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The Colour and the Shape

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Untitled
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]
Entertainment Weekly(B)[2]
Pitchfork Media(5.8/10)[3]
Rolling Stone[4]
Robert ChristgauA−[5]

The Colour and the Shape is the Foo Fighters' second album. It was released on May 20, 1997, through Roswell. The album reached number three in the UK and number ten in the United States. The Colour and the Shape is the Foo Fighters' biggest U.S. seller, having sold over two million copies according to Nielsen SoundScan.[6] The album is considered by many to be the band's magnum opus.[citation needed]

The album was in total nominated for five MTV Video Music Awards in 1997 and 1998, for the videos "Monkey Wrench" and "Everlong". It was also a Grammy Award nominee for Best Rock Album in 1998.

Background

The album was the debut of Foo Fighters as a band, as frontman Dave Grohl had recorded all of the first album by himself with the exception of one guitar part by Greg Dulli. The Colour and the Shape was produced by Gil Norton, who was perhaps best known for his work with the Pixies. Norton was very demanding of the band's performance, eventually leading bassist Nate Mendel to enhance his musical formation.[7] Grohl stated that he wanted to go back to the studio as "we didn't want people to feel [the Foo Fighters] were just another side project." The songs on the record were composed during sound checks during the extensive touring that the band went through for the previous eighteen months.[8] Over the course of the making of the album, Grohl's own marriage to photographer Jennifer Youngblood ultimately ended in divorce.

Recording

After two weeks of rehearsals, during which Norton spent days with Grohl in his hotel room "stripping the songs back to their absolute basics", the recording sessions begun on November 18, 1996 at Bear Creek Studios in Woodinville, Washington.[8] After six weeks of work,[9] the band took two weeks off from recording. Grohl returned to Virginia and wrote several new songs, recording two of them, "Walking After You" and an acoustic version of "Everlong", by himself at WGNS Studios in Washington, DC.[10] The band (minus drummer William Goldsmith) relocated to Hollywood's Grandmaster Recorders in February 1997, and for a period of four weeks re-recorded most of the album with Grohl performing the drum tracks. It started with only "Monkey Wrench" as Grohl and Norton felt the drums needed more work, but eventually Goldsmith's drums remained on only two tracks, "Doll" and "Up in Arms".[11]

According to Grohl, Goldsmith's drumming had good moments, but his performances mostly did not fit what Grohl had conceived for the drum track, so the frontman decided to redo them himself. Goldsmith even asked if he should go to Los Angeles, but Grohl dismissed this by saying he was only performing overdubs. Once Mendel told Goldsmith the situation, Grohl said that despite replacing Goldsmith's tracks, he still wanted him as a bandmember, but the disgruntled drummer decided to leave the Foo Fighters instead.[7] Speaking about the tension surrounding the departure of Goldsmith, Grohl in 2011 said, "There were a lot of reasons it didn't work out... but there was also a part of me that was like, you know, I don't know if I'm finished playing the drums yet." He would also state, "I wish that I would have handled things differently..."[12] Just as the album was finished and Taylor Hawkins was hired as the new drummer, guitarist Pat Smear expressed he would also leave the band, claiming he was exhausted and not motivated to go into another extended tour. Smear remained until a replacement was found, which turned out to be Franz Stahl, Grohl's former bandmate in Scream.[7]

Even though Foo Fighters is an American band, the word 'Colour' in the album title is always spelled with the British spelling. This was a nod to producer Norton, who is British. To commemorate the album's tenth anniversary, it was re-released on July 10, 2007, and included six previously released B-sides, consisting of "Dear Lover", "The Colour and the Shape", and four covers, including "Baker Street".

Track listing

All tracks are written by Dave Grohl, Nate Mendel and Pat Smear except where noted

No.TitleLength
1."Doll"1:23
2."Monkey Wrench"3:51
3."Hey, Johnny Park!"4:08
4."My Poor Brain"3:33
5."Wind Up"2:32
6."Up in Arms"2:15
7."My Hero"4:20
8."See You"2:26
9."Enough Space" (Grohl)2:37
10."February Stars"4:49
11."Everlong" (Grohl)4:10
12."Walking After You" (Grohl)5:03
13."New Way Home"5:40
Total length:46:47
Australian Tour Pack
No.TitleOriginal singleLength
1."Requiem" (Jaz Coleman)Everlong (CD2)3:34
2."Drive Me Wild" (Prince)Everlong (CD1) and My Hero (Japanese edition)3:25
3."Down in the Park" (Gary Numan)Monkey Wrench (CD2), Everlong (Australian limited edition) and My Hero (Japanese edition)4:07
4."Baker Street" (Gerry Rafferty)My Hero (UK & Japanese editions), Next Year (CD2)5:40
French Limited Edition Inédits bonus disc
No.TitleLength
1."The Colour and the Shape"3:23
2."Weenie Beenie (Live at the Île de Ré)" (Grohl)3:18
3."Winnebago (Live at the Île de Ré)" (Grohl)3:06
Limited Edition European Bonus EP
No.TitleWriter(s)Original singleLength
1."Requiem"Jaz ColemanEverlong (CD2)3:33
2."Drive Me Wild"PrinceEverlong (CD1) and My Hero (Japanese edition)3:14
3."Down in the Park"Gary NumanMonkey Wrench (CD2), Everlong (Australian limited edition) and My Hero (Japanese edition)4:09
4."Baker Street"Gerry RaffertyMy Hero (UK & Japanese editions), Next Year (CD2)5:37
iTunes bonus track
No.TitleOriginal singleLength
14."The Colour and the Shape"Monkey Wrench (CD1)3:21
B-sides released as bonus tracks on 10th anniversary edition
No.TitleOriginal singleLength
14."Requiem" (Killing Joke cover)Everlong (CD2)3:33
15."Drive Me Wild" (Vanity 6 cover)Everlong (CD1)3:13
16."Down in the Park" (Gary Numan and Tubeway Army cover)Monkey Wrench (CD2)4:08
17."Baker Street" (Gerry Rafferty cover)My Hero5:37
18."Dear Lover"My Hero (UK & Japanese editions), Next Year (CD2)4:32
19."The Colour and the Shape"Monkey Wrench (CD1)3:23

Track information

Doll

Grohl stated that is "basically a song about being afraid to enter into something you're not prepared for."[13]

Monkey Wrench

Grohl stated that it was "a song about realising that you are the source of all of the problems in a relationship and you love the other person so much, you want to free them of the problem, which is actually yourself. It was a riff that turned into another riff that turned into another riff and ended up being a nice little power punk song."[13] In another interview, Grohl stated his pride in the song, "With Monkey Wrench I remember I had the main riff, but I didn't have the little jangly riff that goes over the top of it and I thought it needed something. So I came up with the jangly riff and thought 'Oh my God this is never gonna fly! Everyone's gonna hate it'. But I was really excited the first time I heard it on the radio - it was in the middle of a load of mid-'90s grunge shit and I thought it was so killer."[14] The song was released as the first single from the album in 1997.

Hey, Johnny Park!

The lyrics to this song follow a series of different themes, as Grohl noted himself, "Oh, my God, that song's about 15 different things! The only reason why it's called 'Hey, Johnny Park!' is because when I was young, my best friend was this kid who lived across the street from me called Johnny Park and we were like brothers from the age of 5 to 12. I haven't heard from him since I was about 14 years old and I thought if I named a song after him he might call."[13]

My Poor Brain

Grohl says of the song, "This song's an experiment with dynamics, whether it's the lyrics or the sound of the song. It's just going from dreamy vocals to screamy vocals and Jackson Five to Black Sabbath. Sling it all in there."[13] This song was first played live in 1996 and was called "Chicken Derby".

Wind Up

A song which lyrically is said to be "the story of the relationship between the journalist and the musician."[13]

Up in Arms

Of the song, Grohl said, "A typical love song. It's almost like a Knack song, just a simple pop song."[13] In another interview Grohl stated, "I wrote that song to be a teenage makeout song. I just love the image of two teenagers making out on the beach listening to that song."[15] Also in the song. Dave changed the last line which is meant to sing "always coming back I cannot forget you girl" to "always coming back I cannot forget you Gil" in reference to their producer Gil Norton.[16]

My Hero

Many fans have speculated that this song was a tribute to Grohl's deceased friend and bandmate, Kurt Cobain. However, in Grohl's own words, the song is, "(his) way of saying that when I was young, I didn't have big rock heroes, I didn't want to grow up and be some big sporting hero. My heroes were ordinary people and the people that I have a lot of respect for are just solid everyday people - people you can rely on."[13] This was the third single to be released from the album.

See You

Grohl stated this song was, "Just another pop song. It was the one song that nobody wanted to put on the record, but it's my favourite song. I think that the only reason it ended up on the record was that I re-did the drum track to make it sound like 'Crazy Little Thing Called Love' by Queen."[13]

Enough Space

Grohl has said, "[Enough Space] is actually about a movie called Arizona Dream, which is one of my favorite films!"[13] He also said the song emerged from his desire to create a song that would be a good opener on their set lists, with a tempo that mimicked the jumping and bouncing of European crowds in the beginning of sets.[7]

February Stars

The lyrics are said to be about "hanging on by the tips of your fingers and hoping you don't slip and fall."[13] This song dates back to at least January 1994, when an early take of the song with alternate lyrics, titled "Dave/Acoustic + Voc" was recorded by Grohl and Krist Novoselic on Harmonium during Nirvana's last recording session.[17]

Everlong

The song was written when the band took a 2-week break from recording after the initial sessions. Grohl wrote "Everlong" by himself at his home in Virginia. It is considered to be one of the best songs by the band and is highly acclaimed.[18] Grohl was apparently reduced to tears after performing the song at Neil Young's Bridge School Benefit. In the words of bandmate Taylor Hawkins, it is a "powerful song." In 2000, David Letterman revealed that it is his favorite song.

Walking After You

This song was written and recorded by Grohl on his own in a studio in Washington. This version appears on the album. The band would later re-record the song with all the members for The X-Files soundtrack. Grohl stated, "It's an emotional, sappy song about getting dumped."[13]

New Way Home

According to Grohl, "That's about winding your way through all of these songs, emotions and pitfalls and ups and downs, but at the end of the day, you realize that you're not scared any more and you're gonna make it."[13]

Bonus track information

  • "Down in the Park" was recorded in January 1996 at Robert Lang Studios in Seattle, Washington. It was originally released on Songs in the Key of X in 1996. Early takes of "My Hero" and "Enough Space" were also recorded during the session, as well as a new take of a much older Grohl composition entitled "Butterflies". Another unreleased song, "I'm Alone Again", was said to be done at these sessions.
  • "Weenie Beenie" and "Winnebago" were recorded on July 9, 1996 at La Maline in the Île de Ré, a private show organised by Fun Radio.
  • "The Colour and the Shape" was recorded during the sessions at Bear Creek Studios in Woodinville, Washington.
  • An acoustic verion of "Everlong" was recorded during the WGNS Studios sessions, but was only released years later on Greatest Hits and as a B Side to the "Word Foward" single.
  • "Dear Lover" was recorded during the sessions at Grandmaster Recorders in Hollywood, California. It was released as a B-Side to the UK and Australian versions of the My Hero single and on the Scream 2 soundtrack, but not as a single. It was also included as a bonus track (#14) on the Japanese release of the album.
  • "Make a Bet" was recorded during the Grandmaster Recorders sessions, but was only released years later on the CD2 version of the "Learn to Fly" single and the "Next Year" EP. This song dates back to April 1992, when an instumental version was recorded by Grohl, his sister Lisa and friend Mike Nelson, under the alias "Allister Lobb". It was later reworked into a more polished version, with extra guitar tracks and drumming on October 18th, 2001 (with Taylor Hawkins and Chris Shiflett) at Studio 606; retitled "Win or Lose". This version was released on the Out Cold soundtrack, "The One" single and the CD1 version of the "All My Life" single.
  • "Requiem", "Drive Me Wild", and "Baker Street" were recorded at Maida Vale Studios in London for the BBC Radio 1 programme The Evening Session on April 30, 1997.
  • "Walking After You" was re-recorded in 1998 by the full band (with recent additions Taylor Hawkins and Franz Stahl) and released as a single for The X-Files: The Album instead of "Hey, Johnny Park!".
  • "Everlong" and "Monkey Wrench" have appeared as playable songs in both the Rock Band and Guitar Hero series of video games. The entire album is available for the Rock Band series, but with the exception of "Everlong," which is on the Rock Band 2 disc, all of the songs must be purchased as downloadable content.
  • The Rock Band version of "My Poor Brain" uses a drum track, similar to Goldsmith's style, that is different than the ones used in the album.

Personnel

Foo Fighters
Additional personnel
Production
  • Gil Norton – production
  • Bradley Cook, Geoff Turner – engineering
  • Ryan Boesch, Todd Burke, Don Farwell, Ryan Hadlock, Jason Mauza – assistant engineering
  • Chris Sheldon – mixing
  • Bob Ludwig – mastering
  • Bradley Cook, Geoff Turner – recording technicians
  • Jeffery Fey, Foo Fighters, Tommy Steele – art direction
  • Jeffery Fey, George Mimnaugh – design
  • Andy Engel – logo design
  • Josh Kessler – photography

Chart positions

Singles charts

Year Single Peak chart positions Certifications
US Air
[32] 		US
Alt
[33] 		US
Main
[34] 		US
Adult
[35] 		AUS
[19]
[36] 		CAN
[37]
 CAN
Alt
[38] 		NZ
[25] 		UK
[39]
[40]
1997 "Monkey Wrench" 58 9 9 — 17 37 3 — 12
"Everlong" 42 3 4 — 45 — 5 34 18 US: Gold[41]
1998 "My Hero" 59 6 8 — 74 — — — 21
"Walking After You"[I] — 12 — 35 67 — — 48 20
  • I ^ The original version of "Walking After You" appeared on the album The Colour and the Shape. However the version that appeared on The X-Files soundtrack and was released as a single was a re-recorded version.

Accolades

  • Kerrang! magazine "100 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die" - Readers Choice No. 10 (1998)
  • Kerrang! magazine "100 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die" - Editors Choice No. 95 (1998)

Notes

  1. ^ Thomas, Stephen (1997-05-20). "The Colour and the Shape - Foo Fighters". AllMusic. Retrieved 2011-11-22.
  2. ^ Browne, David (1997-05-23). "The Colour and the Shape Review". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2012-04-10. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  3. ^ "The Colour and the Shape [10th Anniversary Special Edition] | Pitchfork". Web.archive.org. Retrieved 2011-11-22.
  4. ^ Kelly, Christina (1997-05-29). "Foo Fighters: The Colour And The Shape : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2011-11-22. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  5. ^ "Foo Fighters". Robert Christgau.
  6. ^ Cohen, Jonathan. "'Patience' takes Foo Fighters to new musical ground". Reuters. August 13, 2007.
  7. ^ a b c d Moll, James (director) (2011). Back and Forth (documentary). RCA.
  8. ^ a b Apter, Jeff (2006). The Dave Grohl Story. Music Sales Group. p. 304. ISBN 978-0-85712-021-2.
  9. ^ http://www.fooarchive.com/features/visions97.htm
  10. ^ "Foo Dictionary". The Official Foo Fighters Site. Archived from the original on 2004-05-03. Retrieved 2011-12-12.
  11. ^ Apter, 2006. p. 306
  12. ^ RTE2fm (2011-07-10). "Oxegen 2011 - Foo Fighters Dave Grohl". YouTube. Retrieved 2011-11-22.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  13. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "The Colour and the Shape : Dave Grohl's Guide To Every Song". Fooarchive.com. Retrieved 2011-11-22.
  14. ^ "KERRANG! - The Top 100 Riffs: No. 50 Monkey Wrench - October '09". Fooarchive.com. Retrieved 2011-11-22.
  15. ^ "In Praise of Dave Grohl | The Sheila Variations". Sheilaomalley.com. 2005-06-01. Retrieved 2011-11-22.
  16. ^ http://www.foofighterslive.com/recordinghistory/studio/1997-02-00.php
  17. ^ Gaar, Gillian G. (May 2004). "Nirvana: The Lost Tapes". MOJO.
  18. ^ "Foo Fighters". Fooarchive.com. Retrieved 2011-11-22.
  19. ^ a b "Discography Foo Fighters". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 2008-02-14. Cite error: The named reference "AUS chart" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  20. ^ "Discographie Foo Fighters" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 2008-02-14.
  21. ^ "Top Albums/CDs - Volume 62, No. 3, August 21 1995". RPM. Retrieved 2008-03-07. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  22. ^ a b "Foo Fighters" (in Finnish). IFPI Finland. Retrieved 2008-02-14.
  23. ^ a b c d "Discography Foo Fighters" (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 2008-02-14.
  24. ^ "Album - Foo Fighters, The Colour and the Shape" (in German). Media Control Charts. Retrieved 2008-02-09.
  25. ^ a b "Discography Foo Fighters". New Zealand charts online. Retrieved 2008-02-14. Cite error: The named reference "NZ chart" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  26. ^ "1995Top 40 Official UK Albums Archive - 8th July 1995". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 4 July 2011.
  27. ^ "Foo Fighters - The Colour and the Shape". Billboard. Retrieved 2012-03-07.
  28. ^ "Accreditations - 1998 Albums". Australian Recording Industry Association.
  29. ^ "Gold Platinum Database: Foo Fighters — One by One". Canadian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 2011-08-26.
  30. ^ "BPI: Certified Awards Search". British Phonographic Industry (BPI). Retrieved 29 August 2010.
  31. ^ "Gold & Platinum - Search Results: Foo Fighters". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 17 April 2011.
  32. ^ "Foo Fighters chart history - Radio Songs". Billboard. Retrieved 2009-03-01.
  33. ^ "Foo Fighters Album & Song Chart History – Alternative Songs". Billboard. Retrieved 2010-10-26. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  34. ^ "Foo Fighters - Billboard Singles". Allmusic. Retrieved 2008-05-08. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  35. ^ http://www.billboard.com/#/artist/foo-fighters/chart-history/121501?f=343&g=Singles
  36. ^ "ARIA Top 100 Singles" (PDF) (715). ARIA. 2003-11-03: 2. Retrieved 2010-07-22. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  37. ^ "Canadian Top Singles positions". RPM. Retrieved 2010-05-10. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  38. ^ "Canadian Rock/Alternative positions". RPM. Retrieved 2010-05-05. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  39. ^ "UK Music charts". EveryHit.com. Retrieved 2008-02-14.
  40. ^ http://www.zobbel.de/cluk/CLUK_F.HTM UK Chart Log 1994 - 2010
  41. ^ "RIAA Searchable database – Gold and Platinum". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 2008-01-03.
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