I'll Be Lightning is the 2007 debut album by New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

 artist Liam Finn

Liam Finn

Liam Mullane Finn is a New Zealand musician and songwriter. Born in Australia, he moved to New Zealand as a child...

. The album was recorded at his father Neil's

Neil Finn

Neil Mullane Finn, OBE is a New Zealand Pop recording artist. Along with his brother Tim Finn, he was the co-frontman for Split Enz and is now frontman for Crowded House...

 Roundhead Studios

Roundhead Studios

Roundhead Studios is an Auckland-based sound recording studio owned by singer-songwriter Neil Finn. It was officially opened in June 2007, however by the time of its opening, several international artists had already used it whilst the studio was either in construction or receiving finishing...

 in Auckland

Auckland

The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...

, New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

. The album is notable in that Liam plays most of the instruments himself. The cover references singer-songwriter Elliott Smith's 1995 album Elliott Smith

Elliott Smith (album)

Elliott Smith is the second album recorded by American singer-songwriter Elliott Smith. It was released by Kill Rock Stars on 21 July 1995 in CD and vinyl LP. It was Smith's first full-length release on the label....

. The album was made #42 in Q

Q (magazine)

Q is a popular music magazine published monthly in the United Kingdom.Founders Mark Ellen and David Hepworth were dismayed by the music press of the time, which they felt was ignoring a generation of older music buyers who were buying CDs — then still a new technology...

s 50 Best Albums of the Year 2008.

Vinyl/Digital Track listing

• All tracks written by Liam Finn
  Liam Finn
  Liam Mullane Finn is a New Zealand musician and songwriter. Born in Australia, he moved to New Zealand as a child...
  
  , except where noted.

1. "Turn Up The Birds"
2. "Better To Be"
3. "Second Chance"
4. "Gather To The Chapel"
5. "Lead Balloon"
6. "Fire In Your Belly" (Finn/Garland)
7. "Music Moves My Feet"
8. "This Place Is Killing Me"
9. "I'd Rather Waste You Than The Money On My Phone" (Eccles/Finn)
10. "Lullaby"
11. "I'll Be Lightning" (Finn/Hosford)
12. "Remember When"
13. "Come Home Sam"
14. "I Found Noise At ATP"
15. "I Will Explode" (Eccles/Finn)
16. "Energy Spent"
17. "Wise Man"
18. "Wide Awake On The Voyage Home"
19. "Shadow Of Your Man"

CD Track Listing

• All tracks written by Liam Finn
  Liam Finn
  Liam Mullane Finn is a New Zealand musician and songwriter. Born in Australia, he moved to New Zealand as a child...
  
  , except where noted.

1. "Better To Be"
2. "Second Chance"
3. "Gather To The Chapel"
4. "Lead Balloon"
5. "Fire In Your Belly" (Finn/Garland)
6. "Lullaby"
7. "Energy Spent"
8. "Music Moves My Feet"
9. "Remember When"
10. "Wise Man"
11. "This Place Is Killing Me"
12. "I'll Be Lightning" (Finn/Hosford)
13. "Wide Awake On The Voyage Home"
14. "Shadow Of Your Man"

Personnel

• Liam Finn
  Liam Finn
  Liam Mullane Finn is a New Zealand musician and songwriter. Born in Australia, he moved to New Zealand as a child...
  
   - vocals
  Singing
  Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
  
  , all instruments except noted
• Matt Eccles - drums
  Drum kit
  A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
  
   on Lead Balloon, I'll Be Lightning, Remember When, I Will Explode, Wise Man; guitar
  Guitar
  The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
  
   and bass
  Bass guitar
  The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
  
   on I'd Rather Waste You Than The Money On My Phone
• Neil Finn
  Neil Finn
  Neil Mullane Finn, OBE is a New Zealand Pop recording artist. Along with his brother Tim Finn, he was the co-frontman for Split Enz and is now frontman for Crowded House...
  
   - bass on I'll Be Lightning
• Connan Hosford - autoharp
  Autoharp
  The autoharp is a musical string instrument having a series of chord bars attached to dampers, which, when depressed, mute all of the strings other than those that form the desired chord. Despite its name, the autoharp is not a harp at all, but a chorded zither. -History:There is debate over the...
  
   and vocals on I'll Be Lightning

Production

• Engineered by Liam Finn
  Liam Finn
  Liam Mullane Finn is a New Zealand musician and songwriter. Born in Australia, he moved to New Zealand as a child...
  
  
• Recorded at Roundhead Studios
  Roundhead Studios
  Roundhead Studios is an Auckland-based sound recording studio owned by singer-songwriter Neil Finn. It was officially opened in June 2007, however by the time of its opening, several international artists had already used it whilst the studio was either in construction or receiving finishing...
  
  
• Engineered by Liam Finn
  Liam Finn
  Liam Mullane Finn is a New Zealand musician and songwriter. Born in Australia, he moved to New Zealand as a child...
  
  , except Remember When and Wise Man (Neil Baldock)