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Second Coming is an album released on December 5, 1994 in the UK and early 1995 in the US by The Stone Roses. The album was released on Geffen Records. It went platinum in the UK and sold 1 million copies worldwide. The album was dedicated to Philip Hall, the band's publicist, who died of cancer in 1994. It was recorded at Forge Studios in Oswestry, Shropshire and Rockfield Studios near Monmouth in Wales between 1992 and 1994.
[edit] Reception
The second album by the influential Manchester four-piece, it suffered greatly at the time from the sheer weight of expectation generated by both the 5½ year gap between it and the band's eponymous debut, and the band's withdrawal from the live arena for 4½ of those years. In addition, The Stone Roses made their return in a changed musical environment, with the UK newly-ensconced in Brit Pop with Blur and Oasis as the premier rock bands of the day.
Second Coming features tribal rhythms, 1970s-style extended guitar riffs, funky rock/blues numbers with jazz elements and campfire style songs such as "Your Star Will Shine" and "Tightrope" that hint at the bands rural surroundings at the time (the band moved to Wales to make the album). As the line-up began to crumble, three singles ("Love Spreads", "Ten Storey Love Song", and "Begging You") from the album were released in the UK.
[edit] Track listing
- 1. "Breaking Into Heaven" (Squire) 11:21
- 2. "Driving South" (Squire) 5:09
- 3. "Ten Storey Love Song" (Squire) 4:29
- 4. "Daybreak" (Brown/Mounfield/Squire/Wren) 6:33
- 5. "Your Star Will Shine" (Squire) 2:59
- 6. "Straight To the Man" (Brown) 3:15
- 7. "Begging You" (Squire/Brown) 4:56
- 8. "Tightrope" (Squire) 4:27
- 9. "Good Times" (Squire) 5:40
- 10. "Tears" (Squire) 6:50
- 11. "How Do You Sleep" (Squire) 4:59
- 12. "Love Spreads" (Squire) 5:46
- 13–89 Untitled silent tracks 0:04
- 90. Untitled track, generally referred to as "The Foz" (Brown/Mounfield/Squire/Wren) 6:26
- 91–99 Untitled silent tracks 0:04
[edit] Personnel
- Ian Brown - Vocals
- John Squire - Guitars (Backing vocals on Track 8)
- Mani - Bass guitar
- Reni - Drums, backing vocals
- Simon Dawson - Producer (all tracks), Engineer (Tracks 1, 2, 5, 6, 9, 12)
- Paul Schroeder - Producer (Tracks 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11), Engineer (Tracks 1, 2, 6, 9)
- John Leckie - Partly responsible for recording (Tracks 3, 7, 11)
- Mark Tolle - Initial recording (Tracks 4, 8, 10)
- Al "Boyerrfamngo" Shaw - Initial recording (Tracks 4, 8, 10)
[edit] Trivia
- In a scene in the 2004 film Shaun of the Dead, Shaun and his best friend Ed flip through a bunch of LPs deciding which ones are keepers and which ones are worthless enough to be used as weapons against a pair of advancing zombies. Shaun decides to spare Second Coming, although he is almost apologetic for liking it, displaying the divided opinion of Second Coming among fans. Simon Pegg says in the Commentary he likes the album.
