The Defamation of Strickland Banks
Encyclopedia
The Defamation of Strickland Banks is the second studio album from British rapper Plan B which was released on 12 April 2010. The album is a departure from the sound heard on Plan B's debut album Who Needs Actions When You Got Words
, with the rapper's sophomore effort providing a showcase for much more of his singing ability. Lyrically the album's songs tell the fictitious tale of one Strickland Banks, a sharp-suited British soul singer who finds fame with bitter-sweet love songs like the album's opener "Love Goes Down", but then loses everything when he ends up in prison for a crime he didn't commit.
and he had previously abandoned an attempt to make a hip hop follow up to his debut Who Needs Actions When You Got Words
. After learning more about the technical aspects of singing and having written some soul songs such as "Love Goes Down
", which was written whilst supporting The Roots
on tour in 2006, Plan B came up with the concept of a story about a soul
singer who gets sent to prison.
He commenced recording of the album in which half the songs were hip hop
tracks narrated by Plan B and the other half were soul songs told through the eyes of the fictional character Strickland Banks, however this idea was scrapped because the two genres did not work well together and the label 679 Artists thought the idea was too confusing. Hence the album was split into two records and it was agreed that the soul record would be released as Plan B's second studio album.
on the prison black market throughout the course of "Traded In My Cigarettes". In "Prayin'" he is confronted by another prisoner who attacks him. With the help of another inmate Strickland kills the attacker in self-defence, with the other inmate taking the blame, and is burdened with this guilt during "Darkest Place". The next two tracks, "Free" and "I Know A Song" detail initially his anger, then his acceptance of his life inside prison. The last track, "What You Gonna Do" Strickland is in court again as new evidence has been brought up on his case. The album finishes with the listener not sure of whether he is sent back to prison or released, leaving it open to interpretation.
, which assigns a normalized
rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average
score of 75, based on 16 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews". The critics tended to compare this work with Plan B's previous album, Who Needs Actions When You Got Words, from four years earlier. The change from "spectacularly violent soliloquies" on his debut to crooning soul on his second effort caught some reviewers by surprise, though not all unhappily.
Ian Wade of the BBC gave the album and Plan B (Ben Drew) great praise, calling it "tremendous work", admiring its range, as for example "on 'Welcome to Hell' he trills like a scared-to-pick-up-the-soap-in-the-prison-shower Smokey Robinson, while 'Hard Times' and 'Love Goes Down' are just lovely – anyone operating in the greasy world of pop would give a limb for such songs."
For Pete Paphides of The Times
, Defamation deserved 4 out of 5 stars.
The Guardian
s Alexis Petridis gave it 3 out of 5 stars. Though dissatisfied with the its concept and "gaping holes in the album's plot", he said, "Drew's reinvention suits him. The strength of his voice was understandably overlooked on his debut, but it comes into its own here: a high, aching croon that adds an appealing touch of self-doubt to the hardest-hitting lyrics. Rather than simply drafting in Mark Ronson to add a retro-soul veneer, he's clearly studied the source material: the result is a string of uniformly well-done Smokey Robinson pastiches. In a neat touch, the bleaker Strickland Banks's story becomes, the lovelier the melodies.".
John Freeman, writing for Clash
, gave it a 7/10 rating, while suggesting that the style change.
NME
s Sam Wolfson gave the album a rating of 6 out of 10, and expressed regret at Plan B's move into new territory.
At The Telegraph
, Thomas H Green gave it 4 out of 5 stars, calling it "accessible, polished and brimming with verve". He closed his review saying, "The rapping hasn’t been completely abandoned, either, but the emphasis here is on his sweet soul voice and a thumping Motown groove, an intriguing change of direction that’s both passionate and populist."
", was released on 8 January 2010. It entered the UK Singles Chart
on 17 January 2010, where it reached a peak of 9 and a peak of number 3 on the UK R&B Chart
, making it Plan B's first Top 10 single.
The second single from the album, entitled "She Said
", was released on 24 February 2010. It reached number 3 on the UK Singles Chart
on 4 April 2010 as well as peaking at number 1 on the R&B Chart; the single marks Plan B's biggest selling single to date.
The third single, "Prayin'
" was released on 9 July 2010, where it climbed up the chart before peaking at number 16 in the UK.
The fourth single from the album was announced by Plan B as "The Recluse
". The video premiered on Plan B's official site in September, which was followed by a release of 4 October 2010. The single peaked at number 35 in the UK; marking Plan B's fourth consecutive Top 40 hit; fifth overall.
The fifth single to be released from the album was "Love Goes Down
" and after being added to the BBC Radio 1 Playlist, was released on 3 December 2010, where it peaked at number 62.
"Writing's on the Wall" was released as a video only promotional single in March 2010. A straight-forward performance video for the track, filmed live at Cafe De Paris, was originally released on YouTube in 2010 shortly after the video for "She Said" was released. It has been added to the Radio 1 Playlist in March 2011 and a re-edited video was released. The 2011 version of the video features additional footage showing Strickland's girlfriend preparing a meal for him at home whilst he's out performing, and ends with footage from the "Stay Too Long" video.
Following Plan B's performance at the 2011 BRIT Awards
, the medley "She Said" and "Prayin'" was released as a download single the following day which charted at 72 in the UK singles chart. The track also included an excerpt of an unknown track from The Ballad of Belmarsh at the beginning.
"Hard Times
" was released as a single on iTunes on 19 May 2011. The song had newly recorded vocals from Elton John and Paloma Faith and reached no. 147 in the UK Singles Chart.
Production
Additional musicians
Other personnel
at No. 1, selling 68,173 copies in its first week and a further 47,950 in its second week. It was the 5th biggest selling album of 2010 in the UK with sales of 826,400. The album has sold over 1,000,000 copies to date.
record will be released as a stand alone album on Plan B's own label after his record label 679 Artists refused to release it. Snippets from the album have been included in the music video for "The Recluse
" and The Defamation of Strickland Banks film trailer. The album is influenced by Skinnyman
and Klashnekoff
.
Speaking live on BBC Three on 26 June 2011, after his Glastonbury
performance on the Pyramid stage, he said the album, "goes into greater detail. That's the great thing about hip-hop, it allows you to do that. And I'd say, I wrote this album the way I write hip-hop, which is trying to convey the story I need to get out rather than trying to make songs that radio will play. So I always talk about this album like it's an underground album, and I'm not sure how much commercial legs it has. But it's more of what I call a film for the blind, so when you put it on, it'll be like listening to the audio of a film without having the images."
In the same interview, Plan B also confirmed, "I just recorded Ray Winstone
in the studio. I wrote a kind of John Cooper Clarke
-esque spoken word rap. At the moment, it's called 'Officer Men', it's a working title and I got Ray to come in and spit it. It sounds amazing. It's like the 2011 Parklife
but with, like, balls. I'm really really excited. It's weird because I was in the studio with him and I was like, 'This is the proudest moment of my musical life.' And I've had some great moments... I never thought he'd say yes, and he did."
In a Digital Spy interview posted online on 15 September 2011, Plan B re-iterated his intention to finish The Ballad Of Belmarsh, and that its video should give "enough coverage" to make the film version of the Strickland Banks story. However, he added that he had to finish his movie Ill Manors as a priority before finishing The Ballad Of Belmarsh, and then the Strickland Banks movie.
and Roger Daltrey
have also been rumoured with roles in the film. A second film trailer was uploaded to YouTube in February 2011.
Who Needs Actions When You Got Words
Who Needs Actions When You Got Words is the debut album from UK rapper Plan B.-Writing and recording:The title comes from a line in the Meat Puppets song Plateau, famously covered by Nirvana on their 1994 album MTV Unplugged in New York....
, with the rapper's sophomore effort providing a showcase for much more of his singing ability. Lyrically the album's songs tell the fictitious tale of one Strickland Banks, a sharp-suited British soul singer who finds fame with bitter-sweet love songs like the album's opener "Love Goes Down", but then loses everything when he ends up in prison for a crime he didn't commit.
Background
Ben had always wanted to make his second album as a concept albumConcept album
In music, a concept album is an album that is "unified by a theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, narrative, or lyrical." Commonly, concept albums tend to incorporate preconceived musical or lyrical ideas rather than being improvised or composed in the studio, with all songs contributing...
and he had previously abandoned an attempt to make a hip hop follow up to his debut Who Needs Actions When You Got Words
Who Needs Actions When You Got Words
Who Needs Actions When You Got Words is the debut album from UK rapper Plan B.-Writing and recording:The title comes from a line in the Meat Puppets song Plateau, famously covered by Nirvana on their 1994 album MTV Unplugged in New York....
. After learning more about the technical aspects of singing and having written some soul songs such as "Love Goes Down
Love Goes Down
"Love Goes Down" is the fifth single from Plan B's second album The Defamation of Strickland Banks. The single was released on 3 December 2010.-Music video:...
", which was written whilst supporting The Roots
The Roots
The Roots is an American hip hop/neo soul band formed in 1987 by Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter and Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are famed for beginning with a jazzy, eclectic approach to hip hop which still includes live instrumentals...
on tour in 2006, Plan B came up with the concept of a story about a soul
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
singer who gets sent to prison.
He commenced recording of the album in which half the songs were hip hop
Hip hop
Hip hop is a form of musical expression and artistic culture that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City, specifically the Bronx. DJ Afrika Bambaataa outlined the four pillars of hip hop culture: MCing, DJing, breaking and graffiti writing...
tracks narrated by Plan B and the other half were soul songs told through the eyes of the fictional character Strickland Banks, however this idea was scrapped because the two genres did not work well together and the label 679 Artists thought the idea was too confusing. Hence the album was split into two records and it was agreed that the soul record would be released as Plan B's second studio album.
Recording
The sound of the album was influenced by Paul Epworth who produced the demo version of "Writing's on the Wall", although the majority of the album was recorded with producers David McEwan and Eric Appapoulay at The Sanctuary, London. Production took more than two years due to the simultaneous work on the hip hop and soul albums.Concept
The album tells the story from the first-hand perspective of Strickland Banks, a fictional character played by Plan B. The album's opening tracks, "Love Goes Down" and "Writing's on the Wall", are love songs sung by Strickland Banks at a concert, and are likely to be about his girlfriend, to whom he refers later in the album. "Stay Too Long" follows him and his entourage as they celebrate the success of his concert with a night out which culminates in him having a one night stand with a woman. In "She Said" we learn that this woman is obsessed with his music and believes herself to be in love with him. He rejects her so she alleges that he raped her. The subsequent trial results in his incarceration, and in "Welcome to Hell" he is sent to prison, and much of the rest of the album is about his experience inside. Throughout the course of the songs "Hard Times" and "The Recluse" we see Strickland get more isolated and insecure throughout as he struggles to cope with prison life. This results in his abuse at the hands of other prisoners, resulting in him purchasing a shivShiv (weapon)
A shiv is a slang term for any sharp or pointed implement used as a knife-like weapon. However, the word in practical usage is frequently used when referring to an improvised bladed weapon. Shivs are commonly made by inmates in prisons across the world...
on the prison black market throughout the course of "Traded In My Cigarettes". In "Prayin'" he is confronted by another prisoner who attacks him. With the help of another inmate Strickland kills the attacker in self-defence, with the other inmate taking the blame, and is burdened with this guilt during "Darkest Place". The next two tracks, "Free" and "I Know A Song" detail initially his anger, then his acceptance of his life inside prison. The last track, "What You Gonna Do" Strickland is in court again as new evidence has been brought up on his case. The album finishes with the listener not sure of whether he is sent back to prison or released, leaving it open to interpretation.
Reception
Upon its release, The Defamation of Strickland Banks received generally positive reviews from music critics. At MetacriticMetacritic
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 75, based on 16 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews". The critics tended to compare this work with Plan B's previous album, Who Needs Actions When You Got Words, from four years earlier. The change from "spectacularly violent soliloquies" on his debut to crooning soul on his second effort caught some reviewers by surprise, though not all unhappily.
Ian Wade of the BBC gave the album and Plan B (Ben Drew) great praise, calling it "tremendous work", admiring its range, as for example "on 'Welcome to Hell' he trills like a scared-to-pick-up-the-soap-in-the-prison-shower Smokey Robinson, while 'Hard Times' and 'Love Goes Down' are just lovely – anyone operating in the greasy world of pop would give a limb for such songs."
For Pete Paphides of 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...
, Defamation deserved 4 out of 5 stars.
The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
s Alexis Petridis gave it 3 out of 5 stars. Though dissatisfied with the its concept and "gaping holes in the album's plot", he said, "Drew's reinvention suits him. The strength of his voice was understandably overlooked on his debut, but it comes into its own here: a high, aching croon that adds an appealing touch of self-doubt to the hardest-hitting lyrics. Rather than simply drafting in Mark Ronson to add a retro-soul veneer, he's clearly studied the source material: the result is a string of uniformly well-done Smokey Robinson pastiches. In a neat touch, the bleaker Strickland Banks's story becomes, the lovelier the melodies.".
John Freeman, writing for Clash
Clash (magazine)
Clash is a popular music and fashion magazine based in the United Kingdom. Its magazine title is published 12 times a year. It has a circulation of around 40,000....
, gave it a 7/10 rating, while suggesting that the style change.
NME
NME
The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...
s Sam Wolfson gave the album a rating of 6 out of 10, and expressed regret at Plan B's move into new territory.
At The Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
, Thomas H Green gave it 4 out of 5 stars, calling it "accessible, polished and brimming with verve". He closed his review saying, "The rapping hasn’t been completely abandoned, either, but the emphasis here is on his sweet soul voice and a thumping Motown groove, an intriguing change of direction that’s both passionate and populist."
Singles
The first single from the album, entitled "Stay Too LongStay Too Long
"Stay Too Long" is the first single from British rapper Plan B's second album The Defamation of Strickland Banks. The single was released on 8 January 2010. Australian-British electronic rock and drum 'n' bass group Pendulum also produced a remix, their first in three years, which was used as...
", was released on 8 January 2010. It entered the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
on 17 January 2010, where it reached a peak of 9 and a peak of number 3 on the UK R&B Chart
UK R&B Chart
The Official UK R&B Chart is a forty-position R&B/Hip-Hop chart compiled by The Official UK Charts Company. Although the chart does not receive any airplay, its compilation is viewed on BBC Radio 1's website and publications such as ChartsPlus and Music Week...
, making it Plan B's first Top 10 single.
The second single from the album, entitled "She Said
She Said (Plan B song)
"She Said" is the second single from English rapper Plan B's second album The Defamation of Strickland Banks - a concept album whose songs tell the fictitious tale of a sharp-suited English soul singer who finds fame with bitter-sweet love songs, but then loses everything when he ends up in prison...
", was released on 24 February 2010. It reached number 3 on the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
on 4 April 2010 as well as peaking at number 1 on the R&B Chart; the single marks Plan B's biggest selling single to date.
The third single, "Prayin'
Prayin'
"Prayin" is the third single from British rapper Plan B's second album The Defamation of Strickland Banks - a concept album whose songs tell the fictitious tale of a sharp-suited British soul singer who finds fame with bitter-sweet love songs, but then loses everything when he ends up in prison for...
" was released on 9 July 2010, where it climbed up the chart before peaking at number 16 in the UK.
The fourth single from the album was announced by Plan B as "The Recluse
The Recluse (Plan B song)
"The Recluse" is the fourth single from Plan B's second album The Defamation of Strickland Banks. The single was released on 4 October 2010. "The Recluse" has been labeled as "one of his best singles to date" by critics, "neatly marrying poignancy and aggression into a 4-minute long track with a...
". The video premiered on Plan B's official site in September, which was followed by a release of 4 October 2010. The single peaked at number 35 in the UK; marking Plan B's fourth consecutive Top 40 hit; fifth overall.
The fifth single to be released from the album was "Love Goes Down
Love Goes Down
"Love Goes Down" is the fifth single from Plan B's second album The Defamation of Strickland Banks. The single was released on 3 December 2010.-Music video:...
" and after being added to the BBC Radio 1 Playlist, was released on 3 December 2010, where it peaked at number 62.
"Writing's on the Wall" was released as a video only promotional single in March 2010. A straight-forward performance video for the track, filmed live at Cafe De Paris, was originally released on YouTube in 2010 shortly after the video for "She Said" was released. It has been added to the Radio 1 Playlist in March 2011 and a re-edited video was released. The 2011 version of the video features additional footage showing Strickland's girlfriend preparing a meal for him at home whilst he's out performing, and ends with footage from the "Stay Too Long" video.
Following Plan B's performance at the 2011 BRIT Awards
2011 BRIT Awards
The 2011 BRIT Awards was held on Tuesday 15 February 2011.It was the 31st edition of the British Phonographic Industry's annual pop music awards. The award ceremony was held at The O2 Arena...
, the medley "She Said" and "Prayin'" was released as a download single the following day which charted at 72 in the UK singles chart. The track also included an excerpt of an unknown track from The Ballad of Belmarsh at the beginning.
"Hard Times
Hard Times (Plan B song)
"Hard Times" is a song from Plan B's second album The Defamation of Strickland Banks. On May 19, 2011, it was released as a digital download, featuring newly recorded vocal parts by Elton John and Paloma Faith, recorded as a charity single with all the proceeds benefiting victims of the Japan...
" was released as a single on iTunes on 19 May 2011. The song had newly recorded vocals from Elton John and Paloma Faith and reached no. 147 in the UK Singles Chart.
Track listing
Personnel
- Ben Drew – vocals, producer, mixing
Production
- David McEwanDavid McEwan (producer)David McEwan is Australian/British music producer, engineer, composer, and a member of the band The Safires. He is the co-owner of The Sanctuary Recording Studio in London and is best known for his work on the award-winning Plan B album The Defamation of Strickland Banks. He has also had long time...
– producer, engineer, mixing - Paul EpworthPaul EpworthPaul Epworth is an award-winning British music producer, musician, and songwriter. His production credits include Adele, Cee Lo Green, Florence and the Machine, Plan B, Friendly Fires, Bloc Party, Primal Scream, The Rapture, Jack Peñate, Kate Nash and Maxïmo Park.-Lomax:From 2002-2004 Paul provided...
– producer, mixing - Eric AppapoulayEric AppapoulayEric Appapoulay is a British singer, songwriter, composer, arranger, programmer, multi-instrumentalist and guitarist. Appapoulay has been the bass player for musician Neneh Cherry, the musical director for songs by Daniel Bedingfield, drummer/percussionist for both Plan B and Nitin Sawhney, and...
– additional producer, mixing - Mark "Top" Rankin – engineer, mixing
- Will KennardChase & StatusChase & Status are an electronic music production duo from London consisting of Saul Milton and Will Kennard. MC Rage & Andy Gangadeen also make up the live band.-2003-2005:...
– additional mixing - Harry EscottHarry EscottHarry Escott is a composer living in London. He has composed numerous film scores, mostly in collaboration with Molly Nyman.He studied music at The Royal College of Music and Oxford University....
– string arrangements - Sally Herbert – string arrangements
- Jason Yarde – brass arrangements
- Guy Davie – mastering
Additional musicians
- Aleysha Gordon – backing vocals
- Hannah Kemoh – backing vocals
- Samantha Smith – backing vocals
- Jennifer Dawodu – backing vocals
- Marvin Cottrell – backing vocals
- Tom Wright-Goss – guitar
- Eric Appapoulay – bass, backing vocals
- Jodi Milliner – bass
- Richard Cassell – drums
- Paul Epworth – drums
- Everton Newson – violin
- Louisa Fuller – violin
- Sally Herbert – violin
- Warren Zielinski – violin
- Bruce White – viola
- Sonia Slany – viola
- Ian Burdge – cello
- Harry Escott – additional cello
- Jason Yarde – alto saxophone, baritone saxophone
- Zem Audu – tenor saxophone
- Harry Brown – trombone
- David Prisemen – trumpet, flugelhorn
- Mark Crown – trumpet
Other personnel
- Fabrice Spelta – art direction
- Mike Hosey – art direction
- Ben Parks – photography
- Roy Eldridge – management
- Sam Eldridge – management
Release history
| Region | Date | Label | Format | Catalog |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages... |
9 April 2010 | 679 679 Recordings 679 Artists is a Warner Music Group-owned record label based in London, England.... /Atlantic Atlantic Records Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz... |
CD | 5051865847120 |
| 2xCD | 5051865899327 | |||
| United States United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... |
19 April 2011 | Atlantic Atlantic Records Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz... |
CD | 527576 |
Chart performance
On 18 April 2010, the album debuted on the UK Albums ChartUK 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...
at No. 1, selling 68,173 copies in its first week and a further 47,950 in its second week. It was the 5th biggest selling album of 2010 in the UK with sales of 826,400. The album has sold over 1,000,000 copies to date.
Weekly charts
| Chart (2010) | 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... |
25 |
| 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) |
96 |
| Danish Albums Chart Tracklisten Tracklisten is a Danish top 40 record chart that is presented every Thursday midnight at .The weekly Danish Singles Chart also known as Track Top-40 combines the 40 best selling tracks from legal music downloads and the sales of music singles on either CD or vinyl... |
18 |
| European Top 100 Albums European Top 100 Albums The European Top 100 Albums chart is the European adaptation of the Billboard 200 albums chart. It was created in March 1984.The European Top 100 Albums, commonly referred to as Eurochart Top 100 Albums shows the sales of an act in 19 European countries based on IFPI data.The European Top 100... |
8 |
| French Albums Chart Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry... |
23 |
| French Digital Albums Chart Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry... |
3 |
| 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... |
7 |
| Greek Albums Chart IFPI Greece International Federation of the Phonographic Industry Greece or IFPI Greece is the Greek branch of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry and is the official charts provider and recording sales certification body for Greece. Currently two charts are compiled, one for sales of... |
12 |
| 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 |
| 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... |
59 |
| 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... |
1 |
Year-end charts
| Chart (2010) | Position |
|---|---|
| European Top 100 Albums European Top 100 Albums The European Top 100 Albums chart is the European adaptation of the Billboard 200 albums chart. It was created in March 1984.The European Top 100 Albums, commonly referred to as Eurochart Top 100 Albums shows the sales of an act in 19 European countries based on IFPI data.The European Top 100... |
23 |
| 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... |
5 |
Certifications
| Country | Certification |
|---|---|
| Europe IFPI The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a not-for-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland... |
2x Platinum |
| United Kingdom British Phonographic Industry The British Phonographic Industry is the British record industry's trade association.-Structure:Its membership comprises hundreds of music companies including all four "major" record companies , associate members such as manufacturers and distributors, and hundreds of independent music companies... |
3× Platinum |
The Ballad of Belmarsh
The Ballad of Belmarsh is the upcoming third studio album to be released by Plan B in 2011. Originally meant to be released as a double album with The Defamation of Strickland Banks, the hip hopHip hop
Hip hop is a form of musical expression and artistic culture that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City, specifically the Bronx. DJ Afrika Bambaataa outlined the four pillars of hip hop culture: MCing, DJing, breaking and graffiti writing...
record will be released as a stand alone album on Plan B's own label after his record label 679 Artists refused to release it. Snippets from the album have been included in the music video for "The Recluse
The Recluse (Plan B song)
"The Recluse" is the fourth single from Plan B's second album The Defamation of Strickland Banks. The single was released on 4 October 2010. "The Recluse" has been labeled as "one of his best singles to date" by critics, "neatly marrying poignancy and aggression into a 4-minute long track with a...
" and The Defamation of Strickland Banks film trailer. The album is influenced by Skinnyman
Skinnyman
Skinnyman is an English rapper who was born in Leeds, Yorkshire and moved to Finsbury Park, London at a young age. He grew up on the Six Acres Estate next to Andover Estate...
and Klashnekoff
Klashnekoff
Darren Kandler, known by his stage name Klashnekoff or Ricochet Klashnekoff, is a Jamaican-English rapper from east London. Klashnekoff was born in Hornsey, but then moved to Hackney in London where he began his career in rapping...
.
Speaking live on BBC Three on 26 June 2011, after his Glastonbury
Glastonbury Festival 2011
The 2011 Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts was held from 22–26 June 2011. Tickets for the festival went on sale from 9 am on Sunday 3 October 2010, over 37 weeks before the festival was set to begin, with a deposit of £50 being paid, while the whole cost of a ticket is £195...
performance on the Pyramid stage, he said the album, "goes into greater detail. That's the great thing about hip-hop, it allows you to do that. And I'd say, I wrote this album the way I write hip-hop, which is trying to convey the story I need to get out rather than trying to make songs that radio will play. So I always talk about this album like it's an underground album, and I'm not sure how much commercial legs it has. But it's more of what I call a film for the blind, so when you put it on, it'll be like listening to the audio of a film without having the images."
In the same interview, Plan B also confirmed, "I just recorded Ray Winstone
Ray Winstone
Raymond Andrew "Ray" Winstone is an English film and television actor. He is mostly known for his "tough guy" roles, beginning with that of Carlin in the 1979 film Scum and as Will Scarlet in the cult television adventure series Robin of Sherwood. He has also become well known as a voice over...
in the studio. I wrote a kind of John Cooper Clarke
John Cooper Clarke
John Cooper Clarke is an English performance poet who first became famous during the punk rock era of the late 1970s when he became known as a "punk poet"...
-esque spoken word rap. At the moment, it's called 'Officer Men', it's a working title and I got Ray to come in and spit it. It sounds amazing. It's like the 2011 Parklife
Parklife (song)
"Parklife" is the title track from Blur's 1994 album Parklife. When released as the album's third single, "Parklife" reached #10 in the UK singles chart...
but with, like, balls. I'm really really excited. It's weird because I was in the studio with him and I was like, 'This is the proudest moment of my musical life.' And I've had some great moments... I never thought he'd say yes, and he did."
In a Digital Spy interview posted online on 15 September 2011, Plan B re-iterated his intention to finish The Ballad Of Belmarsh, and that its video should give "enough coverage" to make the film version of the Strickland Banks story. However, he added that he had to finish his movie Ill Manors as a priority before finishing The Ballad Of Belmarsh, and then the Strickland Banks movie.
Film version
The Defamation of Strickland Banks is intended to be made into a musical film directed by Ben Drew himself. It was originally conceived as a short film to be released alongside the album and the original trailer was uploaded online in late 2009. The film intends to incorporate all the music videos from The Defamation Of Strickland Banks and The Ballad Of Belmarsh with scenes of dialogue. Kelly BrookKelly Brook
Kelly Brook is an English model, actress, entrepreneur, television presenter and Playboy model.-Early life:...
and Roger Daltrey
Roger Daltrey
Roger Harry Daltrey, CBE , is an English singer and actor, best known as the founder and lead singer of English rock band The Who. He has maintained a musical career as a solo artist and has also worked in the film industry, acting in a large number of films, theatre and television roles and also...
have also been rumoured with roles in the film. A second film trailer was uploaded to YouTube in February 2011.
External links
- The Defamation of Strickland Banks 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,...