City of Love (album)

City of Love is the ninth studio album by Scottish band Deacon Blue, released through Earmusic on 6 March 2020. It is their first album since 2016's Believers. It was promoted by the lead single, the title track "City of Love".[2]

City of Love
Studio album by Deacon Blue
Released	6 March 2020 (2020-03-06)
Studio	Gorbals, Glasgow
Genre	Pop[1] rock[1] soul[1]
Length	44:03
Label	Earmusic
Producer	Deacon Blue
Deacon Blue chronology
Believers (2016) City of Love (2020)

Background

Singer Ricky Ross said he thought it would be interesting to record the album in the Gorbals area "right in the heart of Glasgow" after learning that "there are bones reputedly belonging to St Valentine in St Francis' church" there.[3]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
The Scotsman	[4]

Reviewing the album for PopMatters, Adam Mason wrote that it features "11 open-hearted and largely sentimental songs with big choruses and traditional rock instruments", describing the band as having written "crowd-pleasers [...] with a firm eye on recapturing their glory days. They aim for singalong tunes that will stand proud with old favorites at their outdoor shows this summer".[2] Brett Callwood of LA Weekly found City of Love to be free of filler, writing that "everything that made their past work so special shines here too [...] It all sounds so effortless, nothing is forced, and yet it's clear that they worked hard about this slab of work".[1] Writing for Belfast Telegraph, Steve Grantham called the album a "solid, well-produced set, with big choruses where they are needed and more subtle contemplation when not. It will, no doubt, please the band's fans and may, given enough exposure, gain them some more."[5]

Track listing

City of Love track listing

No.	Title	Length
1.	"City of Love"	4:12
2.	"Hit Me Where It Hurts"	3:13
3.	"Weight of the World"	3:39
4.	"Take Me"	3:54
5.	"In Our Room"	4:09
6.	"Intervals"	3:36
7.	"Keeping My Faith Alive"	3:10
8.	"A Walk in the Woods"	3:57
9.	"Come on In"	3:26
10.	"Wonderful"	3:36
11.	"On Love"	7:11
Total length:		44:03

Charts

Sales chart performance for City of Love

Chart (2020)	Peak position
Scottish Albums (OCC)[6]	1
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[7]	50
UK Albums (OCC)[8]	4

References

1. Callwood, Brett (10 March 2020). "Album of the Week: Deacon Blue's City of Love". LA Weekly. Retrieved 11 March 2020.
2. Mason, Adam (5 March 2020). "Deacon Blue: City of Love (album review)". PopMatters. Retrieved 11 March 2020.
3. English, Paul (17 February 2020). "All you need is love: Deacon Blue's Ricky Ross reveals romantic inspiration". The Sunday Post. Retrieved 11 March 2020.
4. Shepherd, Fiona (10 March 2020). "Album reviews: Deacon Blue | Paul Heaton & Jacqui Abbott | Sergio Mendes | Sound of Yell". The Scotsman. Retrieved 11 March 2020.
5. Grantham, Steve (13 March 2020). "Albums of the week – From Deacon Blue to Circa Waves". Belfast Telegraph. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
6. "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 14 March 2020.
7. "Top 100 Albumes – Semana 11: del 6.3.2020 al 12.3.2020" (in Spanish). Productores de Música de España. Retrieved March 18, 2020.
8. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 14 March 2020.