I Speak Because I Can

I Speak Because I Can
Studio album by Laura Marling
Released 22 March 2010 (2010-03-22)
Recorded 2009
Genre Folk
Length 36:58
Label Virgin Records
Producer Ethan Johns
Laura Marling chronology
Alas, I Cannot Swim
(2008)		 I Speak Because I Can
(2010)		 A Creature I Don't Know
(2011)

I Speak Because I Can is the second album by British singer-songwriter Laura Marling, released on 22 March 2010.

Produced by Ethan Johns, the album deals with "responsibility, particularly the responsibility of womanhood."[1] The album was preceded by the singles "Goodbye England (Covered in Snow)", released on iTunes in December 2009[2] and "Devil's Spoke" on 15 March 2010. The next single released was "Rambling Man", on 10 May 2010. The track "What He Wrote" was inspired by letters from a wife to her husband in the Second World War.[3] On 28 March 2010, I Speak Because I Can entered the official UK Charts at #4.[4] and has been certified Silver for sales of 60,000 in the UK. Back-up vocals are provided throughout the album by Marcus Mumford, the lead singer and guitarist of London-based folk band Mumford & Sons. These are especially prevalent on the tracks "Hope in the Air" and "I Speak Because I Can".

Early radio promos of the album contained four tracks that did not make the final commercial release. Two of these tracks, "Mama, How Far I've Come" and "Nature of Dust" were made available as a b-side to the single "Rambling Man" and an iTunes bonus track, respectively; the other two tracks, "Rebecca" and "Is A Hope" have still not seen a commercial release to date.

Background and Themes

The themes are described by Marling as being centred on the roles of women and men in society. The album is written in the first person, but is rarely autobiographical. The song, Devil's Spoke is reported by Marling as being inspired by the Odyssey, while the final track, I Speak Because I Can, is informed by Margaret Atwood's novella, The Penelopiad, a counterpoint to Homer's epic. The song, Goodbye England (Covered In Snow), according to Marling, is about a walk she and her family took to a church during winter.

Critical Reception

I Speak Because I Can was received with critical acclaim by the vast majority of music critics, most noting the maturity and depth of the album, as well as Marling's rich vocals. The music aggregation site, Metacritic, reported an average of 81, signifying universal acclaim. The record was listed in many end of year lists by publications, including being placed at number 8 on The Guardian's Albums of 2010.[5] Marling won the best British solo artist at the Brit awards in 2011 for I Speak Because I Can. In 2013, NME listed the album at 263 in their list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.[6]

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic81/100
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[7]
Clash[8]
Drowned in Sound[9]
The Guardian[10]
The Independent[11]
Mojo[12]
NME[13]
Pitchfork Media(8.1/10)[14]
Spin[15]
The Times[16]
Uncut[17]

Track listing

All tracks by Laura Marling.

  1. "Devil's Spoke" – 3:40
  2. "Made by Maid" – 2:51
  3. "Rambling Man" – 3:16
  4. "Blackberry Stone" – 3:28
  5. "Alpha Shallows" – 3:42
  6. "Goodbye England (Covered in Snow)" – 3:45
  7. "Hope in the Air" – 4:32
  8. "What He Wrote" – 4:07
  9. "Darkness Descends" – 3:40
  10. "I Speak Because I Can" – 3:59
  11. "Nature of Dust" – 1:29 (iTunes bonus track)

Personnel

Charts and certifications

Charts

Chart (2010) Peak
position
Australian Albums Chart[18] 7
Belgium Albums Chart (Flanders)[19] 59
Dutch Albums Chart[20] 91
Greek Albums Chart[21] 23
Irish Albums Chart[22] 13
UK Albums Chart[23] 4
US Folk Albums[24] 7
US Top Heatseekers[25] 17

Year-end charts

Chart (2010) Position
UK Albums Chart[26] 114

Certifications

Country Certifier Certification Sales
United Kingdom BPI Gold 100,000+

References

  1. ↑ NME - I Speak Because I Can, First Listen
  2. ↑ "Laura Marling - News". Retrieved 2009-12-13.
  3. ↑ "What He Wrote". Songfacts.com. Retrieved 2010-04-01.
  4. ↑ Music Week - Boyzone's Brother holds off GaGa's Fame
  5. ↑ Barton, Laura (14 December 2010). "* Albums of 2010, No 8: Laura Marling – I Speak Because I Can". The Guardian. Retrieved 6 January 2011.
  6. ↑ http://www.nme.com/photos/the-500-greatest-albums-of-all-time-300-201/324403/1/1#38
  7. ↑ Monger, James Christopher. "Review: I Speak Because I Can". Allmusic. Retrieved 6 April 2010.
  8. ↑ "Clash review".
  9. ↑ "Drowned in Sound review".
  10. ↑ Simpson, Dave (18 March 2010). "The Guardian review". London.
  11. ↑ Gill, Andy (19 March 2010). "The Independent review". London.
  12. ↑ "Mojo review".
  13. ↑ "NME review".
  14. ↑ "Pitchfork Media review".
  15. ↑ "Spin review".
  16. ↑ Paphides, Pete (19 March 2010). "The Times review". London.
  17. ↑ "Uncut review".
  18. ↑ "Laura Marling - I Speak Because I Can". australian-charts.com/.
  19. ↑ "Laura Marling - I Speak Because I Can". ultratop.be/.
  20. ↑ "Laura Marling - I Speak Because I Can". dutchcharts.nl/.
  21. ↑ "Laura Marling - I Speak Because I Can". greekcharts.com/.
  22. ↑ "Laura Marling - I Speak Because I Can - Music Charts". acharts.us/.
  23. ↑ "Archive Chart". UK Albums Chart. The Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2011-08-10.
  24. ↑ "Folk Albums Archive". Billboard charts. Billboard magazine. Retrieved 2011-08-21.
  25. ↑ "Heatseekers Albums Archive". Billboard charts. Billboard magazine. Retrieved 2011-08-21.
  26. ↑ "End Of Year Charts: 2010" (PDF). UKChartsPlus. Retrieved 2011-08-10.
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