| Richard D. James Album | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Studio album by Aphex Twin | ||||
| Released | 4 November 1996 | |||
| Genre | Drill n Bass Acid Techno IDM |
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| Length | 32:03 41:49 (non-European version) |
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| Label | Warp Records WARP43 (UK) Sire/Elektra Records 62010 (rest of world) |
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| Producer | Richard D. James | |||
| Aphex Twin chronology | ||||
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Richard D. James Album is an electronic album by Aphex Twin, whose real name is Richard David James. It was released on Warp Records in 1996.[1] The work features use of software synthesizers and unusual beats. It is his fourth official full-length album. The album garnered high acclaim from music critics, and was named 40th in Pitchfork Media's "Top 100 Albums of the 1990s" list.[2] It was also placed #55 on NME's Top 100 Albums of All Time in 2003.
Contents |
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic | [3] |
| Entertainment Weekly | (A-) [4] |
| Robert Christgau | (B+) [5] |
| Rolling Stone | [6] |
| RS Album Guide | [7] |
Songs from the album were used on several different television ads. "To Cure a Weakling Child" was used in a high-profile UK TV advertising campaign for the mobile phone company, Orange. The song "4" was used in a US government anti-drug advertisement spot, as well as an advertisement in the United States for the Special Olympics. "Girl/Boy Song" was used in a Bank of America commercial,[8] and in 2010 an acoustic guitar version was used in a UK TV advert for SMA Gold System. In addition, a remix of Logan Rock Witch was among the many bootleg remixes of Aphex Twin that V/Vm did as part of his Helpaphextwin series. The song "Beetles" is used in the film Shot List.[9]
Many critics reviewed the album, Pitchfork Media quotes "The Richard D. James Album is 43.5 minutes of pure electronic genius"[10] A review by the Chicago Sun-Times' Jim DeRogatis said of the album: "James has turned inward for inspiration, painting aural pictures of real and imagined scenes from his West Country childhood." Jason Fine of Rolling Stone commented on the album as "combining jolting beats, pristine melodic fragments and random noises into elegant – if at times unnerving – futuristic pop". He also commented "Not all of Richard D. James goes down easy", explaining that there is "menace lurking beneath the jerking beat of "Peek 824542,01"."[11]
In 2009 covers of "Milkman" and "To Cure a Weakling Child" were performed by Born Ruffians for the Warp20 (Recreated) compilation.
Tracks from the original Warp Records release:
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "4" | 3:37 |
| 2. | "Cornish Acid" | 2:14 |
| 3. | "Peek 824545201" | 3:05 |
| 4. | "Fingerbib" | 3:48 |
| 5. | "Carn Marth" | 2:33 |
| 6. | "To Cure a Weakling Child" | 4:03 |
| 7. | "Goon Gumpas" | 2:02 |
| 8. | "Yellow Calx" | 3:04 |
| 9. | "Girl/Boy Song" | 4:52 |
| 10. | "Logan Rock Witch" | 3:33 |
The American, Canadian, and Australian versions of this album contain the following five extra tracks that had previously been released in the UK as the b-sides of the Girl/Boy EP.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 11. | "Milkman" | 4:09 |
| 12. | "INKEY$" | 1:24 |
| 13. | "Girl/Boy (£18 Snare Rush mix)" | 1:57 |
| 14. | "Beetles" | 1:31 |
| 15. | "Girl/Boy (Redruth mix)" | 1:37 |
"Carn Marth" is frequently, albeit incorrectly, referred to as "Corn Mouth", mainly due to James' poor handwriting. The track is named after a hill in Cornwall, in the United Kingdom. Logan Rock is also a famous rock located in Cornwall, and is sometimes misspelt (due to the writing on the back) as "Logl/Rock Witch" or "Logon Rock Witch". Goon Gumpas is a village located near Redruth. The tracks "INKEY$" and "Peek 824545201" are named after keywords in the Spectrum's Sinclair BASIC programming language.
| Year | Chart | Peak position |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | UK Albums Chart | 62[12] |
| 1997 | U.S. Heatseekers | 20 |
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