Life in Slow Motion
Life in Slow Motion is the seventh studio album by English singer-songwriter David Gray, released on 12 September 2005 in Europe and September 13 in the United States. Following a muted response to his previous album, A New Day at Midnight, the album was seen by some as a return to the form that brought Gray international acclaim with White Ladder; it was also the last album recorded with longtime collaborator Craig McClune.
Life in Slow Motion | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Studio album by | ||||
Released | 12 September 2005 | |||
Recorded | 2004–2005 | |||
Genre | Folk rock | |||
Length | 44:31 | |||
Label | Atlantic (UK) ATO/RCA/BMG (US) iht | |||
Producer | Marius de Vries with David Gray, Iestyn Polson, Craig McClune and Rob Malone. | |||
David Gray chronology | ||||
| ||||
Singles from Life in Slow Motion | ||||
|
Aggregate scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
Metacritic | 69/100[1] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
Allmusic | |
Music Box | |
PopMatters | 6/10[4] |
Slant Magazine |
Gray cited Sigur Rós, Sparklehorse, Lucinda Williams, Björk and Mercury Rev as inspirations for the album. The album was also Gray's first to use a cello player.[6] The original choice to produce the album was Daniel Lanois, but he was booked, so Gray ended up using Marius de Vries, who'd produced Gray's hit single "Sail Away."[7]
The three singles from the album were "The One I Love," "Hospital Food," and "Alibi." The album was also released on DualDisc format, which included a documentary of the making of the album, a photo gallery, and complete lyrics on the DVD side of the disc.[8]
The non-DualDisc CD of the album was one of many titles released with the infamous MediaMax CD-3 copyright protection system.
Chart and sales figures
Life in Slow Motion debuted at No. 1 on the Irish Albums Chart, staying for three weeks at the top before dropping to No. 4. In the United Kingdom a week after release in Ireland, it debuted also at No. 1 on the UK Albums Chart, spending two weeks at No. 1 before dropping to #3; it spent seven weeks in the top 10 and 25 weeks in the top 75. The album debuted and subsequently peaked at No. 16 on the US Billboard 200 album chart.[9]
Track listing
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Alibi" | Gray | 4:33 |
2. | "The One I Love" | Gray, McClune | 3:25 |
3. | "Lately" | Gray, McClune, Malone, Bradshaw, Nolte | 4:13 |
4. | "Nos Da Cariad" | Gray, McClune, Malone, Bradshaw, Nolte | 4:10 |
5. | "Slow Motion" | Gray, McClune | 5:00 |
6. | "From Here You Can Almost See the Sea" | Gray | 3:39 |
7. | "Ain't No Love" | Gray | 3:21 |
8. | "Hospital Food" | Gray, Malone | 4:43 |
9. | "Now and Always" | Gray | 6:45 |
10. | "Disappearing World" | Gray | 5:05 |
Credits
Musicians
- David Gray – vocals, piano, acoustic and electric guitar, harmonium, Wurlitzer, melodica
- Craig McClune – drums, percussion, dulcimer, glockenspiel, whistles, backing vocals
- Rob Malone – electric and double bass, acoustic and electric guitar, percussion
- Tim Bradshaw – piano, keyboards, electric and lap steel guitar, cello
- David Nolte – electric guitar, cello, melodica, autoharp, samples, backing vocals
- Marius de Vries – percussion, autoharp, recorder, glockenspiel, synthesizer, backing vocals
- Natalie Mendoza – backing vocals
- Caroline Dale – cello
- Strings on tracks 1, 2, and 7: contracted by Isobel Griffiths
- Gavyn Wright – orchestra leader
- Brass on tracks 1 and 5: performed by The Kick Horns
- Trumpet by Roddy Lorimer and Paul Spong
- Trombone by Neil Sidwell and Annie Whitehead
- Bass trombone by Dave Stewart
- French horn by Nigel Black, Dave Lee, and Michael Thompson
- Orchestral percussion by Frank Ricotta
- Track 5: baritone saxophone and assistant arrangement by Simon Clarke; French horn by Tim Jones
Production
- Produced by Marius de Vries with David Gray, Iestyn Polson, Craig McClune and Rob Malone.
- Recorded and programmed by Iestyn Polson.
- Mixed by Andy Bradfield.
- Additional mix engineer/additional programming by Jason Boshoff.
- Additional programming by Alexis Smith.
- Track 1: orchestra arranged by Chris Elliott.
- Track 2: orchestra arranged by David Nolte and Marius de Vries.
- Track 5: horns arranged by Marius de Vries.
- Track 7: strings arranged by Marius de Vries and Tim Bradshaw.
- Mastered by Bob Ludwig.
- Design and direction by Farrow Design.
- Cover image concept by Red Design.
- Cover photography by Joanna Thornhill.
- Booklet photography by Phil Knott.
Certifications and sales
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Australia (ARIA)[10] | Gold | 35,000^ |
Ireland (IRMA)[11] | 4× Platinum | 60,000^ |
New Zealand (RMNZ)[12] | Platinum | 15,000^ |
United Kingdom (BPI)[13] | 4× Platinum | 759,861[14] |
United States | — | 414,000[15] |
*sales figures based on certification alone |
References
- "Reviews for Life In Slow Motion by David Gray". Metacritic.com. Retrieved 16 December 2015.
- Thomas, Stephen (13 September 2005). "Allmusic review". AllMusic.com. Retrieved 18 August 2012.
- John Metzger. "Music Box review". Musicbox-online.com. Retrieved 18 August 2012.
- Schiller, Mike. "PopMatters review". Popmatters.com. Retrieved 18 August 2012.
- "Slant Magazine review". Slantmagazine.com. Retrieved 18 August 2012.
- "Varsity.co.nz – THE INTERVIEW: David Gray". Varsity.co.nz. 28 October 2008. Archived from the original on 28 October 2008. Retrieved 18 August 2012.
- Jane Stevenson. "CANOE – JAM! Music – Artists – Gray, David : Exclusive interview with David Gray". Jam.canoe.ca. Retrieved 28 February 2012.
- "Life in Slow Motion: David Gray: Music". Amazon.com. Retrieved 28 February 2012.
- "Life in Slow Motion – David Gray". Billboard.com. Retrieved 28 February 2012.
- "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2005 Albums". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 7 May 2019.
- "Irish album certifications – David Gray – A New Day at Midnight". Irish Recorded Music Association. Retrieved 7 May 2019.
- "New Zealand album certifications – David Gray – A New Day at Midnight". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 26 May 2019.
- "British album certifications – David Gray – A New Day at Midnight". British Phonographic Industry. Select albums in the Format field. Select Platinum in the Certification field. Type A New Day at Midnight in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
- Jones, Alan (15 March 2019). "Charts analysis: Dave emerges victorious in close albums battle". Music Week. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
- Sexton, Paul (5 September 2009). "All Change". Billboard. p. 44. Retrieved 7 May 2019.