curious Thing". danishcharts.com. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
  37. ^ a b Chart Data: Amy MacDonald
  38. ^ Steffen Hung. "Amy Macdonald - A Curious Thing". spanishcharts.com. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
  39. ^ http://www.bpi.co.uk/certifiedawards/Search.aspx
  40. ^ "Certified Awards Search - Certification rules". BPI. Retrieved 2010-06-24.

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=A_Curious_Thing&oldid=398827767"