English Rain
| English Rain | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by Gabrielle Aplin | ||||
| Released | 13 May 2013 | |||
| Recorded | March 2012 - Early 2013 | |||
| Genre | Folk, pop | |||
| Length | 49:45 | |||
| Label | Parlophone | |||
| Producer | Mike Spencer | |||
| Gabrielle Aplin chronology | ||||
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| Singles from English Rain | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |    [1] |
| Digital Spy | [2] |
| The Guardian | [3] |
| Red Online | Very Positive[4] |
| Counter Act | [5] |
| FemaleFirst | [6] |
English Rain is the debut studio album by British singer-songwriter Gabrielle Aplin. It was released on 13 May 2013 and serves as the follow-up to her 2012 third extended play, Home.
It serves as her first release with a major record label, and was released with Parlophone.
English Rain debuted at number 2 in the UK Album Charts selling over 35,000 copies, it has since been certified gold in the UK, after selling 100,000.
Background
On 29 February 2012, Aplin announced that she had signed to Parlophone[7] and began recording her debut album in March 2012. Aplin was confirmed as the soundtrack to the John Lewis 2012 Christmas television advertisement, covering Frankie Goes To Hollywood's "The Power of Love".[8] In an interview, she said "I was worried people might hate me because they were so attached to the original single. But I've since been in touch with Holly Johnson, and he said some lovely things about my take on his song."[9]
On 12 December 2012, Aplin announced that the title of her debut album would be "English Rain". In addition, she also unveiled its artwork and release date of 29 April 2013, however, the release date was pushed back by two weeks to 13 May. On 12 March 2013 Aplin released previews of the songs that would appear on the standard edition of English Rain. Aplin is working with the record producer Mike Spencer.[10]
Reception
Critical
The album was generally well received by critics, praising her for her vocals but calling the album safe and not particularly adventurous. Critics praised tracks such as "Salvation" for taking Aplin out of her 'comfort-zone' and compared "Please Don't Say You Love Me", the album's second single, to Mumford and Sons.
Commercial
English Rain was well received commercially. English Rain debuted at number 2 in the United Kingdom selling over 35,000 copies,[11] the following week the album fell 7 places to number 9. Internationally, the album received moderate success charting at number 11 in Ireland on 19 May;[12][13] number 22 in Australia; number 55 in Belgium and number 39 in New Zealand, respectively.
On 23 July 2013, Aplin revealed on her Facebook page that English Rain had been certified Gold (for selling 100,000 copies).[14]
Promotion
Tours
To promote the album, Aplin went on two tours. The first was a smaller, mini-tour which took place in March 2013, two months before the album's release, to smaller venues; while the second is a larger tour, where Aplin will be going to larger venues such as the O2 Shepherd's Bush Empire in London. The second tour takes place in Autumn 2013.[15]
Singles
"The Power of Love" was released as the album's first and lead single on 9 November 2012 after being sampled in John Lewis' Christmas advert.[16] The song was well received critically and commercially and entered the UK Singles Chart at number 36, however later peaked at number 1 on 9 December 2012.[17] Aplin's version was certified gold in the United Kingdom on 11 January 2013.[14]
"Please Don't Say You Love Me" was released as the album's second single on 10 February and serves as the singer's first original single signed to Parlophone. On the week ending 16 February, the song debuted at number 6 on the UK Singles Chart, serving as her highest debut on the chart.
Aplin announced live on 17 February Radio 1 Chart Show that her third single would be "Panic Cord", a song taken from the singer's second EP, Never Fade. It was released on 5 May, a week prior to the album's release, and peaked at number 19 on the UK Singles Chart.[18]
"Home" serves as the fourth single from the album. Shooting for the music video began on 20 May 2013 and the video was unveiled on 9 June.[19][20] The single was released on 14 July and peaked at number 48 in the UK.[21] Home was also featured on the ninth episode of Wentworth.
"Salvation" serves as the fifth single from the album, released on 12 January 2014.[22] A music video for the song premiered on 3 December 2013[23]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Panic Cord" | Gabrielle Aplin, Nicholas Atkinson and Jez Ashurst | Mike Spencer | 3:25 | |
| 2. | "Keep on Walking" | Gabrielle Aplin and Nicholas Atkinson | Mike Spencer | 2:52 | |
| 3. | "Please Don't Say You Love Me" | Gabrielle Aplin and Nicholas Atkinson | Mike Spencer | 3:00 | |
| 4. | "How Do You Feel Today?" | Gabrielle Aplin, Nicholas Atkinson and Thomas Wilding | Mike Spencer, Tom Wilding | 3:46 | |
| 5. | "Home" | Gabrielle Aplin and Nicholas Atkinson | Mike Spencer | 4:07 | |
| 6. | "Salvation" | Gabrielle Aplin and Joel Pott | Mike Spencer | 4:10 | |
| 7. | "Ready to Question" | Gabrielle Aplin, Nicholas Atkinson and Thomas Wilding | Mike Spencer | 3:18 | |
| 8. | "The Power of Love" | Peter Gill, Holly Johnson, Mark O'Toole | Mike Spencer, David Kosten | 4:06 | |
| 9. | "Alive" | Gabrielle Aplin and Mike Spencer | Mike Spencer | 4:11 | |
| 10. | "Human" | Gabrielle Aplin, Nicholas Atkinson and Thomas Wilding | Mike Spencer | 3:36 | |
| 11. | "November" | Gabrielle Aplin and Nicholas Atkinson | Mike Spencer, Luke Potashnik | 4:06 | |
| 12. | "Start of Time[24]" | Gabrielle Aplin, Jim Irvin and Julian Emery | Mike Spencer, Julian Emery | 4:01 |
| iTunes bonus track | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length | ||||||
| 13. | "Take Me Away" | Gabrielle Aplin | Mike Spencer | 2:53 | ||||||
| Deluxe edition bonus tracks | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length | ||||||
| 13. | "Take Me Away" | Gabrielle Aplin | Mike Spencer | 2:53 | ||||||
| 14. | "Evaporate" | Gabrielle Aplin and Adam Argyle | 3:32 | |||||||
| 15. | "Wake Up With Me" | Gabrielle Aplin and Iain Archer | 3:26 | |||||||
| 16. | "Alive (RAK Session)" | Gabrielle Aplin and Mike Spencer | 4:08 | |||||||
| 17. | "Please Don't Say You Love Me (RAK Session)" | Gabrielle Aplin and Nicholas Atkinson | 3:00 | |||||||
| 18. | "Home (RAK Session)" | Gabrielle Aplin and Nicholas Atkinson | 4:09 | |||||||
| 19. | "How Do You Feel Today (RAK Session)" | Gabrielle Aplin, Nicholas Atkinson and Thomas Wilding | 3:57 | |||||||
Charts
Weekly Charts
| Chart (2013) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (ARIA)[ 1] | 22 |
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[ 1] | 55 |
| Irish Albums (IRMA)[ 1] | 11 |
| New Zealand Albums (Recorded Music NZ)[ 1] | 39 |
| Scottish Albums (OCC)[ 1] | 2 |
| Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[ 1] | 33 |
| UK Albums (OCC)[ 1] | 2 |
Release history
| Region | Date | Format | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | 17 May 2013 [25] | Digital download, CD, Vinyl | Parlophone |
| United Kingdom | 13 May 2013 | ||
References
- ↑ "Gabrielle Aplin - English Rain". Allmusic. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
- ↑ "English Rain - Review". Digitalspy.co.uk. Retrieved 2013-05-12.
- ↑ "Album Review". Guardian.co.uk. 2013-04-23. Retrieved 2013-04-26.
- ↑ "English Rain". Red Online. Retrieved 2013-05-10.
- ↑ "Gabrielle Aplin - English Rain - Review". CounterAct-magazine.com/. Retrieved 2013-05-13.
- ↑ "Gabrielle Aplin - English Rain Review". FemaleFirst.co.uk. Retrieved 2013-05-19.
- ↑ "Bath singer Gabrielle Aplin signs recording deal". Bath Chronicle. 6 March 2012. Retrieved 16 November 2012.
- ↑ "Gabrielle Aplin: The Power of a Christmas John Lewis advert?". The Independent. 8 November 2012. Retrieved 11 November 2012.
- ↑ Thrills, Adrian (16 November 2012). "Gabrielle Aplin, the folk singer behind the festive soundtrack for John Lewis, gets the thumbs-up from Frankie Goes To Hollywood". Mail Online. Retrieved 17 November 2012.
- ↑ Steve Holden (17 April 2012). "Introducing... Gabrielle Aplin". Newsbeat (BBC). Retrieved 19 November 2012.
- ↑ https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151508203926026&set=a.381605466025.164097.142481721025&type=1
- ↑ http://www.officialcharts.com/chart-news/rod-stewart-enjoys-first-number-1-album-in-nearly-40-years-2227/
- ↑ http://www.irma.ie/aucharts.asp#albums
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 http://www.bpi.co.uk/certified-awards.aspx
- ↑ https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151404768166026&set=a.10150654106881026.403526.142481721025&type=1&theater
- ↑ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0N8axp9nHNU
- ↑ "Power of Love cover claims number one spot". BBC. 9 December 2012. Retrieved 9 December 2012.
- ↑ http://www.officialcharts.com/artist/_/gabrielle%20aplin/
- ↑ https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151508369061026&set=a.381605466025.164097.142481721025&type=1
- ↑ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8mVbdjec0pA>
- ↑ ttps://store.digitalstores.co.uk/gabrielleaplin/*/*/Home-Signed-Green-Vinyl/2N5L0000000?back=gabrielleaplin%2F#.UcNL1jtC-n2
- ↑ http://www.josepvinaixa.com/blog/gabrielle-aplin-confirmed-next-single-salvation/
- ↑ http://www.youtube.com/watch?3IEMnWhT_7c
- ↑ http://www.gabrielleaplin.co.uk/english-rain-album/sampler/
- ↑ https://www.facebook.com/gabrielleaplin/posts/10151502074476026
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