Our Endless Numbered Days
| Our Endless Numbered Days | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by Iron & Wine | ||||
| Released | March 23, 2004 | |||
| Recorded | Summer 2003, Engine Studios, Chicago, Illinois | |||
| Genre | Folk | |||
| Length | 44:47 | |||
| Label | Sub Pop | |||
| Producer | Brian Deck | |||
| Iron & Wine chronology | ||||
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Our Endless Numbered Days is the second full-length album from Iron & Wine. Released on March 23, 2004 on Sub Pop, it was the first non-solo effort by Sam Beam under his Iron & Wine moniker. Limited edition copies of the vinyl LP came with a bonus 7" vinyl single. Limited edition copies of the CD came with a bonus CD single.
The album's title comes from the lyrics of the song "Passing Afternoon": "There are things that drift away like our endless, numbered days."
Background
The album marked a change in Iron & Wine's sound, as it was his first produced in a professional studio. Beam's only previous album, The Creek Drank the Cradle, was recorded entirely on a four-track mixer at his home.[1]
Reception
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Aggregate scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 84/100[2] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [3] |
| Blender |  [4] |
| Pitchfork Media | (8.6/10)[5] |
| Robert Christgau |  [6] |
| Rolling Stone | (favorable)[7] |
| Stylus Magazine | (C)[8] |
Our Endless Numbered Days has received widespread critical acclaim since its release. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 84, based on 21 reviews, which indicates "universal acclaim".[9]
Track listing
All songs written and composed by Sam Beam.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "On Your Wings" | 3:53 |
| 2. | "Naked as We Came" | 2:33 |
| 3. | "Cinder and Smoke" | 5:44 |
| 4. | "Sunset Soon Forgotten" | 3:20 |
| 5. | "Teeth in the Grass" | 2:22 |
| 6. | "Love and Some Verses" | 3:40 |
| 7. | "Radio War" | 1:56 |
| 8. | "Each Coming Night" | 3:28 |
| 9. | "Free Until They Cut Me Down" | 4:35 |
| 10. | "Fever Dream" | 4:16 |
| 11. | "Sodom, South Georgia" | 4:59 |
| 12. | "Passing Afternoon" | 4:01 |
Total length: |
44:47 | |
| Japanese Version Bonus Tracks | ||
|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Length |
| 13. | "Belated Promise Ring" | 3:45 |
| 14. | "Homeward, These Shoes" | 1:34 |
Total length: |
50:06 | |
| 7" Vinyl Single | ||
|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Length |
| 1. | "No Moon" | 4:15 |
| 2. | "Sinning Hands" | 5:31 |
Total length: |
9:46 | |
| Bonus CD | ||
|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Length |
| 1. | "Cinder and Smoke" (demo) | 4:21 |
| 2. | "Swans and the Swimming" | 3:24 |
| 3. | "Free Until They Cut Me Down" (demo) | 3:25 |
| 4. | "Hickory" | 4:35 |
Total length: |
15:45 | |
Personnel
Musicians
- Sam Beam
- Brian Deck
- EJ Holowicki
- Patrick McKinney
- Jeff McGriff
- Jonathan Bradley
- Sarah Beam
Appearances in Popular Media
"Passing Afternoon" was played at the end of "Wilson's Heart," the finale of the fourth season of House. "Naked as We Came," "Trapeze Swinger" (a song not in this album) and "Sunset Soon Forgotten" were featured in the 2004 dramedy In Good Company. "Each Coming Night" is featured in Miley Cyrus's 2009 film The Last Song.[10] "Naked As We Came" is featured at the end of the 4th episode of the 2nd season of The L Word, when Jenny has her hair cut by Shane. "Naked As We Came" is also featured in the 9th episode of the first season of Grey's Anatomy, when Cristina and Izzie plan a secret autopsy of a patient's sudden death. Claire Fuller's 2015 debut novel, Our Endless Numbered Days, is named after the album.[11]
References
- ↑ Album review on Pitchfork
- ↑ "Critic Reviews for Our Endless Numbered Days by Iron & Wine". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 12 February 2015.
- ↑ Our Endless Numbered Days at AllMusic
- ↑ Blender review
- ↑ Pitchfork Media review
- ↑ Robert Christgau review
- ↑ Rolling Stone review
- ↑ Stylus Magazine review
- ↑ "Our Endless Numbered Days – Iron & Wine". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved May 12, 2015.
- ↑ http://www.amazon.com/dp/B003C2WQ46
- ↑ Fuller, Claire (19 May 2015). "Music And Writing". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 24 August 2015.
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