The Great Unknown (Rob Thomas album)

The Great Unknown is the third solo studio album by the Matchbox Twenty lead singer Rob Thomas, released on August 21, 2015, through Atlantic Records. Its lead single, "Trust You", premiered on Entertainment Weekly's website on May 29, 2015.[1]

The Great Unknown
Studio album by
Rob Thomas
ReleasedAugust 21, 2015
RecordedLate 2013 – Mid-2015
Genre
Length41:17
LabelAtlantic
Producer
Rob Thomas chronology
Cradlesong
(2009)		 The Great Unknown
(2015)		 Chip Tooth Smile
(2019)
Singles from The Great Unknown
  1. "Trust You"
    Released: May 29, 2015
  2. "Hold On Forever"
    Released: September 25, 2015
  3. "Pieces"
    Released: June 17, 2016
  4. "Heaven Help Me"
    Released: December 27, 2016

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
The Boston Globepositive[3]
Rolling Stone[4]
New York Daily News[5]

The Great Unknown received generally positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 69 based on 4 reviews.[6] In a positive review, Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic described the record as, "an album that deliberately side-steps many of Thomas' signature moves while still sounding unmistakably like him."[2] The Boston Globe's Sarah Rodman wrote that on The Great Unknown, the singer continues his career of composing, "catchy melodies, lyrics straightforward in their universality, and crisp production".[3] According to her, "Thomas is either becoming a stronger, more nuanced singer or continuing to learn how to write in a way that more effectively displays the various facets of his voice."

In a more mixed review, Chuck Arnold of Rolling Stone wrote, "Rob Thomas remains a known quantity on his third solo album. While that means there aren't many surprises, the good news is he's still the same consummate pop-rock craftsman who has been making it all sound so smooth for years."[4] Jim Farber of New York Daily News was more critical towards the album's composition and lyrics: "The songs offer few individualized lyrical details, and no consistent themes, to pin on a particular person. The arrangements, likewise, have a slick adaptability that makes these songs serviceable cover material for any pop star of the hour."[5]

Track listing
The Great Unknown – Standard edition
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."I Think We'd Feel Good Together"
Ricky Reed3:00
2."Trust You"
  • Tedder
  • Zancanella
3:08
3."Hold On Forever"ThomasMatt Serletic3:35
4."Wind It Up"ThomasSerletic3:09
5."One Shot"
  • Accetta
  • Goodman
2:50
6."The Great Unknown"ThomasSerletic3:38
7."Absence of Affection"
  • Reed
  • Thomas
Serletic3:36
8."Things You Said"ThomasSerletic3:04
9."Paper Dolls"ThomasSerletic3:04
10."NLYTM"ThomasSerletic2:47
11."Heaven Help Me"ThomasSerletic3:21
12."Lie to Me"
Serletic3:45
13."Pieces"
  • Thomas
  • Serletic
Serletic4:20
Total length:41:17
The Great Unknown – Target bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
14."All the Best Things"ThomasSerletic3:38
15."Steady"ThomasSerletic3:34
Total length:48:29

Personnel
  • Aidean Abounasseri – acoustic guitar, electric guitar
  • Alex Arias – beat box, drum programming, synthesizer
  • Yonatan Ayal – drum programming
  • Glenn Berger – tenor saxophone
  • Ruth Ann-Cunningham – background vocals
  • Ryan Dragon – trombone
  • Christian Dugas – background vocals
  • Sarah Dugas – background vocals
  • Laurence Fishburne – background vocals
  • Shep Goodman – drum programming, acoustic guitar, bass guitar, keyboards, background vocals
  • La Tanya Hall – background vocals
  • James Hovorka – trumpet
  • Victor Indrizzo – drums, percussion
  • Bunny Knutson – choir
  • Jason Lader – bass guitar, acoustic guitar, keyboards, modulator, piano, drum programming, synthesizer strings, synthesizer
  • Adam MacDougal – keyboards
  • Ray Parker Jr. – electric guitar
  • Brent Paschke – bass guitar, drum programming, synthesizer
  • Tim Pierce – electric guitar
  • Ricky Reed – drum programming
  • Elijah Samuels – baritone saxophone
  • Matt Serletic – bass guitar, bells, choir, Fender Rhodes, horn arrangements, keyboards, organ, percussion, piano, drum programming, string arrangements, synthesizer strings, synthesizer, background vocals
  • Ryan Tedder – drums, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, keyboards, drum programming, background vocals
  • Rob Thomas – piano, drum programming, shaker, lead vocals, background vocals
  • Lee Thornburg – trumpet
  • Patrick Woodward – choir
  • Lyle Workman – electric guitar
  • Noel Zancanella – bass guitar, drums, keyboards, drum programming

Charts
Chart (2015) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[7] 4
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[8] 13
Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ)[9] 13
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[10] 31
UK Albums (OCC)[11] 95
US Billboard 200[12] 6
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gollark: You're missing out.
gollark: Does it connect to the interweb? If so, you should just give me the details so I can manage it from the osmarks.net™️ servers, as I am very trustworthy.
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References
  1. Brown, Eric Renner (2015-05-25). "Rob Thomas returns with killer single 'Trust You,' shares details of new solo album". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2015-06-04.
  2. Thomas Erlewine, Stephen. "The Great Unknown - Rob Thomas". AllMusic. Retrieved October 21, 2015.
  3. Rodman, Sarah (August 20, 2015). "Album review: Rob Thomas, 'The Great Unknown'". The Boston Globe. Retrieved October 21, 2015.
  4. Arnold, Chuck (August 21, 2015). "Rob Thomas The Great Unknown Album Review". Rolling Stone. Retrieved October 21, 2015.
  5. Farber, Jim (August 12, 2015). "'The Great Unknown' music review: Rob Thomas' latest". Daily News. Retrieved October 21, 2015.
  6. "The Great Unknown, Ratings, Credits, and More at Metacritic". Metacritic. Retrieved October 21, 2015.
  7. "Australiancharts.com – Rob Thomas – The Great Unknown". Hung Medien. Retrieved August 29, 2015.
  8. "Rob Thomas Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
  9. "Top 40 album DVD és válogatáslemez-lista – 2015. 38. hét" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ. Retrieved September 26, 2015.
  10. "Charts.nz – Rob Thomas – The Great Unknown". Hung Medien. Retrieved August 28, 2015.
  11. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 29, 2015.
  12. "Rob Thomas Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved August 31, 2015.
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