So Beautiful or So What
Encyclopedia
So Beautiful or So What is the twelfth studio album
by American recording artist Paul Simon
, released April 8, 2011, on Hear Music
. It was produced by Simon and record producer Phil Ramone
. The album debuted at number four on the US Billboard 200
chart, selling 68,000 copies in its first week, serving as Simon's highest debut on that chart. Upon its release, So Beautiful or So What received general acclaim from music critics, who praised Simon's themes and songwriting.
, also entitled "Getting Ready for Christmas Day". Simon performed the song live on The Colbert Report on December 16, 2010. He also performed "The Afterlife," "Rewrite" and "Love Is Eternal Sacred Light" on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon
. The song is available for free download or viewing with two videos at his official website. The first video features J.M. Gates' giving the sermon and his Church in 2010 with its display board showing many of Simon's lyrics; the second video illustrates the song with cartoon images.
On Tuesday, April 5, 2011, So Beautiful or So What was made fully streamable on the album's website, sobeautifulorsowhat.com for the week preceding its official release. In reference to the new album, Simon says "It's the best work I've done in 20 years."
chart, with first-week sales of 68,000 copies in the United States. It is Simon's highest chart debut on the Billboard 200. As of October 2011, the album had sold 254,000 copies in the US. In the United Kingdom, the album debuted at number six on the UK Albums Chart
, selling 21,993 copies in its first week. The album's charting gives Paul Simon his ninth top ten solo album in the UK.
The album has also done well across Europe becoming his most successful album since The Rhythm of the Saints
(1990). The album has debuted in the top ten in Denmark, Ireland, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and the United Kingdom. The album also reached the top ten in the Czech Republic in its third week. In Sweden the album is Simon's highest-charting solo album of his career debuting at number four and in Norway the album moved up to number two on its second week in the charts.
s. At Metacritic
, which assigns a normalized
rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average
score of 85, based on 27 reviews, which indicates "universal acclaim". Allmusic editor Stephen Thomas Erlewine
gave it four-and-a-half out of five stars and praised Simon's musical "focus", calling it "an album that’s vivid, vibrant, and current in a way none of his peers have managed to achieve". Entertainment Weekly
s Ken Tucker complimented his "spirited spirituality" and commented that "the Graceland
-ic guitar figure
s still emphasize rhythm above all". Jon Pareles
of The New York Times
wrote that "He’s finding solace, fleeting and fragmentary, and every springy guitar lick is its own benediction", and found it an improvement over Simon's previous album Surprise
, stating "Sketches of individuals and moments are intertwined with grander pronouncements; unforced humor tempers gloomier reflections". Will Layman of PopMatters
viewed that the album's varying elements "are mixed with great care and balance [...] the sounds serve the songs. And the songs themselves are united utterly, thematically obsessed with the largest and most intriguing questions that art can tackle". BBC Online's Paul Whitelaw noted Simon's "world music leanings" and "guise of introspection", calling the album "a profound statement from a master of his craft".
Pitchfork Media
's Stephen M. Deusner commented that the album "can be stodgy in its emotions and a bit too devoted to its motifs", but ultimately complimented its themes of mortality and spirituality. Despite writing that "mortality figures heavily", Chicago Tribune
writer Greg Kot
gave the album three out of four stars and stated "Fortunately, he approaches it with a light touch and a skip in his stride. He turns the metaphysical into a series of narratives tinged not just with poignance but humor and groove". Alastair McKay of Uncut
noted Simon's songwriting focus and wrote that "he's telling stories, throwing narrative shapes, and twisting his songs into the service of a bigger idea. Almost every song is preoccupied somehow by God". The A.V. Club
s Noel Murray gave the album an A- rating and commented that "whether he’s feeling rocky or mellow, Simon keeps toying with song-structure, unafraid to change directions if a new thought occurs". Maddy Costa of The Guardian
wrote that "the densely textured musical tracks convey the diversity of sounds that Simon has absorbed through his life". Los Angeles Times
writer Margaret Wappler complimented its "multiethnic landscape" and commented that the album, "steeped in Afropop
and American folk
forms, climbs some of the most resplendent summits of Simon’s career and ranks as his most consistent solo effort since Rhythm of the Saints from 1990".
Rolling Stone
writer Will Hermes complimented its "world-music
fusions" and called the album "old-fashioned in its brevity (10 songs, 38 minutes) and vivid in its storytelling [...] a spiritual meditation that can't answer the big questions: Does God exist in a world of pain and inequality? Is there an afterlife?". Joe Heim of The Washington Post
praised its themes of mortality, love, and God, calling it "a reminder of the power of popular song to express the universal, to shape meaning into melody and to serve up rhythm and rhyme in irresistible fashion". Jerry Shriver of USA Today
gave the album three-and-a-half out of four stars and described it as "a clever and astute set of fully realized songs that explore the relationship between Man and God and the nature of love and mortality". In his consumer guide for MSN Music
, critic Robert Christgau
noted its music as "the mild, irregular folk-rock he's explored for decades, graced with global colors that sound as natural as that guitar", and stated "The mood is melancholy. yet suffused with gratitude—for his wife's love first of all, but even more for God's gifts, with the Divinity Himself an actor in several lyrics and close by in most of the others".
In the album's liner notes
, a brief synopsis of the album by Elvis Costello
says that it "deserves to be recognized as among Paul Simon's finest achievements."
Deluxe Edition DVD
Notes
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...
by American recording artist Paul Simon
Paul Simon
Paul Frederic Simon is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist.Simon is best known for his success, beginning in 1965, as part of the duo Simon & Garfunkel, with musical partner Art Garfunkel. Simon wrote most of the pair's songs, including three that reached number one on the US singles...
, released April 8, 2011, on Hear Music
Hear Music
Hear Music, also known as StarCon is the brand name of Starbucks' retail music concept and record label. Hear Music began as a catalog company in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 1990 before being purchased by Starbucks in 1999.-Concept:...
. It was produced by Simon and record producer Phil Ramone
Phil Ramone
Phil Ramone is a South-African violinist, composer, recording engineer, and record producer.-Biography:As a young child in South Africa, Ramone was a musical prodigy, beginning to play the violin at age three and performing for Queen Elizabeth II at age ten...
. The album debuted at number four on the US Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
chart, selling 68,000 copies in its first week, serving as Simon's highest debut on that chart. Upon its release, So Beautiful or So What received general acclaim from music critics, who praised Simon's themes and songwriting.
Release and promotion
Simon released a Christmas song from the album called "Getting Ready for Christmas Day", which premiered on National Public Radio on November 16, 2010. The song samples a 1941 sermon by the Rev. J.M. GatesJ. M. Gates
The Reverend J.M. Gates was an American Christian preacher and Gospel music singer.-Biography:From 1914 to his death, Gates was the pastor of Mount Calvary Baptist Church in Rock Dale Park, Atlanta, Georgia. He had a very prolific recording career, recording over 200 sides between 1926 and 1941,...
, also entitled "Getting Ready for Christmas Day". Simon performed the song live on The Colbert Report on December 16, 2010. He also performed "The Afterlife," "Rewrite" and "Love Is Eternal Sacred Light" on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon
Late Night with Jimmy Fallon
Late Night with Jimmy Fallon is an American late-night talk show hosted by Jimmy Fallon on NBC. The show premiered on March 2, 2009, as the third incarnation of the Late Night franchise originated by David Letterman....
. The song is available for free download or viewing with two videos at his official website. The first video features J.M. Gates' giving the sermon and his Church in 2010 with its display board showing many of Simon's lyrics; the second video illustrates the song with cartoon images.
On Tuesday, April 5, 2011, So Beautiful or So What was made fully streamable on the album's website, sobeautifulorsowhat.com for the week preceding its official release. In reference to the new album, Simon says "It's the best work I've done in 20 years."
Commercial performance
The album debuted at number four on the US Billboard 200Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
chart, with first-week sales of 68,000 copies in the United States. It is Simon's highest chart debut on the Billboard 200. As of October 2011, the album had sold 254,000 copies in the US. In the United Kingdom, the album debuted at number six on the 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...
, selling 21,993 copies in its first week. The album's charting gives Paul Simon his ninth top ten solo album in the UK.
The album has also done well across Europe becoming his most successful album since The Rhythm of the Saints
The Rhythm of the Saints
The Rhythm of the Saints is the eighth studio album by Paul Simon, released in 1990. Like its predecessor Graceland, the album gained commercial success and received mostly favorable reviews from critics...
(1990). The album has debuted in the top ten in Denmark, Ireland, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and the United Kingdom. The album also reached the top ten in the Czech Republic in its third week. In Sweden the album is Simon's highest-charting solo album of his career debuting at number four and in Norway the album moved up to number two on its second week in the charts.
Critical response
So Beautiful or So What received general acclaim from music criticMusic criticism
See also Music journalism for reporting on classical and popular music in the media.The Oxford Companion to Music defines music criticism as 'the intellectual activity of formulating judgments on the value and degree of excellence of individual works of music, or whole groups or genres'. In this...
s. At Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
, which assigns a normalized
Standard score
In statistics, a standard score indicates how many standard deviations an observation or datum is above or below the mean. It is a dimensionless quantity derived by subtracting the population mean from an individual raw score and then dividing the difference by the population standard deviation...
rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average
Weighted mean
The weighted mean is similar to an arithmetic mean , where instead of each of the data points contributing equally to the final average, some data points contribute more than others...
score of 85, based on 27 reviews, which indicates "universal acclaim". Allmusic editor Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Stephen Thomas Erlewine is a senior editor for Allmusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for Allmusic, as well as a freelance writer, occasionally contributing liner notes. He is also frontman and guitarist for the Ann Arbor-based band Who Dat?Erlewine is the nephew...
gave it four-and-a-half out of five stars and praised Simon's musical "focus", calling it "an album that’s vivid, vibrant, and current in a way none of his peers have managed to achieve". Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
s Ken Tucker complimented his "spirited spirituality" and commented that "the Graceland
Graceland (album)
Graceland was Paul Simon's highest charting album in the U.S. in over a decade, reaching #3 in the national Billboard charts, receiving a certification of 5× Platinum by the RIAA and eventually selling over 14 million copies, making it Simon's most commercially successful album...
-ic guitar figure
Figure (music)
A musical figure is the shortest idea in music, a short succession of notes, often recurring. It may have melodic pitch, harmonic progression and rhythmic . The 1964 Grove's Dictionary defines the figure as "the exact counterpart of the German 'motiv' and the French 'motif'": it produces a "single...
s still emphasize rhythm above all". Jon Pareles
Jon Pareles
Jon Pareles is an American journalist who is the chief popular music critic in the arts section of the New York Times. He played jazz flute and piano, and graduated from Yale University with a degree in music. In the 1970s he was an associate editor of Crawdaddy!, and in the 1980s an associate...
of The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
wrote that "He’s finding solace, fleeting and fragmentary, and every springy guitar lick is its own benediction", and found it an improvement over Simon's previous album Surprise
Surprise (Paul Simon album)
Surprise is the eleventh studio album by American musician Paul Simon, released in May 2006.-History:After the relative success of You're the One, which was released in late 2000 finding Simon back to the Top 20 of the American charts after ten years of absence and also receiving a Grammy...
, stating "Sketches of individuals and moments are intertwined with grander pronouncements; unforced humor tempers gloomier reflections". Will Layman of PopMatters
PopMatters
PopMatters is an international webzine of cultural criticism that covers many aspects of popular culture. PopMatters publishes reviews, interviews, and detailed essays on most cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, films, books, video games, comics, sports, theater,...
viewed that the album's varying elements "are mixed with great care and balance [...] the sounds serve the songs. And the songs themselves are united utterly, thematically obsessed with the largest and most intriguing questions that art can tackle". BBC Online's Paul Whitelaw noted Simon's "world music leanings" and "guise of introspection", calling the album "a profound statement from a master of his craft".
Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media, usually known simply as Pitchfork or P4k, is a Chicago-based daily Internet publication established in 1995 that is devoted to music criticism and commentary, music news, and artist interviews. Its focus is on underground and independent music, especially indie rock...
's Stephen M. Deusner commented that the album "can be stodgy in its emotions and a bit too devoted to its motifs", but ultimately complimented its themes of mortality and spirituality. Despite writing that "mortality figures heavily", Chicago Tribune
Chicago Tribune
The Chicago Tribune is a major daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, and the flagship publication of the Tribune Company. Formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" , it remains the most read daily newspaper of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region and is...
writer Greg Kot
Greg Kot
Greg Kot is an American writer and journalist. Since 1990, Kot has been the music critic at the Chicago Tribune, where he has covered popular music and reported on music-related social, political and business issues...
gave the album three out of four stars and stated "Fortunately, he approaches it with a light touch and a skip in his stride. He turns the metaphysical into a series of narratives tinged not just with poignance but humor and groove". Alastair McKay of Uncut
UNCUT (magazine)
Uncut magazine, trademarked as UNCUT, is a monthly publication based in London. It is available across the English-speaking world, and focuses on music, but also includes film and books sections...
noted Simon's songwriting focus and wrote that "he's telling stories, throwing narrative shapes, and twisting his songs into the service of a bigger idea. Almost every song is preoccupied somehow by God". The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club is an entertainment newspaper and website published by The Onion. Its features include reviews of new films, music, television, books, games and DVDs, as well as interviews and other regular offerings examining both new and classic media and other elements of pop culture. Unlike its...
s Noel Murray gave the album an A- rating and commented that "whether he’s feeling rocky or mellow, Simon keeps toying with song-structure, unafraid to change directions if a new thought occurs". Maddy Costa of The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
wrote that "the densely textured musical tracks convey the diversity of sounds that Simon has absorbed through his life". Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
writer Margaret Wappler complimented its "multiethnic landscape" and commented that the album, "steeped in Afropop
Afropop
Afropop or Afro-pop may refer to:*African popular music*Afropop Worldwide, a weekly radio program from Public Radio International...
and American folk
American folk music
American folk music is a musical term that encompasses numerous genres, many of which are known as traditional music or roots music. Roots music is a broad category of music including bluegrass, country music, gospel, old time music, jug bands, Appalachian folk, blues, Cajun and Native American...
forms, climbs some of the most resplendent summits of Simon’s career and ranks as his most consistent solo effort since Rhythm of the Saints from 1990".
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
writer Will Hermes complimented its "world-music
World music
World music is a term with widely varying definitions, often encompassing music which is primarily identified as another genre. This is evidenced by world music definitions such as "all of the music in the world" or "somebody else's local music"...
fusions" and called the album "old-fashioned in its brevity (10 songs, 38 minutes) and vivid in its storytelling [...] a spiritual meditation that can't answer the big questions: Does God exist in a world of pain and inequality? Is there an afterlife?". Joe Heim of The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
praised its themes of mortality, love, and God, calling it "a reminder of the power of popular song to express the universal, to shape meaning into melody and to serve up rhythm and rhyme in irresistible fashion". Jerry Shriver of USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
gave the album three-and-a-half out of four stars and described it as "a clever and astute set of fully realized songs that explore the relationship between Man and God and the nature of love and mortality". In his consumer guide for MSN Music
MSN Music
MSN Music was a part of the MSN web services. It delivered music news, music videos, spotlights on new music, artist information, and live performances of artists. In 2004, Microsoft created an MSN Music download store to compete with Apple's iTunes Music Store, though its sales in comparison were...
, critic Robert Christgau
Robert Christgau
Robert Christgau is an American essayist, music journalist, and self-proclaimed "Dean of American Rock Critics".One of the earliest professional rock critics, Christgau is known for his terse capsule reviews, published since 1969 in his Consumer Guide columns...
noted its music as "the mild, irregular folk-rock he's explored for decades, graced with global colors that sound as natural as that guitar", and stated "The mood is melancholy. yet suffused with gratitude—for his wife's love first of all, but even more for God's gifts, with the Divinity Himself an actor in several lyrics and close by in most of the others".
In the album's liner notes
Liner notes
Liner notes are the writings found in booklets which come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or the equivalent packaging for vinyl records and cassettes.-Origin:...
, a brief synopsis of the album by Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello , born Declan Patrick MacManus, is an English singer-songwriter. He came to prominence as an early participant in London's pub rock scene in the mid-1970s and later became associated with the punk/New Wave genre. Steeped in word play, the vocabulary of Costello's lyrics is broader...
says that it "deserves to be recognized as among Paul Simon's finest achievements."
Track listing
All songs were written by Paul Simon.- "Getting Ready for Christmas Day" – 4:06
- "The Afterlife" – 3:40
- "Dazzling Blue" – 4:32
- "Rewrite" – 3:49
- "Love and Hard Times" – 4:09
- "Love Is Eternal Sacred Light" – 4:02
- "Amulet" – 1:36
- "Questions for the Angels" – 3:49
- "Love and Blessings" – 4:18
- "So Beautiful or So What" – 4:07
- "So Beautiful or So What (Live Rehearsal Version)" – 4:10 [Download-only bonus track available on vinyl edition]
Deluxe Edition DVD
- "The Making of So Beautiful or So What"
- "Getting Ready for Christmas Day" (Music Video)
- "So Beautiful or So What" (Live Recording)
Notes
- "Getting Ready for Christmas Day" contains excerpts from the 1941 sermon of the same name by Reverend J. M. GatesJ. M. GatesThe Reverend J.M. Gates was an American Christian preacher and Gospel music singer.-Biography:From 1914 to his death, Gates was the pastor of Mount Calvary Baptist Church in Rock Dale Park, Atlanta, Georgia. He had a very prolific recording career, recording over 200 sides between 1926 and 1941,...
with congregation. - "Love Is Eternal Sacred Light" contains excerpts from "Train Whistle Blues".
- "Love and Blessings" contains excerpts from "Golden Gate Gospel Train", recorded by The Golden Gate Jubilee Quartet in 1938.
Personnel
Credits for So Beautiful or So What adapted from Allmusic.- Mary Abt – clarinet
- Chris Bear – electronics and introduction
- Edie BrickellEdie BrickellEdie Arlisa Brickell is an American singer-songwriter best known for 1988's Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars, the debut album by Edie Brickell & New Bohemians, which went #4 on the US Albums Chart.-Life and career:...
– background vocals - Greg Calbi – mastering
- Elvis CostelloElvis CostelloElvis Costello , born Declan Patrick MacManus, is an English singer-songwriter. He came to prominence as an early participant in London's pub rock scene in the mid-1970s and later became associated with the punk/New Wave genre. Steeped in word play, the vocabulary of Costello's lyrics is broader...
– liner notes - Sara Cutler – flute and harp
- Desiree Elsevier – Viola
- David Finck – Bass
- Geoff Gans – art direction and design
- Sven Geier – cover image
- Gil Goldstein – arranger
- Steve Gorn – bansuri
- Skip La Plante – gong, harp and wind chimes
- Doyle Lawson – background vocals
- Jeanne LeBlanc – celli
- Diane Lesser – horn
- Vincent Lionti – viola
- Richard Locker – celli
- Karaikudi R. Mani – ensemble and vocal percussion
- Elizabeth Mann – flute
- Lois Martin – viola
- Kevin Mazur – band photo
- Vincent Nguini – acoustic and electric guitar
- Jim Oblon – bass, drums, electric and slide guitar and percussion
- Charles Pillow – clarinet
- Phil RamonePhil RamonePhil Ramone is a South-African violinist, composer, recording engineer, and record producer.-Biography:As a young child in South Africa, Ramone was a musical prodigy, beginning to play the violin at age three and performing for Queen Elizabeth II at age ten...
– mixing and producer - Mick Rossi – piano
- Mark Seliger – photography
- Steve Shehan – angklung, bass, brushes, crotale, cymbals, djembe, glass harp, resonator, saz, stick and talking drum
- Lulu Simon – background vocals
- Paul Simon – bells, composer, glockenspiel, lyricist, percussion, producer, vocals, whistle and twelve-string, acoustic, electric and nylon string guitar
- Yacouba Sissoko – kora
- Pamela Sklar – flute
- Andy Smith – engineer
- Etienne Stadwijk – celeste
- Joshua Swift – dobro
- Sonny Terry – harmonica and soloist
- Dr. Michael White – clarinet
- Gabe Witcher – fiddle
- Nancy Zeltsman – marimba
Charts
| Chart (2011) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums Chart ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
41 |
| Austrian Albums Chart Ö3 Austria Top 40 Ö3 Austria Top 40 is the name of the official Austrian singles chart, as well as the radio show which presents it, aired Fridays on Hitradio Ö3. The show presents the Austrian singles, ringtones and downloads chart. It premiered on 26 November 1968 as Disc Parade and was presented by Ernst Grissemann... |
13 |
| Belgian Albums Chart Ultratop Ultratop is an organization which generates and publishes the official record charts in Belgium, and it is also the name of most of those charts... (Flanders) |
20 |
| Belgian Albums Chart Ultratop Ultratop is an organization which generates and publishes the official record charts in Belgium, and it is also the name of most of those charts... (Wallonia) |
29 |
| Canadian Albums Chart Canadian Albums Chart The Canadian Albums Chart is the official album sales chart in Canada. It is compiled every Wednesday by U.S.-based music sales tracking company Nielsen Soundscan, and published every Thursday by Jam! Canoe and Billboard, along with its sister charts the Canadian Singles Chart and the Canadian BDS... |
7 |
| Czech Albums Chart | 8 |
| Danish Albums Chart | 6 |
| Dutch Albums Chart MegaCharts MegaCharts is responsible for the composition and exploitation of a broad collection of official charts in the Netherlands, of which the Mega Top 50 and the Mega Album Top 100 are the most known ones. Mega Charts also provides information to the Stichting Nederlandse Top 40, of which the Dutch Top... |
6 |
| Finnish Albums Chart | 49 |
| French Albums Chart | 38 |
| German Albums Chart Media Control Charts The official music charts in Germany are gathered and published by the company Media Control GfK International on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindustrie... |
20 |
| 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... |
7 |
| Italian Albums Chart | 29 |
| Japanese Albums Chart Oricon , established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in November 1967 and became known for its music charts. Oricon Inc... |
75 |
| New Zealand Albums Chart Recording Industry Association of New Zealand The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell music in New Zealand... |
23 |
| Norwegian Albums Chart VG-lista VG-listen is a Norwegian record chart. It is weekly presented in the newspaper VG and the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation program Topp 20. It is considered the primary Norwegian record chart, charting albums and singles from countries and continent around the world. The data is collected by... |
2 |
| Spanish Albums Chart | 40 |
| Swedish Albums Chart Sverigetopplistan Sverigetopplistan, earlier known as Topplistan and Hitlistan and other names, is since October 2007 the Swedish national record chart, based on sales data from Swedish Recording Industry Association .... |
4 |
| Swiss Albums Chart Swiss Music Charts The Swiss Music Charts are Switzerland's main music sales charts. The charts are a record of the highest-selling singles and albums in various genres in Switzerland.The Swiss Charts include:* Singles Top 75... |
21 |
| 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... |
6 |
| US Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
4 |
Release history
| Region | Date |
|---|---|
| Australia | April 8, 2011 |
| Germany | |
| Netherlands | |
| Denmark | April 11, 2011 |
| France | |
| Italy | April 12, 2011 |
| United States | |
| Japan | April 20, 2011 |
| Ireland | June 10, 2011 |
| United Kingdom | June 13, 2011 |
External links
- So Beautiful or So What at DiscogsDiscogsDiscogs, short for discographies, is a website and database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. The Discogs servers, currently hosted under the domain name discogs.com, are owned by Zink Media, Inc., and are...
- So Beautiful or So What at MetacriticMetacriticMetacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...