The Soul Sessions
Encyclopedia
The Soul Sessions is the debut album by English recording artist Joss Stone
. It was released in the United Kingdom on 24 November 2003 by Relentless Records
. The album consists of a collection of cover version
s of '60s and '70s soul songs, in addition to a cover of a contemporary song, re-arranged into a soul song.
and S-Curve Records
chief executive officer Steve Greenberg
. She worked with veteran Miami soul musicians Benny Latimore
, Little Beaver
, Timmy Thomas
and Wright herself. She also worked with contemporary musicians such as neo soul
singer Angie Stone
and the alternative hip hop
group The Roots
.
Stone told MTV News
that she felt intimidated by the credentials of the musicians that worked on the album. "It was weird because they've worked with so many great, great singers. I'm talking the best. I kind of walked in, just like this little girl and started singing." By the end of the session, she had impressed everybody with her talent.
, which assigns a normalised
rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average
score of 74, based on 15 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews". Jon Caramanica of Rolling Stone
stated that "Stone shines on this impressive covers set" and that "[s]he chooses songs wisely." Allmusic's Thom Jurek wrote that Stone "has unique phrasing and a huge voice that accents, dips, and slips, never overworking a song or trying to bring attention to itself via hollow acrobatics." Jim Greer from Entertainment Weekly
noted that Stone "does have an extraordinary voice", but added that "the only misguided ploy on The Soul Sessions is a Roots-produced slo-mo cover of a White Stripes tune." Russell Baillie from The New Zealand Herald
opined that "with her strong, emotive voice she nails it time and again, and with performances that aren't an excuse for the vocal acrobatic show you imagine this would have been had Stone been America's next bright young thing."
The Guardian
s Dorian Lynskey described her singing as "rich, mature and agile but not showy". Nick Duerden of Blender
magazine commented that "Stone's voice is remarkably authentic, and the atmosphere she conjures is smoky and sleazy, pure mid-'60s Detroit." Jason MacNeil wrote for PopMatters
that her voice is "more of a soulful voice than those so-called soul divas out there today" and that it "oozes sex appeal as Benny Latimore's piano weaves some magic." In his review for The A.V. Club
, Keith Phipps remarked that "Sessions establishes Stone as a formidable interpreter." Andrew McGregor of BBC Music
felt that the album "seems a bit of an artistic compromise, music from the rule book rather than the heart." The Village Voice
critic Robert Christgau
was not impressed either, and viewed Stone's covers as "the kind of soul marginalia Brits have been overrating since Doris Troy
was on Apple
".
at number forty-seven for the week of 17 January 2004 (the highest debut of that week), and reached its peak position of number four three weeks later. It spent twelve non-consecutive weeks in the top ten and seventy weeks altogether in the top seventy-five, including three re-entries in 2005. The British Phonographic Industry
(BPI) certified the album triple platinum on 15 April 2005, denoting shipments of over 900,000 copies. Additionally, it became the UK's nineteenth best-selling album of 2004.
In the United States, The Soul Sessions was a sleeper hit
. On the issue dated 4 October 2003, the album debuted at number 199 on the Billboard 200
and at number seventy-six on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums
, peaking at number thirty-nine on the former and at number thirty-eight on the latter in its twenty-fourth week on both charts, on the issue dated 8 May 2004. Prior to that, the album topped the Top Heatseekers
during the week of 21 February 2004. Sales were heavy on the East Coast
, especially in cities such as New York City
, Philadelphia and Boston
. Within six months of its release, The Soul Sessions was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America
(RIAA) on 29 March 2004, having sold 914,000 units as of March 2007.
The album was also commercially successful in the rest of Europe, where it reached number four in Austria, Germany, the Netherlands and Norway, number five in Portugal, number seven in Belgium, number eight in Italy, number twelve in Sweden and number fourteen in Switzerland, as well as number four on the European Top 100 Albums
. In June 2004 The Soul Sessions was honoured with a Platinum Europe Award from the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) for sales in excess of one million copies across Europe. In Oceania the album peaked at number sixteen in Australia and number eight in New Zealand, earning platinum accreditations from the Australian Recording Industry Association
(ARIA) and the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand
(RIANZ) for sales of 70,000 and 15,000 copies, respectively.
, Steve Greenberg
and Mike Mangini
, except track 3 produced by Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson, Wright, Greenberg and Mangini, and track 7 produced by Greenberg and Mangini.
Joss Stone
Jocelyn Eve Stoker , better known by her stage name Joss Stone, is an English soul singer-songwriter and actress. Stone rose to fame in late 2003 with her multi-platinum debut album, The Soul Sessions, which made the 2004 Mercury Prize shortlist...
. It was released in the United Kingdom on 24 November 2003 by Relentless Records
Relentless Records
Relentless Records, founded by Shabs Jobanputra and Paul Franklyn in 1999 is now a part of Sony Music based in London, UK. Having achieved large scale successes with Joss Stone, KT Tunstall and several urban artists such as Artful Dodger and So Solid Crew, the label is now building a small focused...
. The album consists of a collection of cover version
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
s of '60s and '70s soul songs, in addition to a cover of a contemporary song, re-arranged into a soul song.
Background
The Soul Sessions was produced by Miami soul singer Betty WrightBetty Wright
Bessie Regina Norris, better known by her stage name, Betty Wright , is a Grammy winning Miami-based soul and R&B singer-songwriter, who won fame in the 1970s with hits such as "Clean Up Woman" and "Tonight Is the Night"...
and S-Curve Records
S-Curve Records
S-Curve Records was founded in 2000 by former Mercury Records executive Steve Greenberg. It is based in New York City. In 2001 the label established a distribution and licensing agreement with EMI Records. In 2007 Greenberg relaunched the label after a two year hiatus, during which he served as...
chief executive officer Steve Greenberg
Steve Greenberg (record producer)
Steve Greenberg is a record producer currently heading the S-Curve Records label. He is noted for "discovering" popular musical acts such as Hanson, Baha Men, Jonas Brothers and Joss Stone. He received a 2000 Grammy Award in the "Best Dance Recording" category as a producer of "Who Let the Dogs...
. She worked with veteran Miami soul musicians Benny Latimore
Latimore (musician)
Benjamin "Benny" Latimore , usually known professionally simply as Latimore, is an American R&B singer, songwriter and pianist....
, Little Beaver
Willie Hale
Willie Hale , often known by the name Little Beaver, is an American R&B guitarist, singer and songwriter featured on many hit records since the 1960s....
, Timmy Thomas
Timmy Thomas
Timmy Thomas is an American R&B singer, keyboardist, songwriter and record producer, best known for the hit song, "Why Can't We Live Together".-Career:...
and Wright herself. She also worked with contemporary musicians such as neo soul
Neo soul
The term neo soul was originally coined by Kedar Massenburg of Motown Records in the late 1990s as a marketing category following the commercial breakthroughs of artists such as D'Angelo, Erykah Badu, Lauryn Hill, and Maxwell...
singer Angie Stone
Angie Stone
Angie Stone is an American R&B and soul singer-songwriter, record producer, and occasional actress. She has been nominated for three Grammy Award. She is more successful on the charts R&B charts, with four Top 10 albums, forms including a number one album and 10 singles on the R&B chart,...
and the alternative hip hop
Alternative hip hop
Alternative hip hop is a sub-genre of hip hop music. Allmusic defines it as follows: -Origin:...
group 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...
.
Stone told MTV News
MTV News
MTV News is the news division of MTV, one of the first and most popular music television network in the U.S., as well as some of MTV's related channels around the world. MTV News began in the late 1980s with the program The Week In Rock, hosted by Kurt Loder, the first official MTV News correspondent...
that she felt intimidated by the credentials of the musicians that worked on the album. "It was weird because they've worked with so many great, great singers. I'm talking the best. I kind of walked in, just like this little girl and started singing." By the end of the session, she had impressed everybody with her talent.
Critical reception
The Soul Sessions was met with positive reviews by 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 normalised
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 74, based on 15 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews". Jon Caramanica of 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...
stated that "Stone shines on this impressive covers set" and that "[s]he chooses songs wisely." Allmusic's Thom Jurek wrote that Stone "has unique phrasing and a huge voice that accents, dips, and slips, never overworking a song or trying to bring attention to itself via hollow acrobatics." Jim Greer from 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...
noted that Stone "does have an extraordinary voice", but added that "the only misguided ploy on The Soul Sessions is a Roots-produced slo-mo cover of a White Stripes tune." Russell Baillie from The New Zealand Herald
The New Zealand Herald
- External links :* * *...
opined that "with her strong, emotive voice she nails it time and again, and with performances that aren't an excuse for the vocal acrobatic show you imagine this would have been had Stone been America's next bright young thing."
The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
s Dorian Lynskey described her singing as "rich, mature and agile but not showy". Nick Duerden of Blender
Blender (magazine)
Blender was an American music magazine that billed itself as "the ultimate guide to music and more". It was also known for sometimes steamy pictorials of celebrities....
magazine commented that "Stone's voice is remarkably authentic, and the atmosphere she conjures is smoky and sleazy, pure mid-'60s Detroit." Jason MacNeil wrote for 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,...
that her voice is "more of a soulful voice than those so-called soul divas out there today" and that it "oozes sex appeal as Benny Latimore's piano weaves some magic." In his review for 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...
, Keith Phipps remarked that "Sessions establishes Stone as a formidable interpreter." Andrew McGregor of BBC Music
BBC Music
BBC Music is a team working in the department of Audio and Music Interactive at the BBC. Responsible for the BBC Music website - the portal site to music content across the BBC website....
felt that the album "seems a bit of an artistic compromise, music from the rule book rather than the heart." The Village Voice
The Village Voice
The Village Voice is a free weekly newspaper and news and features website in New York City that features investigative articles, analysis of current affairs and culture, arts and music coverage, and events listings for New York City...
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...
was not impressed either, and viewed Stone's covers as "the kind of soul marginalia Brits have been overrating since Doris Troy
Doris Troy
Doris Troy was an American R&B singer, known to her many fans as "Mama Soul".She was born as Doris Higginson in The Bronx, the daughter of a Barbadian Pentecostal minister. Her parents disapproved of "subversive" forms of music like rhythm & blues, so she cut her teeth singing in her father's choir...
was on Apple
Apple Records
Apple Records is a record label founded by The Beatles in 1968, as a division of Apple Corps Ltd. It was initially intended as a creative outlet for the Beatles, both as a group and individually, plus a selection of other artists including Mary Hopkin, James Taylor, Badfinger, and Billy Preston...
".
Commercial performance
The Soul Sessions entered 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 number forty-seven for the week of 17 January 2004 (the highest debut of that week), and reached its peak position of number four three weeks later. It spent twelve non-consecutive weeks in the top ten and seventy weeks altogether in the top seventy-five, including three re-entries in 2005. The British Phonographic Industry
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...
(BPI) certified the album triple platinum on 15 April 2005, denoting shipments of over 900,000 copies. Additionally, it became the UK's nineteenth best-selling album of 2004.
In the United States, The Soul Sessions was a sleeper hit
Sleeper hit
A sleeper hit, a.k.a. surprise hit , refers to a film, book, single, album, TV show, or video game that gains unexpected success or recognition...
. On the issue dated 4 October 2003, the album debuted at number 199 on the 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...
and at number seventy-six on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums
Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums
Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a chart published by Billboard magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The name of the chart was changed from Top R&B Albums in 1999...
, peaking at number thirty-nine on the former and at number thirty-eight on the latter in its twenty-fourth week on both charts, on the issue dated 8 May 2004. Prior to that, the album topped the Top Heatseekers
Top Heatseekers
Top Heatseekers refers to either of two separate "Breaking and Entering" music charts issued weekly by Billboard Magazine: the Heatseekers Albums chart or the Heatseekers Songs chart. They were introduced by Billboard in 1993 with the purpose of highlighting the sales by new and developing musical...
during the week of 21 February 2004. Sales were heavy on the East Coast
East Coast of the United States
The East Coast of the United States, also known as the Eastern Seaboard, refers to the easternmost coastal states in the United States, which touch the Atlantic Ocean and stretch up to Canada. The term includes the U.S...
, especially in cities such as New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, Philadelphia and Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
. Within six months of its release, The Soul Sessions was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States...
(RIAA) on 29 March 2004, having sold 914,000 units as of March 2007.
The album was also commercially successful in the rest of Europe, where it reached number four in Austria, Germany, the Netherlands and Norway, number five in Portugal, number seven in Belgium, number eight in Italy, number twelve in Sweden and number fourteen in Switzerland, as well as number four on the 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...
. In June 2004 The Soul Sessions was honoured with a Platinum Europe Award from the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) for sales in excess of one million copies across Europe. In Oceania the album peaked at number sixteen in Australia and number eight in New Zealand, earning platinum accreditations from the Australian Recording Industry Association
Australian Recording Industry Association
The Australian Recording Industry Association is a trade group representing the Australian recording industry which was established in 1983 by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing the Association of Australian Record Manufacturers which was formed in 1956...
(ARIA) and the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand
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...
(RIANZ) for sales of 70,000 and 15,000 copies, respectively.
Track listing
All songs produced by Betty WrightBetty Wright
Bessie Regina Norris, better known by her stage name, Betty Wright , is a Grammy winning Miami-based soul and R&B singer-songwriter, who won fame in the 1970s with hits such as "Clean Up Woman" and "Tonight Is the Night"...
, Steve Greenberg
Steve Greenberg (record producer)
Steve Greenberg is a record producer currently heading the S-Curve Records label. He is noted for "discovering" popular musical acts such as Hanson, Baha Men, Jonas Brothers and Joss Stone. He received a 2000 Grammy Award in the "Best Dance Recording" category as a producer of "Who Let the Dogs...
and Mike Mangini
Mike Mangini
Mike Mangini is an American drummer, and the current drummer for the progressive metal band Dream Theater. He has played for Annihilator, Extreme, James LaBrie, and Steve Vai, among others. He lectured at the Berklee College of Music in Boston and is also known for his work as a session musician...
, except track 3 produced by Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson, Wright, Greenberg and Mangini, and track 7 produced by Greenberg and Mangini.
Personnel
- Joss Stone – lead vocalsSingingSinging 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...
- John Angier – stringStrings (music)A string is the vibrating element that produces sound in string instruments, such as the guitar, harp, piano, and members of the violin family. Strings are lengths of a flexible material kept under tension so that they may vibrate freely, but controllably. Strings may be "plain"...
arrangements (track 7) - Cindy BlackmanCindy BlackmanCindy Blackman is an American jazz and rock drummer. Blackman is best-known for recording and touring with Lenny Kravitz...
– drumsDrum kitA 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 ....
(tracks 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 9) - Adam Blackstone – bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
(tracks 3, 11) - Deanna Carroll – backing vocalsBacking vocalistA backing vocalist or backing singer is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists...
(track 7) - Mark Ciprit – guitarGuitarThe 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...
(track 7) - Jack Daley – bass (tracks 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 9)
- Kirk DouglasCaptain Kirk Douglas"Captain" Kirk Douglas is an American guitarist who plays with the hip hop band The Roots. He has also performed with the Dave Matthews Band.-Guitars:...
– guitar (tracks 3, 11) - Karen DreyfusKaren DreyfusKaren Dreyfus is world-renowned violist who currently teaches at the Manhattan School of Music. Ms. Dreyfus has distinguished herself as a recipient of many prizes, including the Naumburg Viola Competition , the Lionel Tertis International Viola Competition , the Washington International...
– violaViolaThe viola is a bowed string instrument. It is the middle voice of the violin family, between the violin and the cello.- Form :The viola is similar in material and construction to the violin. A full-size viola's body is between and longer than the body of a full-size violin , with an average...
(track 7) - Taneka Duggan – backing vocals (track 7)
- Jimmy Farkus – acoustic guitarSteel-string acoustic guitarA steel-string acoustic guitar is a modern form of guitar descended from the classical guitar, but strung with steel strings for a brighter, louder sound...
(track 5) - Karen Fuchs – photographyPhotographyPhotography is the art, science and practice of creating durable images by recording light or other electromagnetic radiation, either electronically by means of an image sensor or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film...
- Sam Furnace – saxophoneSaxophoneThe saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
(track 7) - Chris Gehringer – masteringAudio masteringMastering, a form of audio post-production, is the process of preparing and transferring recorded audio from a source containing the final mix to a data storage device ; the source from which all copies will be produced...
- David Gorman – art directionArt directorThe art director is a person who supervise the creative process of a design.The term 'art director' is a blanket title for a variety of similar job functions in advertising, publishing, film and television, the Internet, and video games....
, designGraphic designGraphic design is a creative process – most often involving a client and a designer and usually completed in conjunction with producers of form – undertaken in order to convey a specific message to a targeted audience... - Steve GreenbergSteve Greenberg (record producer)Steve Greenberg is a record producer currently heading the S-Curve Records label. He is noted for "discovering" popular musical acts such as Hanson, Baha Men, Jonas Brothers and Joss Stone. He received a 2000 Grammy Award in the "Best Dance Recording" category as a producer of "Who Let the Dogs...
– producerRecord producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
, executive producerExecutive producerAn executive producer is a producer who is not involved in any technical aspects of the film making or music process, but who is still responsible for the overall production... - Steve Greenwell – engineerAudio engineeringAn audio engineer, also called audio technician, audio technologist or sound technician, is a specialist in a skilled trade that deals with the use of machinery and equipment for the recording, mixing and reproduction of sounds. The field draws on many artistic and vocational areas, including...
, mixingAudio mixing (recorded music)In audio recording, audio mixing is the process by which multiple recorded sounds are combined into one or more channels, most commonly two-channel stereo. In the process, the source signals' level, frequency content, dynamics, and panoramic position are manipulated and effects such as reverb may...
; bass (track 7) - Willlie "Little Beaver" HaleWillie HaleWillie Hale , often known by the name Little Beaver, is an American R&B guitarist, singer and songwriter featured on many hit records since the 1960s....
– guitar (tracks 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 9) - Dawn Hannay – viola (track 7)
- KamalKamal GrayJames "Kamal" Gray is the keyboardist with American hip hop group The Roots. He is from Philadelphia and has relatives in North Carolina. He joined the band as Scott Storch's replacement in 1995, while he was still in high school. He wrote the popular Roots' tracks "The Next Movement", "Sacrifice",...
– keyboardsKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
(track 3) - Lisa Kim – violinViolinThe violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
(track 7) - Myung Hi Kim – violin (track 7)
- Sarah Kim – violin (track 7)
- Soo Hyun Kwon – violin (track 7)
- Bryan Lasley – art direction, design
- Benny LatimoreLatimore (musician)Benjamin "Benny" Latimore , usually known professionally simply as Latimore, is an American R&B singer, songwriter and pianist....
– pianoPianoThe piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
(tracks 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 9) - Leanne LeBlanc – celloCelloThe cello is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is a member of the violin family of musical instruments, which also includes the violin, viola, and double bass. Old forms of the instrument in the Baroque era are baryton and viol .A person who plays a cello is...
(track 7) - Liz Lim – violin (track 7)
- Mike ManginiMike ManginiMike Mangini is an American drummer, and the current drummer for the progressive metal band Dream Theater. He has played for Annihilator, Extreme, James LaBrie, and Steve Vai, among others. He lectured at the Berklee College of Music in Boston and is also known for his work as a session musician...
– producer; tambourineTambourineThe tambourine or marine is a musical instrument of the percussion family consisting of a frame, often of wood or plastic, with pairs of small metal jingles, called "zils". Classically the term tambourine denotes an instrument with a drumhead, though some variants may not have a head at all....
(track 2) - Namphuyo Aisha McCray – backing vocals (tracks 1, 2, 4, 6, 9)
- Angelo Morris – acoustic guitar (track 1); guitar (tracks 2, 4, 5); organOrgan (music)The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...
(tracks 6, 9); keyboards (track 10) - Ignacio Nunez – percussionPercussion instrumentA percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration...
(track 2) - Sandra Park – violin (track 7)
- Danny Pierre – keyboards (track 7)
- James PoyserJames PoyserJames Poyser in Sheffield, England is a multi-Grammy winning songwriter, musician and multi-platinum producer.Poyser has written and produced songs for various legendary and award-winning artists including Erykah Badu, Mariah Carey, John Legend, Lauryn Hill, Common, Anthony Hamilton, D'Angelo,...
– keyboards (tracks 3, 11) - Robert Rinehart – viola (track 7)
- Tom Rosenfeld – viola (track 7)
- Laura Seaton – violin (track 7)
- Sarah Seiver – cello (track 7)
- Rob Shaw – violin (track 7)
- Fiona Simon – violin (track 7)
- Charles Allen Smith – photography
- Fatou Sow – A&R
- Alan Stepansky – cello (track 7)
- Angie StoneAngie StoneAngie Stone is an American R&B and soul singer-songwriter, record producer, and occasional actress. She has been nominated for three Grammy Award. She is more successful on the charts R&B charts, with four Top 10 albums, forms including a number one album and 10 singles on the R&B chart,...
– backing vocals (tracks 3, 11) - Jenny Strenger – violin (track 7)
- Timmy ThomasTimmy ThomasTimmy Thomas is an American R&B singer, keyboardist, songwriter and record producer, best known for the hit song, "Why Can't We Live Together".-Career:...
– organ (tracks 1, 2, 4, 8) - Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson – producer (tracks 3, 11); drums (tracks 3, 7, 11)
- Jeremy Turner – cello (track 7)
- Betty WrightBetty WrightBessie Regina Norris, better known by her stage name, Betty Wright , is a Grammy winning Miami-based soul and R&B singer-songwriter, who won fame in the 1970s with hits such as "Clean Up Woman" and "Tonight Is the Night"...
– producer (tracks 1–6, 8–11); backing vocals (tracks 1–3, 4, 6, 9, 11) - Jeanette Wright – backing vocals (tracks 1, 2, 4, 6, 9)
- Sharon Yamada – violin (track 7)
- Jung Sun Yoo – violin (track 7)
Weekly charts
| Chart (2004) | 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... |
16 |
| Austrian Albums Chart | 4 |
| Belgian Albums Chart Ultratop 50 Ultratop 50 singles, often just Ultratop 50, is the weekly chart of fifty best-selling singles in Flanders, Belgium, and is produced and published by the Ultratop organization. The chart has existed since March 31, 1995... (Flanders) |
7 |
| Belgian Albums Chart Ultratop 50 Ultratop 50 singles, often just Ultratop 50, is the weekly chart of fifty best-selling singles in Flanders, Belgium, and is produced and published by the Ultratop organization. The chart has existed since March 31, 1995... (Wallonia) |
23 |
| 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... |
19 |
| Danish Albums Chart IFPI Denmark IFPI Denmark is the Danish branch of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry and is the official charts provider and recording sales certification body for Denmark.-Gold and platinum awards:... |
15 |
| 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... |
4 |
| 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... |
4 |
| 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 |
| 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... |
4 |
| Greek Foreign 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... |
1 |
| 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... |
32 |
| Italian Albums Chart Federation of the Italian Music Industry The Federation of the Italian Music Industry is an umbrella organization that keeps track of virtually all aspects of the music recording industry in Italy.... |
8 |
| 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... |
91 |
| 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... |
8 |
| 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... |
4 |
| Polish Albums Chart Polish Music Charts The Polish Music Charts are two official album charts and seven singles charts in Poland, provided by ZPAV, the Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry . The first, the Top 100, is a monthly chart based on data received from the album companies... |
28 |
| Portuguese Albums Chart Associação Fonográfica Portuguesa The Associação Fonográfica Portuguesa is currently the only recording industry association in Portugal. Created in 1989, it succeeded GPPFV and UNEVA .... |
5 |
| 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 .... |
12 |
| 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... |
14 |
| 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... |
4 |
| 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... |
39 |
| US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a chart published by Billboard magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The name of the chart was changed from Top R&B Albums in 1999... |
38 |
| US Top Heatseekers Top Heatseekers Top Heatseekers refers to either of two separate "Breaking and Entering" music charts issued weekly by Billboard Magazine: the Heatseekers Albums chart or the Heatseekers Songs chart. They were introduced by Billboard in 1993 with the purpose of highlighting the sales by new and developing musical... |
1 |
Certifications
| Country | Certification |
|---|---|
| Argentina Argentine Chamber of Phonograms and Videograms Producers The Argentine Chamber of Phonograms and Videograms Producers is an Argentine organization member of the IFPI, which represents the music industry in the country. It is a nonprofit organization integrated by multinational and independent record labels.... |
Gold |
| Australia Australian Recording Industry Association The Australian Recording Industry Association is a trade group representing the Australian recording industry which was established in 1983 by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing the Association of Australian Record Manufacturers which was formed in 1956... |
Platinum |
| Austria | Platinum |
| Belgium Belgian Entertainment Association The Belgian Entertainment Association is the organization that represents the interests of the music, video and video game industries in Belgium... |
Platinum |
| Canada Music Canada Music Canada was a Canadian music television miniseries which aired approximately monthly on CBC Television from 1966 to 1967.-Premise:This series featured various special productions of music and dance, from classical to modern styles.-Scheduling:... |
Platinum |
| Europe | Platinum |
| France 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... |
Gold |
| Germany Bundesverband Musikindustrie The Bundesverband Musikindustrie or simply BVMI represents the music industry in Germany. The association represents the interests of nearly 350 labels and music industry related enterprises.... |
Gold |
| Greece 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... |
Gold |
| Ireland Irish Recorded Music Association Irish Recorded Music Association is the Irish record industry association. IRMA is a non-profit association set up to manage and control the music industry in the Republic of Ireland.-Goals and activities:... |
Platinum |
| Netherlands NVPI The NVPI is the Dutch tradeassociation of the entertainment industry... |
Gold |
| New Zealand 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... |
Platinum |
| Norway | Gold |
| Switzerland | Gold |
| 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 |
| United States Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States... |
Gold |
Year-end charts
| Chart (2004) | Position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums Chart | 48 |
| Austrian Albums Chart | 55 |
| Belgian Albums Chart (Flanders) | 32 |
| French Albums Chart | 106 |
| German Albums Chart | 46 |
| New Zealand Albums Chart New Zealand Top 50 Albums of 2004 -Chart:-External links:*... |
20 |
| Swiss Albums Chart | 62 |
| UK Albums Chart | 19 |
| US Billboard 200 | 156 |
| Worldwide | 39 |
Release history
| Country | Date | Label |
|---|---|---|
| United States | 16 September 2003 | S-Curve Records S-Curve Records S-Curve Records was founded in 2000 by former Mercury Records executive Steve Greenberg. It is based in New York City. In 2001 the label established a distribution and licensing agreement with EMI Records. In 2007 Greenberg relaunched the label after a two year hiatus, during which he served as... , Virgin Records Virgin Records Virgin Records is a British record label founded by English entrepreneur Richard Branson, Simon Draper, and Nik Powell in 1972. The company grew to be a worldwide music phenomenon, with platinum performers such as Roy Orbison, Devo, Genesis, Keith Richards, Janet Jackson, Culture Club, Lenny... |
| Canada | 28 October 2003 | EMI EMI The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major... |
| United Kingdom | 24 November 2003 | Relentless Records Relentless Records Relentless Records, founded by Shabs Jobanputra and Paul Franklyn in 1999 is now a part of Sony Music based in London, UK. Having achieved large scale successes with Joss Stone, KT Tunstall and several urban artists such as Artful Dodger and So Solid Crew, the label is now building a small focused... |
| Japan | 16 January 2004 | EMI |
| Netherlands | 23 January 2004 | |
| France | 6 February 2004 | |
| Australia | 13 February 2004 | |
| Spain | 16 February 2004 | |
| Austria | 20 February 2004 | |
| Germany | ||
| Switzerland | ||
| Brazil | 12 March 2004 | |
| France | 8 June 2004 (limited CD+DVD edition) |