The Greatest (Cat Power album)
| The Greatest | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by Cat Power | ||||
| Released | January 20, 2006 | |||
| Recorded | May 2005, Ardent Studios, Memphis, Tennessee | |||
| Genre | Indie rock, R&B, soul | |||
| Length | 44:34 | |||
| Label | Matador | |||
| Producer | Stuart Sikes | |||
| Cat Power chronology | ||||
| ||||
The Greatest is the seventh studio album by indie rock artist Chan Marshall, a.k.a. Cat Power. It debuted at #34 on the Billboard 200, her highest charting album at the time. The Memphis Rhythm Band includes Roy Brewer, Teenie Hodges, Steve Potts, Dave Smith, Rick Steff, Doug Easley, Jim Spake, Scott Thompson and Susan Marshall. String arrangements were contributed by Harlan T. Bobo and Jonathan Kirkscey.
The Greatest won the 2006 Shortlist Music Prize, making Marshall the first woman to win the honor. It was also named the number 6 best album of 2006 by Rolling Stone Magazine.[1]
The title track was featured in the Bones episode The Titan on the Tracks.[2] It was also used in the UK for Garnier hair products advertisements. The song was featured in the film and in the trailers for Wong Kar-Wai's debut English production, My Blueberry Nights. In 2009 the song was featured in the movies Mammoth by Lukas Moodysson and Ricky by Francois Ozon.
In 2008, the song "Hate" was featured in the second episode of the second season of the teen UK drama Skins.
In 2013, the title track was featured in Season 4, Episode 13 of Covert Affairs.
All tracks on the album were written by Marshall, making it her first album not to include any cover songs.
Critical reception
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Aggregate scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 80/100[3] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [4] |
| The A.V. Club | A−[5] |
| Entertainment Weekly | B+[6] |
| The Guardian | [7] |
| Los Angeles Times |  [8] |
| NME | 8/10[9] |
| Pitchfork Media | 7.9/10[10] |
| Q | [11] |
| Rolling Stone | [12] |
| Spin | A[13] |
The Greatest has received a very positive response 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 80, based on 35 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews".[3]
Rhapsody ranked the album #6 on its "Alt/Indie’s Best Albums of the Decade" list.[14] "The mercurial Chan Marshall returned to her Southern roots and recorded this blissful album in Memphis. The Greatest glows with a new ease, and the music itself -- which features many of the greatest soul musicians in history -- is sunny and open. There's a sense of joy coming through here that you'll want to share with friends."
Track listing
All tracks written by Chan Marshall.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "The Greatest" | 3:22 |
| 2. | "Living Proof" | 3:11 |
| 3. | "Lived in Bars" | 3:44 |
| 4. | "Could We" | 2:21 |
| 5. | "Empty Shell" | 3:04 |
| 6. | "Willie" | 5:57 |
| 7. | "Where Is My Love" | 2:53 |
| 8. | "The Moon" | 3:45 |
| 9. | "Islands" | 1:44 |
| 10. | "After It All" | 3:31 |
| 11. | "Hate" | 3:38 |
| 12. | "Love & Communication" | 4:34 |
| Limited edition | ||
|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Length |
| 13. | "Up and Gone" | 2:15 |
| Japanese bonus track | ||
|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Length |
| 13. | "Dreams" (Felice & Boudleaux Bryant's "All I Have to Do Is Dream") | 2:46 |
Chart positions
Album
The album debuted at number 34 on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart, selling about 23,000 copies in its first week.[15]
| Chart | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia Album Chart | 25 |
| Belgium Album Chart | 25 |
| France Album Chart | 20 |
| Ireland Album Chart | 44 |
| Italy Album Chart | 37 |
| Norway Album Chart | 35 |
| Swiss Album Chart | 57 |
| Sweden Album Chart | 50 |
| UK Album Chart | 45 |
| U.S. Billboard 200 | 34 |
| U.S. Top Independent Albums | 1 |
Personnel
- Chan Marshall – vocals, piano, guitar
- Mabon "Teenie" Hodges – guitar on all songs except "Hate"
- Leroy Hodges – bass on #1, #3, #8, #12
- David Smith – bass on #2, #4, #5, #6, #9, #10
- Steve Potts – drums
- Doug Easley – guitar, pedal steel
- Rich Steff – keyboards, clavitone, piano, organ
- Jim Spake – saxophone
- Scott Thompson – trumpet
- Roy Brewer – violin
- Johnathan Kirkscey – cello
- Beth Luscone – viola
References
- ↑ The Top 50 Albums of 2006 : Rolling Stone
- ↑ Bones Season 2 Music
- 1 2 "Reviews for The Greatest by Cat Power". Metacritic. Retrieved May 13, 2015.
- ↑ Phares, Heather. "The Greatest – Cat Power". AllMusic. Retrieved June 4, 2016.
- ↑ Modell, Josh (January 25, 2006). "Cat Power: The Greatest". The A.V. Club. Retrieved June 4, 2016.
- ↑ Browne, David (January 23, 2006). "The Greatest". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved June 4, 2016.
- ↑ Clarke, Betty (January 20, 2006). "Cat Power, The Greatest". The Guardian. Retrieved June 4, 2016.
- ↑ Nichols, Natalie (January 22, 2006). "Stylish and soulful just the same". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 4, 2016.
- ↑ "Cat Power: The Greatest". NME: 33. January 21, 2006.
- ↑ Phillips, Amy (January 22, 2006). "Cat Power: The Greatest". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved June 4, 2016.
- ↑ "Cat Power: The Greatest". Q (235): 102. February 2006.
- ↑ Hoard, Christian (January 23, 2006). "The Greatest". Rolling Stone. Retrieved June 4, 2016.
- ↑ Hermes, Will (February 2006). "Memphis Belle". Spin. 22 (2): 84. Retrieved June 4, 2016.
- ↑ "Alt/Indie’s Best Albums of the Decade" Retrieved 12 January 2010.
- ↑ Katie Hasty, "'Juno' Unseats Keys From Atop Album Chart", Billboard.com, January 30, 2008.