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Stranded (album)

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Stranded
Studio album by
Roxy Music
ReleasedNovember 1973 (1973-11)
RecordedSeptember 1973
StudioAIR (London)
Genre
Length41:06
Label
ProducerChris Thomas
Roxy Music chronology
For Your Pleasure
(1973) 		Stranded
(1973) 		Country Life
(1974)
Singles from Stranded
  1. "Street Life"
    Released: November 1973[2]

Stranded is the third album by English rock band Roxy Music, released in 1973 by Island Records (it was released by Atco Records in the United States).[2] Stranded was the first Roxy Music album on which Bryan Ferry was not the sole songwriter, with multi-instrumentalist Andy Mackay and guitarist Phil Manzanera also making songwriting contributions. It is also their first album with keyboardist/violinist Eddie Jobson and bassist John Gustafson, who replaced Brian Eno and John Porter, respectively, after their departures following the release of their previous album For Your Pleasure.

Stranded reached number one on the UK albums chart. The track "Street Life" was released as a single and reached number 9 on the UK singles chart. In the US, Stranded charted at number 186.

Cover art

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The gatefold cover photograph was taken by Karl Stoecker and styled by Antony Price, and shows Playboy model Marilyn Cole. In an interview with the writer Tony Barrell in 2007, Cole recalled:

It was at a tiny studio, somewhere off the Edgware Road in London. I'd never even heard of Roxy Music. I very soon understood that I was in safe hands, among some very talented people. There was a red dress hanging up, and I thought, 'Ooh, good, I'm going to get to wear a really nice dress'... whereupon, as I'm having my make-up done, Antony comes in and starts ripping the dress – a hole there, a slash there. I was thinking, 'Oh no.' They stuck me on this big log and explained I was supposed to be stranded in a jungle, and then they started spraying me; they sprayed my hair gold, and there was a whole mist coming over me and the dress was getting wet in all the right places.[3]

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[4]
Christgau's Record GuideB+[5]
OverdoseA+[6]
Pitchfork9.2/10[7]
Q[8]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[9]
Select4/5[10]
Spin Alternative Record Guide9/10[11]

Reviewing for Rolling Stone in 1974, Paul Gambaccini wrote: "Roxy Music can no longer be ignored by Americans. They may not achieve the commercial success they have in Britain, where Stranded reached Number One, but their artistic performance must be recognized. Stranded is an eloquent statement that there are still frontiers which American pop has not explored."[12]

Reviewing for Creem in 1974, Robert Christgau found Ferry to be an "ambitious" but "oblique" artist and quoted New York artist Sidney Tillem's 1969 thesis on figurative art, "Aspects and Prospects", to conclude his review of the album: "By moral in the context of art I mean a style which executes the deeper social and psychological function of form, as opposed to a particular aspect of vanity called taste. Pop sensibility, pop consciousness, pop sentimentality have been invaluable in clarifying the provincialism and nostalgia that actually permeate a culture that has come to pride itself on sophistication. But they have not resulted in a new art simply because the requisite idealism has been lacking."[13]

In a positive retrospective review, AllMusic critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote of the album: "Under the direction of Bryan Ferry, Roxy moved toward[s] relatively straightforward territory, adding greater layers of piano and heavy guitars. Even without the washes of Eno's synthesizers, Roxy's music remains unsettling on occasion, yet in this new incarnation, they favor more measured material."[4]

Although it was the first Roxy Music album made without Brian Eno, Eno later described it as one of his personal favourite albums by the group.[14]

Covers

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Bass guitarist John Taylor, during his solo period after leaving Duran Duran in 1997, organized a Roxy Music tribute album called Dream Home Heartaches: Remaking/Remodeling Roxy Music, which was released in 1999. On it, Ferry and Mackay's "A Song for Europe" was covered by Dave Gahan and "Street Life" was performed by Phantom 5 (a.k.a. Gerry Laffy and Simon Laffy).[15]

Track listing

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All tracks are written by Bryan Ferry, except where noted

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Street Life" 3:29
2."Just Like You" 3:36
3."Amazona"Ferry, Phil Manzanera4:16
4."Psalm" 8:04
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Serenade" 2:59
2."A Song for Europe"Ferry, Andy Mackay5:46
3."Mother of Pearl" 6:52
4."Sunset" 6:04

Personnel

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Roxy Music

Additional personnel

  • Chris Laurence – string bass on "Sunset"
  • London Welsh Male Voice Choir – chorus on "Psalm" [17]
  • Chris Thomas – production, uncredited bass guitar on "Street Life"[18]
  • John Punter – engineer
  • Nicolas de Ville – cover design
  • Karl Stoecker – photography

Charts

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Chart (1973–1975) Peak
position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[19] 33
Finnish Albums (The Official Finnish Charts)[20] 28
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[21] 39
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[22] 37
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[23] 14
UK Albums (OCC)[24] 1
US Billboard 200[25] 186
Chart (2022) Peak
position
Scottish Albums (OCC)[26] 88

Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[27] Gold 100,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Notes

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  1. ^ de Visé, Daniel. "Thirteen New Wave Album Classics". AllMusic. Retrieved 14 May 2023.
  2. ^ a b Strong, Martin C. (2006). The Essential Rock Discography. Edinburgh: Canongate Books. p. 930. ISBN 1-84195-860-3.
  3. ^ Barrell, Tony (11 November 2007). "Cover Stories". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 6 September 2014.
  4. ^ a b Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Stranded – Roxy Music". AllMusic. Retrieved 17 March 2010.
  5. ^ Christgau, Robert (1981). "R". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor and Fields. ISBN 0-89919-026-X. Retrieved 12 March 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
  6. ^ Hull, Tom (April 1975). "The Rekord Report: Second Card". Overdose. Retrieved 26 June 2020 – via tomhull.com.
  7. ^ Ewing, Tom (13 August 2012). "Roxy Music: Roxy Music: Roxy Music: The Complete Studio Recordings 1972–1982". Pitchfork. Retrieved 16 August 2012.
  8. ^ "Roxy Music: Stranded". Q. No. 156. September 1999. pp. 122–23.
  9. ^ Sheffield, Rob (2004). "Roxy Music". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp. 705–06. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  10. ^ "Roxy Music: Roxy Music / For Your Pleasure / Stranded". Select. No. 112. October 1999.
  11. ^ Sheffield, Rob (1995). "Roxy Music". In Weisbard, Eric; Marks, Craig (eds.). Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. pp. 336–38. ISBN 0-679-75574-8.
  12. ^ Gambaccini, Paul (23 May 1974). "Stranded". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 17 March 2010.
  13. ^ Christgau, Robert (September 1974). "The Christgau Consumer Guide". Creem. Retrieved 17 March 2010.
  14. ^ "STRANDED – History Tab – Bryan Ferry". 3 September 2013.
  15. ^ John Taylor's Trust The Process website Archived 2006-08-22 at the Wayback Machine
  16. ^ Cavanagh, David (14 December 2012). "The Making Of… Roxy Music's 'Street Life'". Uncut. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
  17. ^ "The London Welsh Male Voice Choir". Viva Roxy Music. Retrieved 26 June 2024.
  18. ^ Cavanagh, David (14 December 2012). "The Making Of… Roxy Music's 'Street Life'". Uncut. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
  19. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  20. ^ Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. ISBN 978-951-1-21053-5.
  21. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Roxy Music – Stranded" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  22. ^ "Charts.nz – Roxy Music – Stranded". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  23. ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – Roxy Music – Stranded". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  24. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 8September 5, 2024.
  25. ^ "Roxy Music Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  26. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 8September 5, 2024.
  27. ^ "British album certifications – Roxy Music – Stranded". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 8 October 2020.
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