Nothing New is a posthumous album of vocal & piano recordings by Gil Scott-Heron released by XL Recordings on April 19, 2014 in conjunction with Record Store Day. The album consists of new, stripped-down versions of a selection of older Scott-Heron songs stretching from 1971's "Pieces of a Man" to 1994's "The Other Side". It was recorded with producer Richard Russell between 2005 and 2009, in the same sessions that led to 2010's I'm New Here.[2]
| Nothing New | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | April 19, 2014 | |||
| Recorded | 2005–2009 | |||
| Genre | Acoustic | |||
| Length | 32:14 | |||
| Label | XL Recordings | |||
| Producer | ||||
| Gil Scott-Heron chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| The Irish Times |   [1] |
In the liner notes published on the official website, Russell describes the album as, "carefully curated (and) an excellent introduction to his previous output," adding that, "the album is utterly sparse and devoid of anything that is not completely necessary. All it contains is Gil's singing and piano playing."[3]
On April 1, 2015, the album was released digitally alongside a documentary named Who Is Gil Scott-Heron?.[4]
Track listing
editAll lyrics are written by Gil Scott-Heron; all music is composed by Gil Scott-Heron, except for "Pieces of a Man"; co-composed by Brian Jackson.[5]
| No. | Title | Original album | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Did You Hear What They Said?" | Free Will | 4:02 |
| 2. | "Better Days Ahead" | Secrets | 4:40 |
| 3. | "Household Name" (Interlude) | 0:12 | |
| 4. | "Your Daddy Loves You" | Winter in America | 4:06 |
| 5. | "Changing Yourself" (Interlude) | 0:10 | |
| 6. | "Pieces of a Man" | Pieces of a Man | 4:36 |
| 7. | "Enjoying Yourself" (Interlude) | 0:13 | |
| 8. | "Alien (Hold On To Your Dreams)" | 1980 | 3:01 |
| 9. | "Before I Hit the Bottom" (Interlude) | 0:20 | |
| 10. | "95 South (All of the Places We've Been)" | Bridges | 3:12 |
| 11. | "The Other Side" | Spirits | 3:04 |
| 12. | "The On/Off Switch" (Interlude) | 0:26 | |
| 13. | "Blue Collar" | Moving Target | 3:54 |
| 14. | "On Bobby Blue Bland" (Outro) | 0:17 | |
| Total length: | 32:14 | ||
Charts
edit| Chart | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Top Jazz Albums (Billboard)[6] | 3 |
| US Top Contemporary Jazz Albums (Billboard)[7] | 1 |
References
edit- ^ Carroll, Jim (April 17, 2015). "Gil Scott-Heron: Nothing New". The Irish Times. Retrieved October 11, 2021.
- ^ Pitchfork Media (1 April 2014). "Gil Scott-Heron Album Nothing New Collects Stripped-Down 2008 Takes on Old Songs". Music Blog. Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 6 April 2014.
- ^ Gil Scott-Heron official website (1 April 2014). "Nothing New". Official Site. Gil Scott-Heron.net. Retrieved 6 April 2014.
- ^ Pitchfork Media (1 April 2015). "Gil Scott-Heron Documentary Who Is Gil Scott-Heron?, Album Nothing New Out Digitally". Music Blog. Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 11 September 2015.
- ^ "Nothing New". Tidal. April 19, 2014. Retrieved October 10, 2021.
- ^ "Gil Scott-Heron Chart History (Top Jazz Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved October 11, 2021.
- ^ "Gil Scott-Heron Chart History (Top Contemporary Jazz Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved October 11, 2021.