Utopia Parkway

Utopia Parkway
Studio album by Fountains of Wayne
Released April 6, 1999
Studio Stratosphere Sound, New York City
Genre
Length 45:35
Label Atlantic
Producer
Fountains of Wayne chronology
Fountains of Wayne
(1996)Fountains of Wayne1996		 Utopia Parkway
(1999)		 Welcome Interstate Managers
(2003)Welcome Interstate Managers2003
Singles from Utopia Parkway
  1. "Denise"
    Released: 1999
  2. "Red Dragon Tattoo"
    Released: 1999
  3. "Troubled Times"
    Released: 1999

Utopia Parkway is the second studio album by the American rock band Fountains of Wayne. It was released by Atlantic Records in April 1999.

Cover

The album is named after a major street that connects the neighborhoods of Utopia and Beechhurst in the Queens borough of New York City, and its street sign is featured on the album cover.

Details

Dropped by Atlantic after sales failed to meet expectations, the band had a growing dispute with the company after it put no effort into promoting the albums single "Troubled Times".[1]

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
Alternative Press4/5[3]
Entertainment WeeklyA[4]
Melody Maker[5]
MSN MusicA−[6]
NME5/10[7]
Pitchfork Media5.1/10[8]
Rolling Stone[9]
Spin8/10[10]
USA Today[11]

Utopia Parkway was named an "Album of the Week" by People Magazine in 1999 upon its release,[12] but received mixed reviews from music press with some claiming the album showed the band "lacked depth" [13] while others declared it a "masterpiece from the moment you first hear it".[14]

The album contains two fan favorite songs from the Fountains' live performances: "Red Dragon Tattoo," about a boy who gets a tattoo to impress a girl, and "Denise," a faux-grunge power-pop confection where the songwriters show their intentionally bad and comic writing with "She works at Liberty Travel/ She's got a heart made of gravel." "Troubled Times," originally written by Collingwood when he and Schlesinger were in a previous incarnation of Fountains of Wayne called Pinnwheel, is also a fan favorite.

"Red Dragon Tattoo" was featured prominently throughout the Stephen King mini-series Kingdom Hospital. The 2008 Dar Williams album Promised Land includes a cover of "Troubled Times".

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Chris Collingwood and Adam Schlesinger.

  1. "Utopia Parkway" – 3:09
  2. "Red Dragon Tattoo" – 3:32
  3. "Denise" – 2:32
  4. "Hat and Feet" – 3:03
  5. "The Valley of Malls" – 3:23
  6. "Troubled Times" – 3:39
  7. "Go, Hippie" – 3:58
  8. "A Fine Day For a Parade" – 4:13
  9. "Amity Gardens" – 3:11
  10. "Laser Show" – 2:24
  11. "Lost in Space" – 2:19
  12. "Prom Theme" – 3:09
  13. "It Must Be Summer" – 3:19
  14. "The Senator's Daughter" – 3:44
  15. "I Know You Well" – 3:26 (Japan bonus track)

Personnel

References

  1. ↑ "iTunes - Music - Fountains of Wayne". Itunes.apple.com. Retrieved 2012-03-13.
  2. ↑ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Utopia Parkway – Fountains of Wayne". AllMusic. Retrieved May 5, 2016.
  3. ↑ "Fountains of Wayne: Utopia Parkway". Alternative Press (131): 94. June 1999.
  4. ↑ Willman, Chris (April 23, 1999). "Utopia Parkway". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved May 5, 2016.
  5. ↑ "Fountains of Wayne: Utopia Parkway". Melody Maker: 38. May 22, 1999.
  6. ↑ Christgau, Robert (August 19, 2011). "Fountains of Wayne". MSN Music. Retrieved May 5, 2016.
  7. ↑ Stubbs, David (May 19, 1999). "Fountains Of Wayne – Utopia Parkway". NME. Archived from the original on August 17, 2000. Retrieved May 5, 2016.
  8. ↑ DiCrescenzo, Brent (April 6, 1999). "Fountains of Wayne: Utopia Parkway". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved May 5, 2016.
  9. ↑ Kot, Greg (April 15, 1999). "Fountains of Wayne: Utopia Parkway". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on May 12, 2003. Retrieved May 5, 2016.
  10. ↑ Weisbard, Eric (May 1999). "Fountains of Wayne: Utopia Parkway". Spin. 15 (5): 152–54. Retrieved May 5, 2016.
  11. ↑ Gundersen, Edna (April 27, 1999). "Taking a dreamy drive down 'Utopia Parkway'". USA Today. Retrieved May 5, 2016.
  12. ↑ http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20127957,00.html
  13. ↑ http://www.popmatters.com/review/fountainsofwayne-utopia/
  14. ↑ http://www.avclub.com/review/fountains-of-wayne-emutopia-parkwayem-20779
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