America (Razorlight song)

"America" is a song by English indie rock band Razorlight and is the fourth track to their self-titled second studio album, Razorlight (2006). It was written by Johnny Borrell and Andy Burrows (credited to Borrell, Burrows, and Razorlight) and was also released as the second single from that album in October 2006.

"America"
Single by Razorlight
from the album Razorlight
B-side"Teenage Logic", "Fine"
Released2 October 2006
GenreIndie rock
Length4:10
LabelMercury, Vertigo
Songwriter(s)Johnny Borrell, Andy Burrows
Producer(s)Chris Thomas
Razorlight singles chronology
"In the Morning"
(2006)		 "America"
(2006)		 "Before I Fall to Pieces"
(2006)
Music video
"America" on YouTube

The song garnered a negative reception from critics for its attempt at both political commentary and transatlantic crossover appeal. "America" became the band's first and only number-one single in the United Kingdom and was the country's 17th best selling single of that year. The song also peaked within the top 10 in Ireland, the Netherlands and New Zealand, and within the top 40 in Austria, Belgium, France, Switzerland and Germany.

Critical reception

"America" received generally negative reviews from music critics who found its attempt at serious commentary laughable and pretentious. Adam Zacharias of Drowned in Sound panned the song for cribbing the same lyrics from the previous single "In the Morning" and for coming off as trite commentary for the mass public, calling it "a terrible piece of faux-sentiment".[1] Liz Colville of Stylus Magazine criticized the song's attempt at being a blue-collar anthem in the vein of Bruce Springsteen but without his particular musicianship.[2] Michael Lomas of PopMatters called the song "soft rock hell", saying that it checklists every cliché of that criteria that makes it come off as similar to Foreigner and Boston than U2 of The Joshua Tree.[3]

John Murphy of MusicOMH was mixed towards the song, saying that it has the right amount of intimacy but found the lyrics "facile at best."[4] Doug Kamin of ARTISTdirect praised Borrell's delivery of the song's overall message, saying that, "It's sung without judgment or criticism and could grab the ears of rock and pop lovers on both sides of the pond."[5]

Track listings

7" 1705367

  1. "America"
  2. "Wilfred Owen" (demo)

7" 1705369

  1. "America"
  2. "Down to the Coast" (demo)

CD 1705368

  1. "America"
  2. "Teenage Logic"
  3. "Fine"

Charts and certifications
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See also

References
  1. Zacharias, Adam (12 October 2006). "Single Review: Razorlight - America". Drowned in Sound. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  2. Colville, Liz (1 August 2006). "Razorlight - Razorlight". Stylus Magazine. Archived from the original on 30 March 2014. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  3. Lomas, Michael (29 September 2006). "Razorlight: Razorlight". PopMatters. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  4. Murphy, John (17 July 2006). "Razorlight - Razorlight". MusicOMH. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  5. Kamin, Doug. "Razoright by Razorlight". ARTISTdirect. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  6. "Austriancharts.at – Razorlight – America" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40.
  7. "Ultratop.be – Razorlight – America" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
  8. "Ultratop.be – Razorlight – America" (in French). Ultratop 50.
  9. "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Change the chart to CZ – RADIO – TOP 100 and insert 200744 into search. Retrieved 4 September 2018.
  10. "Hits of the World – Eurocharts" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 118 no. 42. 21 October 2006. p. 107. Retrieved 27 July 2020.
  11. "Lescharts.com – Razorlight – America" (in French). Les classement single.
  12. "Offiziellecharts.de – Razorlight – America". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
  13. "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 46, 2006" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40
  14. "Dutchcharts.nl – Razorlight – America" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
  15. "Charts.nz – Razorlight – America". Top 40 Singles.
  16. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 27 July 2020.
  17. "Swisscharts.com – Razorlight – America". Swiss Singles Chart.
  18. "Razorlight: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company.
  19. "Top 100–Jaaroverzicht van 2006". Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
  20. "Top 40 Singles of 2006". BBC Radio 1.
  21. "Schweizer Jahreshitparade 2007". hitparade.ch (in German). Retrieved 30 April 2020.
  22. "British single certifications – Razorlight – America". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 27 July 2020.
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