Untitled

The Colour and the Shape is the second studio album by American alternative rock band Foo Fighters, released on May 20, 1997. The record marked the first time

Background

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After recording the band's self-titled debut album all by himself—except for a guitar part on one song—Grohl put together a touring band consisting of Pat Smear on guitar, Nate Mendel on bass and William Goldsmith on drums. Foo Fighters undertook a month-long American tour in April 1995, before the release of their first album, opening for Mike Watt, then embarked on their first headlining tour in the US with Shudder to Think and Wool in July. After the tour ended in September, the band continued touring until the end of the year, visiting England, Europe, Australia and Indonesia.

The band already debuted new songs at concerts

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=990CE7DE1338F93AA35750C0A963958260&scp=2&sq=Foo+Fighters&st=nyt

http://www.fooarchive.com/features/nmeaug95.htm

Recording and production

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http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headline/features/5470992.html

http://www.fooarchive.com/features/ap96.htm

http://www.fooarchive.com/features/metalhammer96.htm

http://www.fooarchive.com/features/torontostar.htm

http://www.fooarchive.com/features/bigo96.htm

http://www.fooarchive.com/features/mm96.htm

http://www.fooarchive.com/features/blahblahblah96.htm

http://www.fooarchive.com/features/inyoureye.htm

http://www.fooarchive.com/features/q96.htm

http://www.fooarchive.com/features/rage.htm

http://www.fooarchive.com/features/mmfeb97.htm

http://www.fooarchive.com/features/melodymaker0497.htm

http://www.fooarchive.com/features/interview97.htm

http://www.nme.com/news/foo-fighters/28716

Themes

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Release

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The Colour and the Shape was released on May 20, 1997, selling more than 71,000 copies in its first week.[1] It peaked at #10 on the Billboard 200, and spent 74 weeks on the chart. The album was certified gold in less than 3 months later on August 8, 1997;[2] since then it has gone double platinum in the United States.[3] All three singles released from the album entered the top ten of both Billboard rock charts. "Everlong" was the most successful out of the three, peaking at #3 on the Modern Rock Tracks, and #4 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart.[4] It was also certified gold on March 31, 2006.[5]

Critical reception

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The album gained generally positive reviews from critics, although it did not receive such high praise as the band's debut album. Blender gave it four stars out of five, praising the overall sound which "draws on arena rock as much as the apoplectic riff-thrash [Grohl] can conjure at will" http://www.blender.com/guide/reviews.aspx?id=4992 Stephen Thomas Erlewine from Allmusic also noted the album's "glossy, arena-ready sound" as a result of "Norton's big, shiny production". http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:gbfrxqthldae~T1 Jon Pareles of The New York Times felt the album "eradicates the tentativeness" of 1995's Foo Fighters, and "ring[s] with passion" as "Grohl balances power and tenderness, whipsaw riffing and wistful tunes" He also went on to praise Grohl's stronger vocals and drum work, as well as Norton's production. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9D02E4D91E39F93BA25756C0A961958260

The Colour and the Shape appeared on several end-of-year best album lists. Kerrang! magazine named it album of the year, while Metal Hammer and Eye Weekly placed the album 4th and 12th respectively. The record was placed in Guitar magazine's "Albums of the Year" list, and included in the year-end list of Melody Maker and NME at 21st and 46th place respectively.[6][7] The Colour and the Shape also ranked 42nd on Village Voice's annual Pazz & Jop Critics Poll.[8] The album was nominated for a Grammy Award in the Best Rock Album category in 1998.[9]

David Browne http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,288016,00.html Grohl's musical growth loose-knit collection of songs that trace, in more straightforward language than standard alt-rock ellipticism, the start and finish of a relationship brawny, metallic, able to shift gears and tempos on a dime Dinosaur Jr with a bigger brain

Keith Moerer http://www.houstonpress.com/1997-05-22/music/rotation/ the band uses Nirvana's sonic formula (soft verse, loud chorus) a little too often it's disarming how good he is at writing and singing ballads A good album, The Colour and the Shape won't stand the music industry on its head It's not even the equal of Foo Fighters

Cheryl Botchick http://prod1.cmj.com/articles/display_article.php?id=3550 His songs and their execution reveal a new breadth that's like an emergence from a cocoon, breaking free of the heavy burden his former band's legend and coming into its own, utterly delightful form Gil Norton, producer for such alternative classics as Pixies' Doolittle, is behind the board here, and you'll feel his keep-it-in-the-red style on every one of this record's delectable, plaster-cracking riffs packed with fantastic songs

Robert Christgau http://www.robertchristgau.com/get_artist.php?id=468&name=Foo+Fighters a solidly satisfying formal exercise follows a vaguely vacant one

Ryan Schreiber http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/record_review/17809-the-colour-the-shape overcommercialized imposter lacking all the melody and charisma This album is slicker than the debut, the emphasis on gloss rather than chords. It's also louder, which is either your thing or it's not most of these songs sound virtually identical The Colour & The Shape is like opening a time capsule from 1992 and realizing that the things you thought would transcend time had just become a bad joke

http://www.staticmultimedia.com/music/features/recycled_goods_~51~_january_2008~

http://www.saltshakermagazine.com/RED/jan29/cover.html

Legacy

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http://www.staythemuse.com/writing/ataris.html

http://www.indyweek.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A216828

( http://www.punknews.org/review/2716 )

http://hollywoodinsider.ew.com/2008/06/cook-and-grohl.html

http://www.troublebunchmusic.com/fromfirsttolastinterview.html

Accolades

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The information regarding accolades attributed to The Colour and the Shape is in part adapted from AcclaimedMusic.net.[10]

Publication Country Accolade Year Rank
Kerrang! United Kingdom "100 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die"[11] 1998 95
Visions Germany "The Most Important Albums of the 90s"[12] 1999 16
Platekompaniet Norway "Top 100 Albums of All Time"[13] 2001 58
Q United Kingdom "Q Magazine Readers' 100 Greatest Albums Ever"[14] 2003 86
Classic Rock & Metal Hammer United Kingdom "The 200 Greatest Albums of the 90s"[15] 2006 *

(*) designates unordered lists.

Track listing

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All songs were written by Dave Grohl and Foo Fighters, except where noted.

  1. "Doll" – 1:23
  2. "Monkey Wrench" – 3:51
  3. "Hey, Johnny Park!" – 4:08
  4. "My Poor Brain" – 3:33
  5. "Wind Up" – 2:32
  6. "Up in Arms" (Grohl) – 2:15
  7. "My Hero" – 4:20
  8. "See You" – 2:26
  9. "Enough Space" (Grohl) – 2:37
  10. "February Stars" – 4:49
  11. "Everlong" (Grohl) – 4:10
  12. "Walking After You" (Grohl) – 5:03
  13. "New Way Home" – 5:40
Japanese edition
  1. "Dear Lover" – 4:32
Australian Tour Pack bonus disc
  1. "Down in the Park" (Tubeway Army cover) – 4:07
  2. "Drive Me Wild" (Vanity 6 cover) – 3:14
  3. "Baker Street" (Gerry Rafferty cover) – 5:39
  4. "Requiem" (Killing Joke cover) – 3:33
10th Anniversary Edition bonus tracks
  1. "Requiem" (Killing Joke cover) – 3:33
  2. "Drive Me Wild" (Vanity 6 cover) – 3:14
  3. "Down in the Park" (Tubeway Army cover) – 4:07
  4. "Baker Street" (Gerry Rafferty cover) – 5:39
  5. "Dear Lover" – 4:32
  6. "The Colour and the Shape" – 3:22
  7. "See You" (acoustic, iTunes bonus track) - 2:27

Personnel

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Chart positions

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Album

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Chart Peak position
Billboard 200[16] 10
Austria[17] 19
Canada[18] 8
Belgium[19] 7
Finland[20] 12
France[21] 24
Germany[22] 41
Netherlands[23] 39
New Zealand[24] 10
Norway[25] 20
Sweden[26] 10
Switzerland[27] 50
UK[28] 3

Singles

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Year Single[4] Chart Peak position
1997 "Monkey Wrench" Modern Rock Tracks 9
1997 "Monkey Wrench" Mainstream Rock Tracks 9
1997 "Everlong" Modern Rock Tracks 3
1997 "Everlong" Mainstream Rock Tracks 4
1998 "My Hero" Modern Rock Tracks 6
1998 "My Hero" Mainstream Rock Tracks 8

Notes

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  1. ^ Harris, Chris (2005-06-22). "Coldplay Fight Off Foo Fighters And Backstreet Boys To Hold #1". MTV. Retrieved 2008-07-30.
  2. ^ "Gold & Platinum Searchable Database – Search Results – The Colour and the Shape". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 2008-07-30.
  3. ^ "New Foo Fighters CD On the Way". Guitar World. 2007-07-09. Retrieved 2008-07-30. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  4. ^ a b "Artist Chart History - Foo Fighters - Singles". Billboard. Retrieved 2008-07-30. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  5. ^ "Gold & Platinum Searchable Database – Search Results – Everlong". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 2008-07-30.
  6. ^ "Melody Maker Albums Of 1997". Melody Maker. Retrieved 2008-07-30. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  7. ^ "NME Albums Of The Year". NME. Retrieved 2008-07-30. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  8. ^ "Pazz & Jop 2004 - search - 1997 - albums - Foo Fighters". Village Voice. Retrieved 2008-07-30.
  9. ^ "List of Grammy award nominations". CNN. 1998-01-06. Retrieved 2008-07-30.
  10. ^ "The Colour and the Shape accolades". Acclaimed Music. Retrieved 2008-07-30.
  11. ^ "100 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die". Kerrang!. Retrieved 2008-07-30. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  12. ^ "The Most Important Albums of the 90s". Visions. Retrieved 2008-07-30. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  13. ^ "Top 100 Albums of All Time". Platekompaniet. Archived from the original on 2004-04-05. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  14. ^ "Q Magazine Readers' 100 Greatest Albums Ever". Q. Retrieved 2008-07-30. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  15. ^ "The 200 Greatest Albums of the 90s". Classic Rock & Metal Hammer. Retrieved 2008-07-30. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  16. ^ "The Colour and the Shape charting". Billboard. Retrieved 2008-07-30. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  17. ^ "Discographie Foo Fighters" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 2008-07-30.
  18. ^ "Foo Fighters > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums". Allmusic. Retrieved 2008-07-30.
  19. ^ "Discography Foo Fighters". Ultratop Belgian Charts. Retrieved 2008-07-30.
  20. ^ "Discography Foo Fighters". Finnish Charts. Retrieved 2008-07-30.
  21. ^ "Discography Foo Fighters". Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique. Retrieved 2008-07-30.
  22. ^ "Foo Fighters album chart history" (in German). Media Control Charts. Retrieved 2008-07-30.
  23. ^ "Discografie Foo Fighters" (in Dutch). MegaCharts. Retrieved 2008-07-30.
  24. ^ "Discography Foo Fighters". New Zealand charts online. Retrieved 2008-07-30.
  25. ^ "Discography Foo Fighters". VG-lista. Retrieved 2008-02-14.
  26. ^ "Discography Foo Fighters" (in Norwegian). Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 2008-02-14.
  27. ^ "Swiss charts" (in German). Swiss Singles Top 100. Retrieved 2008-02-14.
  28. ^ "UK Music charts". EveryHit.com. Retrieved 2008-07-30.
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