Leisure (album)

Leisure
Studio album by Blur
Released	26 August 1991
Recorded	May 1990 – March 1991
Genre	Alternative rock shoegazing[1] baggy[1] neo-psychedelia[2]
Length	50:13
Label	Food
Producer	Steve Lovell, Steve Power, Stephen Street, Mike Thorne, Blur
Blur chronology
Leisure (1991) Modern Life Is Rubbish (1993)
Singles from Leisure
"She's So High" Released: 15 October 1990 "There's No Other Way" Released: 15 April 1991 "Bang" Released: 29 July 1991

Leisure is the debut studio album by the English rock band Blur. The album was released on 26 August 1991 in the United Kingdom via Food Records, and peaked at number 7 in the UK Albums Chart. It was released in the US a month later with a different track listing. The album was certified Gold in the UK. The US version of Leisure was frontloaded with Blur's three UK singles, and the song "Sing" was replaced by "I Know", previously an A-side with "She's So High" (see track listings for exact changes). The Canadian version has the same track listing as the UK version.

Overview

In 2007, lead singer Damon Albarn referred to Leisure as "awful" and one of two bad records he had made, along with Blur's The Great Escape (1995).^[3]

"Sing" was included on the Trainspotting soundtrack in 1996. The original version, "Sing (To Me)", was recorded as a demo in late 1989 under the band's former name, Seymour, and can be heard on the ultra-rare promo-only single which was released over a decade later in February 2000 and on the first of 4-disc set with rare stuff in Blur 21 box set.

In 2008, Coldplay announced upon the release of Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends that "Sing" from Leisure provided a starting point for "Lost!".^[4]

As part of the album's 21st anniversary, Leisure was remastered and reissued along with the band's other studio albums on 30 July 2012.^[5]

The artwork for the album originates from a 1930s photoshoot for a swimming cap ad campaign.

Reception

Leisure received mixed reviews from the British music press.^[6] A highly enthusiastic David Cavanagh wrote in Select magazine that "The four Blur boys have guaranteed themselves a hefty leg-up in the being-taken-seriously stakes with the thrills they've carved into the grooves of 'Leisure'." He concluded that "[Leisure], in short, is one of those happy occasions when the hype is dead right."^[7] Q magazine's Paul Davies rated the album four out of five stars, and felt it fulfilled the early promise Blur showcased. "This latest bunch of floppy-fringed pop cadets in baggy clothing should consummate their burgeoning pop romance in fine style," Davies elaborated, "for Leisure is a substantially stocked treasure-chest of hit singles just waiting to happen."^[8] Alexis Petridis however, writing in Lime Lizard, stated "on the evidence of this album, they don't appear to know what they're doing and as a result make appalling mistakes all over the place", also criticising the lyrics.^[9]

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[10]
Adrian Denning	[11]
BBC Music	(favourable)[12]
Brotherspork	(85%)[13]
Entertainment Weekly	A−[14]
Michigan Daily	(favourable)[15]
NME	(favourable)[16]
Pitchfork	(5.8/10)[17]
Q	[8]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide	[18]

Track listing

All tracks written and composed by Albarn/Blur.^[19]

• UK Release

1. "She's So High" – 4:45
2. "Bang" – 3:36
3. "Slow Down" – 3:11
4. "Repetition" – 5:25
5. "Bad Day" – 4:23
6. "Sing" – 6:00
7. "There's No Other Way" – 3:23
8. "Fool" – 3:15
9. "Come Together" – 3:51
10. "High Cool" – 3:37
11. "Birthday" – 3:50
12. "Wear Me Down" – 4:49

The US and Japan releases of the album had different track listings.

• US Release

1. "She's So High" – 4:45
2. "There's No Other Way" – 3:22
3. "Bang" – 3:36
4. "I Know" – 3:32
5. "Slow Down" – 3:11
6. "Repetition" – 5:25
7. "Bad Day" – 4:23
8. "High Cool" – 3:37
9. "Come Together" – 3:51
10. "Fool" – 3:15
11. "Birthday" – 3:50
12. "Wear Me Down" – 4:49

Personnel

• Damon Albarn – lead vocals, keyboards
• Graham Coxon – guitars, backing vocals
• Alex James – bass
• Dave Rowntree – drums, percussion

Charts and certifications

Production credits

• "She's So High" and "I Know", produced by Steve Lovell and Steve Power
• "Fool", "Birthday" and "Wear Me Down", produced by Mike Thorne
• "Sing", "Inertia" and "Mr. Briggs", produced by Blur
• "There's No Other Way", "Bang", "Slow Down", "Repetition", "Bad Day", "High Cool" and "Come Together", produced by Stephen Street

References

External links

• Leisure at YouTube (streamed copy where licensed)