These Foolish Things is the debut solo studio album by Bryan Ferry, who at the time was still Roxy Music's lead vocalist. The album was released in October 1973 on Island Records in the United Kingdom and Atlantic Records in the United States. It is considered to be a departure from Roxy Music's sound, because it consists entirely of cover versions, mainly of standard songs. These Foolish Things was a commercial and critical success, peaking at number five on the UK Albums Chart. It received a gold certification from the British Phonographic Industry in May 1974.[1]
| These Foolish Things | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 5 October 1973 | |||
| Recorded | June 1973 | |||
| Studio | AIR, London | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 43:46 | |||
| Label | Island | |||
| Producer |
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| Bryan Ferry chronology | ||||
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Most of the tracks on the album were personal favorites of Ferry's, and spanned several decades from 1930s standards such as the title track through 1950s Elvis Presley to Bob Dylan and the Rolling Stones.[2]
"A Hard Rain's a-Gonna Fall" was released as a single and reached number 10 in the UK Singles Chart in September 1973[3][4]
Composition edit
Speaking about the album in 1973, Ferry said: "It's a very catholic selection, I've given up trying to please all of the people all of the time. Some will like it for one reason, some for another. And some will presumably dislike it for the wrong reasons though I hope the general point of it will be understood. It's amusement value. I think."[5]
Critical reception edit
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [6] |
| Christgau's Record Guide | A−[7] |
| Overdose | A−[8] |
| Q | [9] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [10] |
Robert Christgau found that Ferry "both undercuts the inflated idealism of [Bob Dylan's 'A Hard Rain's a-Gonna Fall'] and reaffirms its essential power", establishes Lesley Gore's "It's My Party" as a protest song, and with his cover of "These Foolish Things", "reminds us that pop is only, well, foolish things, many of which predate not only Andy Warhol but rock and roll itself."[7] In 1983's The New Rolling Stone Record Guide, Dave Marsh wrote:
These Foolish Things pits Lesley Gore against Bob Dylan, and not just for effect. Ferry views pop as a kind of continuum, extending through all sorts of Tin Pan Alley and Brill Building craftsmanship and incorporating visions as radical as Dylan's and as banal as Gore's. Within such a sensibility discerning what deserves to be dismissed as "trash" and what deserves elevation as "art" is not a simple problem. And such designations are so often determined by context that their order can be reversed almost at will. By altering tempos and singing every song with the deadpan emotional blankness he largely avoids with Roxy, Ferry exposes these issues as effectively as any pop singer in history.[11]
In AllMusic, critic Ned Raggett said that throughout These Foolish Things, "Ferry's instantly recognizable croon carries everything to a tee, and the overall mood is playful and celebratory", calling the album "one of the best of its kind by any artist."[6] Rob Sheffield, in 2004's The New Rolling Stone Album Guide, praised it as a "conceptual and musical tour de force".[10] In 2010, Rhapsody listed These Foolish Things as one of the best covers albums.[12]
Track listing edit
Personnel edit
Musicians edit
- Bryan Ferry – lead vocals, acoustic piano
- Eddie Jobson[13] – keyboards, synthesizers, violin
- David Skinner – acoustic piano
- John Porter – guitars, bass
- Phil Manzanera – guitar solo (10)
- Paul Thompson – drums[14]
- John Punter – additional drums (7, 8)
- Roger Ball – alto saxophone, baritone saxophone, horn arrangements
- Ruan O'Lochlainn – alto saxophone solo (11)
- Malcolm Duncan – tenor saxophone
- Henry Lowther – trumpet
- Robbie Montgomery – backing vocals (1, 8)
- Jessie Davis – backing vocals (1, 8)
- The Angelettes – backing vocals (2–7, 9–13)
Production edit
- Bryan Ferry – producer
- John Porter – producer
- John Punter – producer, engineer
- Steve Nye – engineer
- Andy Arthurs – assistant engineer
- Nicholas De Ville – cover design
- Karl Stoecker – photography
Charts edit
Weekly charts edit
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Year-end charts edit
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Certifications edit
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom (BPI)[1] | Gold | 100,000^ |
|
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
References edit
- ^ a b "British album certifications – Bryan Ferry – These Foolish Things". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 6 October 2020. Select albums in the Format field. Select Gold in the Certification field. Type These Foolish Things in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
- ^ "Roxy Music - Albums - on VivaRoxyMusic.com".
- ^ "BRYAN FERRY | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". www.officialcharts.com.
- ^ Bryan Ferry - A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall [Official] on YouTube
- ^ MacDonald, Ian (8 September 1973). "Party Fun from an Old Poseur". NME.
- ^ a b Raggett, Ned. "These Foolish Things – Bryan Ferry". AllMusic. Retrieved 6 October 2020.
- ^ a b Christgau, Robert (1981). "F". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor and Fields. ISBN 0-89919-026-X. Retrieved 24 February 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
- ^ Hull, Tom (April 1975). "The Rekord Report: Second Card". Overdose. Retrieved 26 June 2020 – via tomhull.com.
- ^ "Bryan Ferry: These Foolish Things". Q. No. 159. December 1999. p. 158.
- ^ a b Sheffield, Rob (2004). "Bryan Ferry". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp. 296–97. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
- ^ Marsh, Dave (1983). "Bryan Ferry". In Marsh, Dave; Swenson, John (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Record Guide. Random House/Rolling Stone Press. pp. 173–74. ISBN 0-394-72107-1.
- ^ Farrar, Justin (23 February 2010). "Rhapsody's Favorite Covers Albums". Rhapsody. Archived from the original on 31 July 2010. Retrieved 1 August 2010.
- ^ "Roxy Music".
- ^ "Roxy Music".
- ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 111. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
- ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Bryan Ferry – These Foolish Things" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 6 October 2020.
- ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 6 October 2020.
- ^ "Jaaroverzichten – Album 1973". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 9 April 2021.