Reaction

The national broadcaster RTÉ gave the album four stars out of five in its review, stating that his music "shows an astute observation of Irish life" and praising him for "giving a voice to the downtrodden". The songs "Sing All Our Cares Away", the opening track, and "Choctaw Nation", the penultimate one, were singled out for a special mention as was the new recording of "Colony". "Party On" was praised for its irony and sarcasm, whilst Dempsey's approach to the music business is covered in the single "Patience", with comparisons made to the track "I've No Alibi' from his debut album. The CLUAS reviewer noted that Shots was Dempsey's first step into mainstream music, with more melody present and "less anger". Opening track "Sing all Your Cares Away" received high praise for its "sweet melody", harmonies described as "soothing and gentle" and the backing vocals of Brian Eno

Brian Eno

Brian Peter George St. John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno , commonly known as Brian Eno or simply as Eno , is an English musician, composer, record producer, singer and visual artist, known as one of the principal innovators of ambient music.Eno studied at Colchester Institute art school in Essex,...

, the love song "Hold Me" was described as "a gentle ode to love with none of the frills or soppy sentimentality of usual love ballads" and the seventh track "Patience" has been praised for its slow build-up into a full band.

In Entertainment

The song Patience was used as the entrance song for Thomas Egan (fighter)

Thomas Egan (fighter)

Thomas "The Tank" Egan is an Irish mixed martial artist. He competes in the Welterweight division. He made his UFC debut in a losing effort against John Hathaway at UFC 93 in Dublin Ireland. Egan is known for being a good stand up fighter with good hands and holds a blue belt in BJJ...

 at UFC 93

UFC 93

UFC 93: Franklin vs. Henderson was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on January 17, 2009 at The O2, Dublin in Dublin, Ireland....

Chart performance

The album debuted on the Irish Albums Chart

Irish Albums Chart

The Irish Albums Chart is the Irish music industry standard albums popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on its behalf by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured electronically...

 at #1, going on to achieve platimum status in December 2005.

Chart (2005)	Peak position
Irish Albums Chart Irish Albums Chart The Irish Albums Chart is the Irish music industry standard albums popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on its behalf by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured electronically...	1

Meteor Music Awards

On 23 November 2005, it was announced that Shots had been nominated for a Meteor Music Award

Meteor Music Awards

The Meteor Ireland Music Awards are a group of music awards in Ireland...

 in the Best Irish Album category. However, at the 2006 Meteor Awards on 2 February 2006, the album lost to U2

U2

U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...

's eleventh studio album, How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb

How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb

How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb is the eleventh studio album by Irish rock band U2, released in November 2004. Much like their previous album, All That You Can't Leave Behind, How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb was commercially successful and critically acclaimed and maintains a more traditional rock...

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