Set the Mood
Encyclopedia
Set the Mood is a the debut studio album
of British singer-songwriter David Jordan
. Before the release of the album, Jordan had written between 60 to 100 songs. These songs were then whittled down to 11 for the final track listing of Set the Mood.
The album was produced by Trevor Horn
, who has also worked with Seal
and the English dance-pop
band Frankie Goes To Hollywood
. "Place in My Heart" was released as Set the Moods lead single on October 22. The album was released simultaneously in the UK, France and Germany a week later. Set the Mood and Jordan received many positive reviews following the album's October 29 release. The singer was dubbed the British version of Justin Timberlake
, and compared with artists such as Lenny Kravitz
, Prince
and Michael Jackson
.
, and what he would see there. "It's about when the sun goes down in London, all the madness starts." The album was produced by Trevor Horn
, who has also produced for Seal
and the English dance-pop
band Frankie Goes To Hollywood
. Horn assembled the album over 18 months before the final product was created. Jordan praised the producer, stating, "He's everything people say he is; he's a genius really and I'm having a great time working with him". Jordan discovered by Horn's wife, Jill Sinclair, co-founder of ZTT Records
. Initially, Jordan was not aware of who Horn was. "My reaction was, 'Who?' I'd never heard of ABC
, Seal or Frankie Goes To Hollywood. I wasn't aware of Trevor's amazing track record but when I discovered who he'd been involved with I felt honoured."
, and compared with artists such as Lenny Kravitz
, Prince
and Michael Jackson
. The Times
described the album as being "soft-rock nostalgia, with the odd nod to Justin Timberlake’s crossover style". They noted that the "playground political" "Place in My Heart" was "pretty ace". Combined with the "naggingly catchy" "Move On" and the "positively Slavic" "Sun Goes Down", Set the Mood was summed up as being "enjoyably timewarped". "Love Song" was described by The Guardian
as being "strikingly, struttingly Jacko-esque". Nigel Gould of The Belfast Telegraph
compared the album's 1980s-style pop to Michael Jackson and the soul to British funk group Linx
. The BBC declared that Set The Mood "works" as a soul pop album. They added that the singer "could possibly have been made in a laboratory, cloned from the DNA
of Lenny Kravitz, Prince and Michael Jackson". Despite the positive reviews, Jordan insisted that his success hadn't changed him. "I still go home, make my own dinner and clean out the cat litter. I've yet to taste the trappings of pop stardom."
Studio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...
of British singer-songwriter David Jordan
David Jordan (singer)
David Jordan is an English singer-songwriter.Born to a mother from Montserrat and a father from Calcutta, Jordan has been writing pop-rock songs since he was 11 . Growing up his music idol was Prince...
. Before the release of the album, Jordan had written between 60 to 100 songs. These songs were then whittled down to 11 for the final track listing of Set the Mood.
The album was produced by Trevor Horn
Trevor Horn
Trevor Charles Horn CBE is an English pop music record producer, songwriter, musician and singer. He was born in Houghton-le-Spring in north-east England....
, who has also worked with Seal
Seal (musician)
Seal Henry Olusegun Olumide Adeola Samuel , known simply as Seal, is a British soul and R&B singer-songwriter, of Nigerian and Brazilian background. Seal has won numerous music awards throughout his career, including three Brit Awards—winning Best British Male in 1992, four Grammy Awards, and an...
and the English dance-pop
Dance-pop
Dance-pop is dance-oriented pop music that originated in the early 1980s. Developing from post-disco, it is generally up-tempo music intended for clubs with the intention of being danceable or merely dancey...
band Frankie Goes To Hollywood
Frankie Goes to Hollywood
Frankie Goes to Hollywood were a British dance-pop band popular in the mid-1980s. The group was fronted by Holly Johnson , with Paul Rutherford , Peter Gill , Mark O'Toole , and Brian Nash .The group's debut single "Relax" was banned by the BBC in 1984 while at number six in the charts and...
. "Place in My Heart" was released as Set the Moods lead single on October 22. The album was released simultaneously in the UK, France and Germany a week later. Set the Mood and Jordan received many positive reviews following the album's October 29 release. The singer was dubbed the British version of Justin Timberlake
Justin Timberlake
Justin Randall Timberlake is an American pop musician and actor. He achieved early fame when he appeared as a contestant on Star Search, and went on to star in the Disney Channel television series The New Mickey Mouse Club, where he met future bandmate JC Chasez...
, and compared with artists such as Lenny Kravitz
Lenny Kravitz
Leonard Albert "Lenny" Kravitz is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer and arranger, whose "retro" style incorporates elements of rock, soul, R&B, funk, reggae, hard rock, psychedelic, folk and ballads...
, Prince
Prince (musician)
Prince Rogers Nelson , often known simply as Prince, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Prince has produced ten platinum albums and thirty Top 40 singles during his career. Prince founded his own recording studio and label; writing, self-producing and playing most, or all, of...
and Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
.
Production
Prior to recording Set the Mood, Jordan had written between 60 to 100 songs, within a four year time period. The singer's record company then chose the best 11 songs for the album. "Sun Goes Down" was written when the musician was 16 years old. Jordan stated that the song was about the parties he and his friends held at Old Street Studios in LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, and what he would see there. "It's about when the sun goes down in London, all the madness starts." The album was produced by Trevor Horn
Trevor Horn
Trevor Charles Horn CBE is an English pop music record producer, songwriter, musician and singer. He was born in Houghton-le-Spring in north-east England....
, who has also produced for Seal
Seal (musician)
Seal Henry Olusegun Olumide Adeola Samuel , known simply as Seal, is a British soul and R&B singer-songwriter, of Nigerian and Brazilian background. Seal has won numerous music awards throughout his career, including three Brit Awards—winning Best British Male in 1992, four Grammy Awards, and an...
and the English dance-pop
Dance-pop
Dance-pop is dance-oriented pop music that originated in the early 1980s. Developing from post-disco, it is generally up-tempo music intended for clubs with the intention of being danceable or merely dancey...
band Frankie Goes To Hollywood
Frankie Goes to Hollywood
Frankie Goes to Hollywood were a British dance-pop band popular in the mid-1980s. The group was fronted by Holly Johnson , with Paul Rutherford , Peter Gill , Mark O'Toole , and Brian Nash .The group's debut single "Relax" was banned by the BBC in 1984 while at number six in the charts and...
. Horn assembled the album over 18 months before the final product was created. Jordan praised the producer, stating, "He's everything people say he is; he's a genius really and I'm having a great time working with him". Jordan discovered by Horn's wife, Jill Sinclair, co-founder of ZTT Records
ZTT Records
ZTT Records is a record label founded in 1983 by NME journalist Paul Morley, record producer Trevor Horn, and businesswoman Jill Sinclair. The label's name was also printed as "Zang Tumb Tuum" and "Zang Tuum Tumb" on various releases....
. Initially, Jordan was not aware of who Horn was. "My reaction was, 'Who?' I'd never heard of ABC
ABC (band)
ABC are an English band, that charted ten UK and five US Top 40 singles between 1981 and 1990. The band continues to tour and released a new album, Traffic, in 2008.-Formation:...
, Seal or Frankie Goes To Hollywood. I wasn't aware of Trevor's amazing track record but when I discovered who he'd been involved with I felt honoured."
Release and reception
"Place in My Heart" was released as Set the Moods lead single on October 22. The album was released simultaneously in the UK, France and Germany a week later. Set the Mood and Jordan received many positive reviews following the album's release. The singer was dubbed the British version of Justin TimberlakeJustin Timberlake
Justin Randall Timberlake is an American pop musician and actor. He achieved early fame when he appeared as a contestant on Star Search, and went on to star in the Disney Channel television series The New Mickey Mouse Club, where he met future bandmate JC Chasez...
, and compared with artists such as Lenny Kravitz
Lenny Kravitz
Leonard Albert "Lenny" Kravitz is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer and arranger, whose "retro" style incorporates elements of rock, soul, R&B, funk, reggae, hard rock, psychedelic, folk and ballads...
, Prince
Prince (musician)
Prince Rogers Nelson , often known simply as Prince, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Prince has produced ten platinum albums and thirty Top 40 singles during his career. Prince founded his own recording studio and label; writing, self-producing and playing most, or all, of...
and Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
. The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
described the album as being "soft-rock nostalgia, with the odd nod to Justin Timberlake’s crossover style". They noted that the "playground political" "Place in My Heart" was "pretty ace". Combined with the "naggingly catchy" "Move On" and the "positively Slavic" "Sun Goes Down", Set the Mood was summed up as being "enjoyably timewarped". "Love Song" was described by The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
as being "strikingly, struttingly Jacko-esque". Nigel Gould of The Belfast Telegraph
The Belfast Telegraph
The Belfast Telegraph is a daily evening newspaper published in Belfast, Northern Ireland by Independent News & Media.It was first published as the Belfast Evening Telegraph on 1 September 1870 by brothers William and George Baird...
compared the album's 1980s-style pop to Michael Jackson and the soul to British funk group Linx
Linx (band)
Linx were a British soul/funk band consisting of David Grant, Bob Carter , Andy Duncan , Canute Edwards and Peter Martin . After their first hit in 1980, the band slimmed down to a duo of Grant and Martin. They had six entries on the UK Singles Chart from mid 1980 until mid 1982...
. The BBC declared that Set The Mood "works" as a soul pop album. They added that the singer "could possibly have been made in a laboratory, cloned from the DNA
DNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...
of Lenny Kravitz, Prince and Michael Jackson". Despite the positive reviews, Jordan insisted that his success hadn't changed him. "I still go home, make my own dinner and clean out the cat litter. I've yet to taste the trappings of pop stardom."
Track listing
Chart performance
| Chart (2007/2008) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| French Albums Chart | 159 |
| Swiss Albums Chart | 60 |
| UK Albums Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
13 |