Nostalgia (Annie Lennox album) explained

Nostalgia
Type:studio
Artist:Annie Lennox
Cover:Annie Lennox - Nostalgia.jpg
Recorded:October 2013 – mid-2014
Label:Island
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Nostalgia is the sixth solo studio album by Scottish singer-songwriter Annie Lennox. It was released on 30 September 2014 by Island Records.[1] It was Lennox's first album in four years, and her third album of covers. The album consists entirely of cover versions, mainly of compositions from the Great American Songbook originally written in the 1930s; two compositions initially date from the 1950s. The material was researched and learned by Lennox as she studied archival footage uploaded to YouTube.[2]

Nostalgia debuted at number nine on the UK Albums Chart, becoming Lennox's sixth UK top-10 solo album. It has since been certified Gold by the BPI for sales in excess of 100,000 copies in the UK. It debuted at number 10 on the US Billboard 200 with first-week sales of 32,000 copies, earning Lennox her third top-10 solo album on the chart, as well as her first-ever number-one album on both Billboards Jazz Albums and Traditional Jazz Albums charts.[3] It had sold 139,000 copies in the United States as of April 2015.[4] Nostalgia peaked inside the top ten in Austria, Canada, Italy and Switzerland. The album was nominated for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album at the 57th Grammy Awards.[5]

Background and release

On 15 August 2014, Lennox published a blog post on her official website announcing the upcoming release of Nostalgia. She stated that the album would initially be released on vinyl LP format[1] on 30 September 2014 as a three-week vinyl exclusive.[2] Nostalgia was previewed to a small audience at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Los Angeles on 12 August 2014.[2]

Promotion

Lennox explained that she did not plan to tour as extensively as she did in support of her album Songs of Mass Destruction (2007). She told Billboard that "at this point in time, less is more for me. I'm more about quality than quantity, and I think this is quite a niche place to be."[2]

The single "I Put a Spell on You" received its first radio play on 15 September 2014 by Ken Bruce on BBC Radio 2.[6] Lennox performed the song at the 57th Annual Grammy Awards in 2015, and coupled with the inclusion of the track as the opening song of the film Fifty Shades of Grey, pushed it into the Billboard Hot 100 at number 97 in February 2015. It also entered the UK Singles Chart at number 63 that same month. Despite a relatively lowly chart peak, in October 2022 the single was certified Silver by the BPI denoting sales/equivalent streams of 200,000 copies in the UK, making it one of Lennox's most popular singles.

Critical response

Nostalgia received generally favourable reviews from critics. At Metacritic, the album has a score of 68 out of 100 based on eight reviews.

Mojo gave the album a positive review, stating it was "Straight and true, without a trace of rear-view-mirror sentimentality." Mike Wass of Idolator wrote that Lennox "breathes new life into the much-covered gems with perhaps the best vocal performance of her long and varied career", noting the assistance given by the "haunting arrangements". He stated that it would be an understatement to call the album "a departure from Annie's usual oeuvre," and that Lennox "puts her own inimitable spin" on the tracks.[7] In a mixed review, The Guardian stated "Lennox can't hope to approach the anguish or disgust of Billie Holiday's original 'Strange Fruit', so why even try, unless you're going to totally reinvent the song like the Cocteau Twins did? Lennox is at her best when she sounds most involved, and her beautiful takes on 'Georgia on My Mind', 'God Bless the Child' and 'You Belong to Me' are full of poignancy and yearning."

Personnel

Credits for Nostalgia adapted from Tidal.[8]

Musicians

Technical

Artwork

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2014)Peak
position
Australian Jazz Albums (ARIA)[9] 1
Greek Albums (IFPI)[10] 8

Year-end charts

Chart (2014)Position
Australian Jazz Albums (ARIA)[11] 4
UK Albums (OCC)[12] 71
US Top Jazz Albums (Billboard)[13] 3
Charts (2015)Position
Australian Jazz Albums (ARIA)[14] 10
US Top Jazz Albums (Billboard)[15] 3

Release history

RegionDateFormat(s)EditionLabel
United States30 September 2014LPStandardBlue Note[17]
21 October 2014CD + DVDLimited [18]
Digital downloadStandard[19]
Germany24 October 2014Universal[20] [21] [22]
CD + DVDDeluxe[23]
France27 October 2014Standard[24] [25]
Digital downloadDeluxe[26]
United KingdomStandardIsland[27] [28] [29]
Deluxe[30] [31]
Australia31 October 2014StandardUniversal[32] [33]
Digital downloadDeluxe[34]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Lennox . Annie . New Album – Nostalgia – Coming Soon . AnnieLennox.com . 15 August 2014 . 15 August 2014 . 19 August 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140819083952/http://www.annielennox.com/blog/new-album-nostalgia-coming-soon/ . live .
  2. Exclusive: Annie Lennox Talks Return to Music With 'Nostalgia' Album, Reveals Cover, Track List & More . Hampp . Andrew . . 14 August 2014 . 15 August 2014 . 16 August 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140816175350/http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/6221422/exclusive-annie-lennox-nostalgia-album-details . live .
  3. Caulfield . Keith . Annie Lennox 'Thrilled and Delighted' to Have No. 1 Jazz Album . Billboard . 30 October 2014 . 2 November 2014 . 2 November 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20141102142154/http://www.billboard.com/articles/6304107/annie-lennox-no-1-jazz-album-response . live .
  4. Web site: Upcoming Releases . . https://web.archive.org/web/20150425130555/http://hitsdailydouble.com/new_album_releases . 25 April 2015.
  5. Web site: Grammys 2015: Complete list of nominees . . 5 December 2014 . 15 December 2014 . 8 January 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160108194216/http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/music/la-et-ms-grammys-2015-nominees-winners-list-story.html#page=1 . live .
  6. Web site: Tony Blackburn picks the Tracks of My Years. BBC Radio 2. 15 September 2014. 15 September 2014. 16 September 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140916083934/http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04gynqd. live.
  7. Web site: Annie Lennox Previews New Covers LP 'Nostalgia' At Hollywood Forever Cemetery In LA . Wass, Mike . 13 August 2014 . Idolator . 15 August 2014 . 15 August 2014 . https://archive.today/20140815205737/http://www.idolator.com/7530641/annie-lennox-previews-new-covers-album-nostalgia . live .
  8. Web site: Credits / Nostalgia / Annie Lennox . Tidal . 27 January 2022.
  9. Web site: ARIA Jazz Albums Chart . . 10 November 2014 . 9 November 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150923175045/http://www.ariacharts.com.au/chart/jazz-albums/2934 . 23 September 2015.
  10. Web site: Official IFPI Charts – Top-75 Albums Sales Chart (Week: 7/2015) . . 28 February 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150223123039/http://www.ifpi.gr/charts_en.html . live . 23 February 2015.
  11. Web site: ARIA Charts – End Of Year Charts – Top 50 Jazz & Blues Albums 2014 . Australian Recording Industry Association . 25 January 2015 . 7 January 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150107113453/http://aria.com.au/aria-charts-end-of-year-charts-jazz-blues-albums-2014.htm . live .
  12. Web site: End of Year Album Chart Top 100 – 2014 . Official Charts Company . 26 December 2017 . 22 April 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160422134155/http://www.officialcharts.com/charts/end-of-year-artist-albums-chart/20140105/37502/ . live .
  13. Jazz Albums – Year-End 2014 . Billboard . 15 December 2014 . 27 December 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20141227123856/http://www.billboard.com/charts/year-end/2014/jazz-albums . live .
  14. Web site: End of Year Charts – Top 50 Jazz & Blues Albums 2015. ARIA Charts. January 6, 2016. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20160305192512/http://www.aria.com.au/aria-charts-end-of-year-charts-jazz-blues-albums-2015.htm. March 5, 2016.
  15. 2015 Billboard Top Jazz Albums. Billboard. March 17, 2022.
  16. Web site: End of Year Charts – Top 50 Jazz & Blues Albums 2016. ARIA Charts. January 6, 2017. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20170110015621/http://www.aria.com.au/pages/aria-charts-end-of-year-charts-jazz-blues-albums-2016.htm. January 10, 2017.
  17. Web site: Annie Lennox: Nostalgia (Vinyl) . Amazon . 14 November 2014.
  18. Web site: Nostalgia (Ltd. Ed CD/DVD Deluxe Amazon Exclusive) . Amazon . 14 November 2014 . 30 October 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201030160254/https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00NG63ACA . live .
  19. Web site: Nostalgia by Annie Lennox . 21 October 2014 . . 14 November 2014 . 22 October 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20141022162813/https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/nostalgia/id917462662 . live .
  20. Web site: Annie Lennox Nostalgia . German . . 14 November 2014 . 4 November 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20141104021350/http://www.universal-music.de/annie-lennox/diskografie/detail/product:219866/nostalgia . live .
  21. Web site: Nostalgia (Limited Edition) [Vinyl LP] ]. German . . 14 November 2014.
  22. Web site: Nostalgia: Annie Lennox: MP3-Downloads . German . Amazon.de . 14 November 2014.
  23. Web site: Nostalgia (Deluxe Edition) . German . Amazon.de . 14 November 2014 . 30 October 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201030160310/https://www.amazon.de/dp/B00NG63ACA . live .
  24. Web site: Nostalgia – Annie Lennox – CD album . French . . 14 November 2014 . 27 November 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20141127183415/http://musique.fnac.com/a7737970/Annie-Lennox-Nostalgia-CD-album . live .
  25. Web site: Nostalgia: Annie Lennox: Téléchargements MP3 . French . . 14 November 2014 . 30 October 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201030160319/https://www.amazon.fr/dp/B00NIU8B5K . live .
  26. Web site: Nostalgia (Deluxe) par Annie Lennox . French . 7digital (FR) . 14 November 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20141129015631/http://fr.7digital.com/artist/annie-lennox/release/nostalgia-deluxe . 29 November 2014 . dead .
  27. Web site: Nostalgia by Annie Lennox . . 14 November 2014 . 30 October 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201030160320/https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00NLJHQY0 . live .
  28. Web site: Nostalgia [VINYL] by Annie Lennox ]. Amazon.co.uk . 14 November 2014.
  29. Web site: Nostalgia: Annie Lennox: MP3 Downloads . Amazon.co.uk . 14 November 2014 . 30 October 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201030160320/https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00NEWS2SS . live .
  30. Web site: Nostalgia (CD+DVD) by Annie Lennox . Amazon.co.uk . 14 November 2014 . 30 October 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201030160321/https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00NKO28GC . live .
  31. Web site: Nostalgia (Deluxe) by Annie Lennox . 7digital (UK) . 14 November 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160307031325/https://www.7digital.com/artist/annie-lennox/release/nostalgia-deluxe . 7 March 2016 . dead .
  32. Web site: Nostalgia . . 14 November 2014 . 4 March 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160304190717/https://www.jbhifi.com.au/music/browse/pop-jazz/nostalgia/636255/ . live .
  33. Web site: Nostalgia by Annie Lennox . zdigital (AU) . 14 November 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20141129021043/http://www.zdigital.com.au/artist/annie-lennox/release/nostalgia-2 . 29 November 2014 . dead .
  34. Web site: Nostalgia (Deluxe) by Annie Lennox . zdigital (AU) . 14 November 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20141129021039/http://www.zdigital.com.au/artist/annie-lennox/release/nostalgia-deluxe . 29 November 2014 . dead .

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