Eyes Open

Eyes Open
Studio album by Snow Patrol
Released	1 May 2006
Recorded	October–December 2005
Studio	Grouse Lodge Studios, Ireland, The Garage, Kent, The Garden, London, Angel Studios, London
Genre	Alternative rock, power pop
Length	45:05
Label	Fiction, Polydor, A&M
Snow Patrol chronology
Final Straw (2003) Eyes Open (2006) A Hundred Million Suns (2008)
Singles from Eyes Open
"You're All I Have" Released: 24 April 2006 "Chasing Cars" Released: 6 June 2006 "Hands Open" Released: 16 October 2006 "Set the Fire to the Third Bar" Released: 13 November 2006 "Open Your Eyes" Released: 12 February 2007 "Shut Your Eyes" Released: 22 May 2007

Eyes Open is the fourth studio album by Northern Irish/Scottish alternative rock band Snow Patrol. It was released in the UK on 1 May 2006, and 9 May 2006 in the US. The first European single, "You're All I Have", was released on 24 April 2006; the first U.S. single was "Hands Open" and the first Australian single was "Chasing Cars". Eyes Open is the 15th best-selling album of the 2000s in the UK.^[1] It's the first album without bassist Mark McClelland and the first to feature bassist Paul Wilson and keyboardist Tom Simpson.

Recording and composition

The band's primary aim for a fourth album was to create a better one than the previous, Final Straw.^[2] They felt the need to become better players of their respective instruments as they thought they had "barely [gotten] away" with the success of the last album. Subsequently, keyboardist Tom Simpson and drummer Jonny Quinn took classical piano and drum lessons respectively, during the recording of the album.^[3]

The band visited Dingle, on Ireland's west coast and started writing new material. They stayed in a small house, described by Simpson as a "little round house overlooking the sea". They then did some recording in a studio. The main recording sessions, though, happened in an old "condemned" studio in Westmeath, located in the central part of the country. Simpson found the place to be "laid-back" and "almost like a holiday home". The location was in a secluded area, quite distant from any civilization, with animals running around. This helped the band concentrate well without much distraction. The band stayed there for six weeks. Simpson felt the reason why producer Jacknife Lee was taking the band to different places was because he did not want them to get too comfortable with the surroundings. The songs were generally not written as a whole, but the band wrote them as they "came". The writing process thus varied for each song; instead of spending excess time on one and overworking themselves, the band chose to work on another, often revisiting the song later.^[2][3] The band was also constantly changing song arrangements. Due to this, they found they had gotten a much clearer idea of which songs they would ultimately polish to possibly make the album. Simpson noted that the band had much more time to write and record this time, a luxury they had not enjoyed previously.^[2]

Inspiration for writing came from the band's record collections, musical tastes and influences.^[2] The band, fans of The Posies, met Ken Stringfellow at a couple of festivals they attended, and asked him if he wanted to get involved. He accepted, and visited the studio for a day, contributing piano.^[4][5] The band had been listening to Martha Wainwright's Bloody Mother Fucking Asshole during the sessions and were fans of it. Towards the end of the recording sessions, Lightbody wrote a duet with her in mind, hoping to get her to sing it. She liked the song and agreed to record it. Eugene Kelly and a few members from The Reindeer Section also appear as choir in various songs throughout the album.^[4] Simpson credited Lee for being supportive of the band, and at the same time critical, when necessary. Each band member used to come to him for opinion on work they were doing. Morale during the sessions was high, with the band feeling a sense of togetherness seeing the hard work everyone was doing.^[2]

The album is the first without founding bassist Mark McClelland and represents a step forward for the band. Simpson feels that the album is more confident that its predecessor, as the band pushed themselves more than ever before during its sessions, and had a better understanding of music. According to him, the album title does not mean anything specific and that it can have its own meaning to different people.^[4] Bassist Paul Wilson says that it came from the titles of songs they had written, citing "Open Your Eyes" as an example.^[6]

Appearances in other media

The album's third track, "Chasing Cars", was featured on the second season finale of the ABC prime time hit drama Grey's Anatomy on 15 May 2006. A Grey's Anatomy-themed video of the song can be seen at the ABC website. The seventh track, "Make This Go On Forever", was later used in the third season of Grey's Anatomy, at the end of the episode entitled "Walk on Water".

The album's tenth track, entitled "Open Your Eyes," was used in the season 4 finale of CBS's Cold Case and in the season 12 finale of ER, also appeared in an episode of The Black Donnellys and also in the second episode of the third season of Grey's Anatomy.

The sixth track, "You Could Be Happy", was used at the beginning the episode "Promise" of Smallville's sixth season, as well as in advertisements for Australian soap Neighbours. The single was also used in Doctor Who: Top 5 Christmas Moments and the Season 2 finale of BBC sitcom Gavin & Stacey.

The first track, "You're All I Have", appears on the soundtrack of the teen film The Invisible.

In 2007, "Open Your Eyes" was used as the "Best Bits" song for Celebrity Big Brother 5 during the final watched by over 7 million viewers, the year of the race row.

In 2013, "Open Your Eyes" was heard in the penultimate episode of the hit NBC comedy The Office 9th season and the series. In it, Jim Halpert asks the documentary crew to make a video to prove his love for his wife, Pam Halpert, consisting of footage of their relationship throughout the entire series, during which the song plays,

Release

Eyes Open was made available in two formats:

• Standard CD – with two UK bonus tracks
• Special edition – in a deluxe box, with the full album plus a DVD featuring footage shot over the past months, including the band's tour with U2, special gigs and the making of the new record. Additionally contained exclusive photos and other content.^[7]

The artwork for the album and the first single "You're All I Have" was designed by Mat Maitland of Big Active.^[8] It was revealed by Hot Press magazine on 16 March 2006, which called it "arty".^[9]

Track listing

All lyrics written by Gary Lightbody, all music composed by Gary Lightbody, Nathan Connolly, Tom Simpson, Paul Wilson and Jonny Quinn.

No.	Title	Length
1.	"You're All I Have"	4:33
2.	"Hands Open"	3:17
3.	"Chasing Cars"	4:28
4.	"Shut Your Eyes"	3:17
5.	"It's Beginning to Get to Me"	4:35
6.	"You Could Be Happy"	3:04
7.	"Make This Go On Forever"	5:47
8.	"Set the Fire to the Third Bar" (featuring Martha Wainwright)	3:23
9.	"Headlights on Dark Roads"	3:30
10.	"Open Your Eyes"	5:41
11.	"The Finish Line"	3:28

Bonus tracks

No.	Title	Length
12.	"-"	3:55
13.	"In My Arms"	4:36
14.	"Warmer Climate"	4:08
15.	"The Only Noise"	2:53
16.	"Perfect Little Secret"	4:40

• The untitled twelfth track is a recording of background noise and one of Jacknife Lee's young children talking.
• "Perfect Little Secret" is a solo recording from Gary Lightbody.

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[10]
Blender	[11]
Entertainment.ie	[12]
PopMatters	[13]
Pitchfork Media	(6.6/10)[14]
Rolling Stone	[15]
USA Today	[16]

The album sold 36,191 units in its debut week throughout the U.S., substantially improving from their first week sales of Final Straw. U.S. sales have totaled over 700,000 as of February 2007.

The album hit #1 in its 11th week on the New Zealand chart and reached 2× Platinum therefore shipping over 30,000 units. In the UK the album sold over 2,000,000 copies being certified 6× Platinum by the BPI. It also reached #1 in the ARIA Albums Chart, and was certified 3× Platinum on 8 January 2007 (for 210,000+ units shipped). On 26 November 2006, it became the UK's best-selling album of 2006,^[17] selling over 1.5 million copies at the end of the year, with a cumulative total of 1.8 million. Furthermore, it peaked at #1 in the Irish Albums Chart, where it went 7× platinum.^[18] In total, the album has sold over 5 million copies worldwide.

Personnel

• Gary Lightbody – vocals, guitar, backing vocals
• Nathan Connolly – guitar, backing vocals
• Paul Wilson – bass guitar, backing vocals
• Jonny Quinn – drums, percussion
• Tom Simpson – keyboards, samples

Other personnel

Richard Andrews – art direction Iain Archer – background vocals, choir, chorus Paul Archer – background vocals, choir, chorus James Banbury – arranger, cello Sam Bell – engineer Leon Bosch – double bass Adrian Bradbury – cello Charlie Clark – choir, chorus Caroline Dale – cello John Davies – mastering Caroline Dearney – cello Richard George – violin Ursula Gough – violin Janice Graham – violin, leader Timothy Grant – viola Ciaran Gribbin – choir, chorus Hrafnhildur Halldorsdottir – choir, chorus William Hawkes – viola Rebecca Hirsch – violin

Peter Hoffman – engineer Eugene Kelly – choir, chorus Alastair King - choir, arranger, background vocals Jacknife Lee – keyboards, programming, background vocals, producer, engineer, mixing, audio production Karin Leishman – violin Beatrix Lovejoy – violin Pauline Lowbury – violin Maya Magub – violin Mat Maitland – art Direction, images Zoe Martlew – cello Tom McFall – engineer David McGinty – choir, chorus Richard Milone – violin Maxine Moore – viola Steve Morris – violin Everton Nelson – violin Fergus Peterkin – assistant engineer Steve Pryce – engineer Richael Reader – choir, chorus

Jenny Reeve – choir, chorus Ben Russell – double bass Claire Scott – choir, chorus Stacey Seivewright – choir, chorus Charles Sewart – violin Hilary Skewes – string contractor Owen Skinner – mixing assistant Dan Tobin Smith – photography Stefano Soffia – assistant Engineer Matthew Souter – viola Cenzo Townshend – mixing Martha Wainwright – vocals Simon Wakeling – assistant engineer Nigel Walton – compilation Paul Willey – violin Lucy Williams – violin Sara Wilson – choir, chorus Warren Zielinski – violin

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts

Chart	Providers	Peak position	Sales	Certification
Argentina Albums Chart	CAPIF	—	50,000	Platinum[19]
Australian Albums Chart[20]	ARIA	1	280,000	4× Platinum[21]
Austrian Albums Chart[20]	IFPI	3	15,000	Gold[22]
Belgian (Flanders) Albums Chart[23]	IFPI	9	20,000	Platinum[24]
Belgian (Wallonia) Albums Chart	IFPI	64
Canada Albums Chart[20]	CRIA	22	100,000	Platinum[25]
Dutch Albums Chart[20]	NVPI	6		Platinum[26]
Dutch Backcatalogue Top 50[27]	NVPI	1		—
European Top 100 Albums[28]	IFPI	4	3,000,000	3× Platinum[29]
French Albums Chart[20]	SNEP	67		—
German Albums Chart[20]	Media Control	17	200,000	Platinum[30]
Irish Albums Chart[20]	IRMA	1	105,000	7× Platinum[18]
New Zealand Albums Chart[20]	RIANZ	1	45,000	3× Platinum[31]
Norway Albums Chart[20]	IFPI	39		—
Spanish Albums Chart[20]	PROMUSICAE	47		—
Swedish Albums Chart[20]	GLF	16		—
Swiss Albums Chart[20]	IFPI	15	15,000	Gold[32]
UK Albums Chart[20]	BPI	1	2,100,000	7× Platinum[33]
US Billboard 200[20]	RIAA	27	1,200,000[34]	Platinum[35]

Organisation	Level	Date[35]
RIAA - USA	Gold	29 June 2007
RIAA - USA	Platinum	17 October 2008

Year-end

End of year chart (2007)	Position
German Albums Chart[36]	29

Non-singles

Song	Chart	Peak position
"Make This Go on Forever"	US Billboard Hot Videoclip Tracks[37]	15
"You Could Be Happy"	UK Singles Chart[38]	184

References

Preceded by St. Elsewhere by Gnarls Barkley Back to Basics by Christina Aguilera Empire by Kasabian	UK number one album 7 May 2006 – 13 May 2006 27 August 2006 – 2 September 2006 10 September 2006 – 16 September 2006	Succeeded by Stadium Arcadium by Red Hot Chili Peppers Empire by Kasabian FutureSex/LoveSounds by Justin Timberlake
Preceded by The Winner's Journey by Damien Leith	Australian ARIA Albums Chart number-one album 22 January 2007 – 25 February 2007	Succeeded by Extreme Behavior by Hinder

Snow Patrol Nathan Connolly Gary Lightbody Johnny McDaid Jonny Quinn Paul Wilson Tom Simpson Mark McClelland Michael Morrison Studio albums Songs for Polarbears When It's All Over We Still Have to Clear Up Final Straw Eyes Open A Hundred Million Suns Fallen Empires Compilation albums The Trip: Created by Snow Patrol Late Night Tales: Snow Patrol Up to Now Greatest Hits Extended plays Physical Starfighter Pilot Live and Acoustic at Park Ave. Digital Sessions@AOL (2004) Sessions@AOL (2006) iTunes Live from London iTunes Live: London Festival '09 Singles "Little Hide" "One Hundred Things You Should Have Done in Bed" "Velocity Girl / Absolute Gravity" "Starfighter Pilot" "Ask Me How I Am" "One Night Is Not Enough" "Spitting Games" "Run" "Chocolate" "Spitting Games" (re-release) "How to Be Dead" "You're All I Have" "Chasing Cars" "Hands Open" "Set the Fire to the Third Bar" "Open Your Eyes" "Shut Your Eyes" "Signal Fire" "Take Back the City" "Crack the Shutters" "If There's a Rocket Tie Me to It" "The Planets Bend Between Us" "Just Say Yes" "An Olive Grove Facing the Sea" (2009 Version) "Run" (2010 Version) "Called Out in the Dark" "This Isn't Everything You Are" "New York" "In the End" "Lifening" "The Lightning Strike (What If This Storm Ends?)" Video albums Live at Somerset House Tours Final Straw Tour Eyes Open Tour Taking Back the Cities Tour Fallen Empires Tour Side projects The Reindeer Section Listen... Tanks! Tired Pony Related People Iain Archer Bradley Quinn Richard Colburn Jacknife Lee Labels Electric Honey Jeepster Fiction Interscope Articles Discography Awards Shrug Terra Diablo Oh Yeah Categories Members Albums Videos Songs Tours Images Audio samples Category Book

UK best-selling albums (by year) (1990–2009) 1990: ...But Seriously (Phil Collins) 1991: Stars (Simply Red) 1992: Stars (Simply Red) 1993: Bat Out of Hell II: Back into Hell (Meat Loaf) 1994: Cross Road (Bon Jovi) 1995: Robson & Jerome (Robson & Jerome) 1996: Jagged Little Pill (Alanis Morissette) 1997: Be Here Now (Oasis) 1998: Talk on Corners (The Corrs) 1999: Come on Over (Shania Twain) 2000: 1 (The Beatles) 2001: No Angel (Dido) 2002: Escapology (Robbie Williams) 2003: Life for Rent (Dido) 2004: Scissor Sisters (Scissor Sisters) 2005: Back to Bedlam (James Blunt) 2006: Eyes Open (Snow Patrol) 2007: Back to Black (Amy Winehouse) 2008: Rockferry (Duffy) 2009 : I Dreamed a Dream (Susan Boyle) Complete list (1956–1969) (1970–1989) (1990–2009) (2010–2029)