5:55

Last updated

5:55
Charlotte555.jpg
Studio album by
Released28 August 2006 (2006-08-28)
Genre Indie pop, dream pop
Length42:37
LanguageEnglish, French
Label Because Music, Atlantic, Vice
Producer Nigel Godrich
Charlotte Gainsbourg chronology
Charlotte for Ever
(1986)
5:55
(2006)
IRM
(2009)
Singles from 5:55
  1. "The Songs That We Sing"
    Released: 2006
  2. "5:55"
    Released: 2007
  3. "The Operation"
    Released: 2007
  4. "Beauty Mark"
    Released: 2007
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic 72/100 [1]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [2]
The Guardian Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [3]
The Observer Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svg [4]
Pitchfork Media (5.8/10) [5]
The Times Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [6]

5:55 is the second album by French musician and actress Charlotte Gainsbourg. It was also her first album in twenty years. Charlotte collaborated on the album with French duo Air, English musician Jarvis Cocker, Irish singer-songwriter Neil Hannon, and Radiohead producer Nigel Godrich. "The Songs That We Sing" and "5:55" were released as singles. The album went platinum in France, selling over 500,000 copies. [7] [8] In the United States, the album sold 22,000 copies. "The Songs That We Sing" was No. 78 on Rolling Stone 's list of the 100 Best Songs of 2007. [9]

Contents

Charlotte sang most of the album in English. In France, the album received critical acclaim. Pitchfork described its erotic lyrical content as reminiscent of Serge Gainsbourg's, and Charlotte's vocal approach as similar to that of Jane Birkin. [5] Overall, the album received "generally favorable reviews" according to the review aggregator website Metacritic. [1]

The first single, "The Songs That We Sing" was also included in the soundtrack to the 2009 film The Uninvited . [10] [11]

In 2012 it was awarded a platinum certification from the Independent Music Companies Association which indicated sales of at least 400,000 copies throughout Europe. [12]

Track listing

All music is composed by Nicolas Godin and Jean-Benoît Dunckel

No.TitleLyricsLength
1."5:55"
4:52
2."AF607105"Cocker4:30
3."The Operation"Cocker3:59
4."Tel Que Tu Es"
  • Godin
  • Dunckel
3:09
5."The Songs That We Sing"
2:57
6."Beauty Mark"
  • Hannon
  • Cocker
  • Godin
  • Dunckel
3:06
7."Little Monsters"Cocker3:46
8."Jamais"Cocker4:37
9."Night-Time Intermission"2:44
10."Everything I Cannot See"Cocker5:45
11."Morning Song"
  • Cocker
  • Gainsbourg
3:08

Bonus tracks

On some releases one or two bonus tracks were added.

No.TitleLyricsLength
12."Set Yourself on Fire"Cocker4:10
13."Somewhere Between Waking and Sleeping"
  • Hannon
  • Cocker
3:45

Personnel

Technical

Chart performance

Album

Chart (2006/2007)Peak
position
French Albums Chart [13] 1
Austrian Albums Chart [14] 41
Belgian Albums Chart (Flanders) [15] 15
Belgian Albums Chart (Wallonia) [16] 2
Dutch Albums Chart [17] 99
European Billboard Top 100 Albums [18] 14
German Albums Chart [19] 38
Swedish Albums Chart [20] 57
Swiss Albums Chart [21] 12
UK Albums Chart 78
US Billboard 200 [22] [23] 196
US Billboard Top Heatseekers [23] [24] 9
US Billboard Top Independent Albums [23] [25] 24

Singles

"The Songs That We Sing"
Chart (2006/2007)Peak
position
French SNEP Singles Chart [26] 30
Belgian Ultratip Chart (Flanders) [26] 10
Belgian Ultratip Chart (Wallonia) [26] 4
UK Singles Chart 129
Billboard European Hot 100 Singles [27] 87

Release history

RegionDateLabelFormatCatalogNotes
France28 August 2006 Because Music CD3116662
Enhanced CD 3116672Limited edition, with bonus track "Set Yourself on Fire". Enhanced section includes a Flash version of the booklet including lyrics, pictures and credits.
4 September 2006 LP album BEC5772052 Double album.
UKBecause Music, Atlantic Records 5051011-5911-2-9
EuropeBecause Music, Warner Music 2564-63652-2
Japan8 November 2006Warner MusicCDWPCR-12431With bonus tracks "Set Yourself on Fire" and "Somewhere Between Waking and Sleeping"
US24 April 2007 Vice Records Enhanced CD94703-2With bonus tracks "Set Yourself on Fire" and "Somewhere Between Waking and Sleeping". Enhanced section includes the promotional videos of "The Songs That We Sing" and "5:55" and an interview with Gainsbourg.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charlotte Gainsbourg</span> French and British actress and singer (born 1971)

Charlotte Lucy Gainsbourg is a French and British actress and singer. She is the daughter of English actress and singer Jane Birkin and French singer Serge Gainsbourg. After making her musical debut with her father on the song "Lemon Incest" at the age of 12, she released an album with her father at the age of 15. More than 20 years passed before Gainsbourg released albums as an adult to commercial and critical success. She has acted in many films, including collaborations with Lars von Trier, and received two César Awards and Cannes Film Festival's Best Actress Award 2009 for the movie Antichrist, among many nominations.

<i>Sea Change</i> (album) 2002 studio album by Beck

Sea Change is the eighth studio album by American musician Beck, released on September 24, 2002, by Geffen Records. Recorded over a two-month period in Los Angeles with producer Nigel Godrich, the album features themes of heartbreak and desolation, solitude, and loneliness. For the album, much of Beck's trademark cryptic and ironic lyrics were replaced by simpler, more sincere lyrical content. He also eschewed the heavy sampling of his previous albums for live instrumentation. Beck cited the breakup with his longtime girlfriend as the major influence on the album.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Air (French band)</span> French music duo

Air is a French music duo from Versailles, consisting of Nicolas Godin and Jean-Benoît Dunckel. Their critically acclaimed debut album, Moon Safari, including the track "Sexy Boy", was an international success in 1998. Its follow-up, The Virgin Suicides, was the score to Sofia Coppola's first film of the same name. The band has since released the albums 10 000 Hz Legend, Talkie Walkie, Pocket Symphony, Love 2, Le voyage dans la lune and Music for Museum. The band is influenced by a wide variety of musical styles and artists.

<i>Moon Safari</i> 1998 studio album by Air

Moon Safari is the debut studio album by French electronic music duo Air, released on 16 January 1998 by Source and Virgin Records. Moon Safari was re-released on 14 April 2008 to mark the album's 10th anniversary, including a bound book, a DVD documentary about the duo, and a bonus CD with live performances and remixes, and on 15 March 2024, to mark the album's 25th anniversary.

<i>10 000 Hz Legend</i> 2001 studio album by Air

10 000 Hz Legend is the second studio album by French electronic music duo Air, released in France on 28 May 2001 by Virgin Records and in the United States on 29 May 2001 by Astralwerks. On this album, tracks are longer and more electronic-oriented than on their previous records. These experimentations find the duo expanding their capacities and working with other artists including Beck and suGar Yoshinaga of Buffalo Daughter.

<i>Talkie Walkie</i> 2004 studio album by Air

Talkie Walkie is the third studio album by French electronic music duo Air, released on 26 January 2004 by Virgin Records. "Alone in Kyoto" was included on the soundtrack to the 2003 film Lost in Translation, and "Run" was used in both the Veronica Mars episode "Nobody Puts Baby in a Corner" and the 2004 French film Lila Says. "Talkie-walkie" means walkie-talkie in French.

<i>Chaos and Creation in the Backyard</i> 2005 studio album by Paul McCartney

Chaos and Creation in the Backyard is the thirteenth solo studio album by Paul McCartney, released on 12 and 13 September, 2005. Some 18 months in the making, the album was produced by Radiohead and Beck collaborator Nigel Godrich at George Martin's suggestion.

<i>Premiers Symptômes</i> 1997 EP by Air

Premiers Symptômes is the debut EP by French electronic music duo Air. It consists of singles issued between 1995 and 1997.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nicolas Godin</span> French musician (born 1969)

Nicolas Godin is a French musician best known for being one half of the music duo Air.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nude (song)</span> 2008 single by Radiohead

"Nude" is a song by the English rock band Radiohead. It was released in March 2008 as the second single from their seventh studio album, In Rainbows (2007).

<i>The Information</i> (Beck album) 2006 studio album by Beck

The Information is the tenth studio album by American musician Beck, released on October 3, 2006 by Interscope Records. It was produced and mixed by Nigel Godrich, with whom Beck recorded Mutations (1998) and Sea Change (2002). Recording took place from 2003 to 2006, with Beck concurrently working on 2005's Guero with the Dust Brothers. The album received positive reviews from critics and made several publications' year-end lists.

<i>Pocket Symphony</i> 2007 studio album by Air

Pocket Symphony is the fourth studio album by French electronic music duo Air, released on 5 March 2007 by Virgin Records. It features collaborations with Jarvis Cocker and Neil Hannon. Pocket Symphony incorporates some of the Japanese instruments Godin had recently learned to play from an Okinawan master musician: the koto and the three-string, banjo-like shamisen. However, a press release claims that "conventional instruments continue to play a great role" in the duo's music. The album features art by Xavier Veilhan.

<i>In Rainbows</i> 2007 studio album by Radiohead

In Rainbows is the seventh studio album by the English rock band Radiohead. It was self-released on 10 October 2007 as a pay-what-you-want download, followed by a retail release internationally through XL Recordings on 3 December 2007 and in North America through TBD Records on 1 January 2008. It was Radiohead's first release after their recording contract with EMI ended with their album Hail to the Thief (2003).

<i>IRM</i> (album) 2009 studio album by Charlotte Gainsbourg

IRM is the third studio album by French electropop singer Charlotte Gainsbourg, with all songs written and produced by Beck except "Le Chat Du Café Des Artistes". The album title was inspired by the French initialism for an MRI scanner. The title track was released as a free download on 9 October 2009. The album was mostly recorded at Beck's home studio in Los Angeles, California. The lead single is "Heaven Can Wait", a duet with Beck, and was released on 2 November. The music video for "Heaven Can Wait" was directed by Keith Schofield and was released on 19 November 2009. The video for "Heaven Can Wait" was named one of the Top 20 best music videos of 2009 by Spin Magazine. "Trick Pony" is featured in the football video game by EA Sports, FIFA 11.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Atoms for Peace (band)</span> English-American supergroup

Atoms for Peace were an English-American rock supergroup comprising the Radiohead songwriter Thom Yorke, the Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea, the Radiohead producer Nigel Godrich, the drummer Joey Waronker of Beck and R.E.M., and the percussionist Mauro Refosco of Forro in the Dark.

"The Songs That We Sing" is the first single from the album 5:55 by Charlotte Gainsbourg.

<i>Le voyage dans la lune</i> (album) 2012 studio album by Air

Le voyage dans la lune is the sixth studio album by French electronic music duo Air, released on 6 February 2012 by Virgin Records.

<i>Is This the Life We Really Want?</i> 2017 studio album by Roger Waters

Is This the Life We Really Want? is the fourth solo album by the English rock musician Roger Waters, released on 2 June 2017 by Columbia Records. It was produced by Nigel Godrich, who urged Waters to make a more concise, less theatrical album. It was Waters' first solo album since Amused to Death (1992), and his first studio work since the opera Ça Ira (2005).

<i>Rest</i> (Charlotte Gainsbourg album) 2017 studio album by Charlotte Gainsbourg

Rest is the fifth album by French singer and actress Charlotte Gainsbourg. It was primarily produced by French electronic musician SebastiAn, and released on 17 November 2017 by Because Music. It is her first album release in six years, and features collaborations with Paul McCartney, Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo, Owen Pallett and Connan Hosford, among others. The tracks "Rest" and "Deadly Valentine" were released as singles and music videos, both directed by Gainsbourg herself.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Smile (band)</span> English rock band

The Smile are an English rock band comprising the Radiohead members Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood with Tom Skinner (drums). Critics likened them to Radiohead, with more jazz, krautrock and progressive rock influences and a looser, wilder sound.

References

  1. 1 2 "5:55 by Charlotte Gainsbourg". Metacritic .
  2. Phares, Heather. "5:55 > Review". AllMusic . Retrieved 12 December 2009.
  3. Petridis, Alexis (1 September 2006). "CD: Charlotte Gainsbourg, 5:55". The Guardian . Retrieved 12 December 2009.
  4. Hussey, Andrew (13 August 2006). "CD: Charlotte Gainsbourg, 5.55". The Observer . Retrieved 12 December 2009.
  5. 1 2 Hogan, Marc (15 September 2006). "Pitchfork: Album Reviews: Charlotte Gainsbourg: 5:55". Pitchfork Media . Retrieved 12 December 2009.
  6. Mulvey, John (2 September 2006). "Charlotte Gainsbourg: 5.55 review". The Times . Retrieved 12 December 2009.[ dead link ]
  7. Atlantic Records :: Charlotte Gainsbourg News Archived 29 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine
  8. "Charlotte Gainsbourg : un 5ème album en octobre 2012". pure charts. 15 December 2011. Retrieved 29 January 2012.
  9. "The 100 Best Songs of 2007 : Rolling Stone". Rolling Stone . 27 December 2007. Archived from the original on 15 December 2007. Retrieved 12 December 2009.
  10. "The Uninvited (2009/I) – Soundtracks". IMDb . Retrieved 12 December 2009.
  11. "The Uninvited (2009) – Cast and Credits". Yahoo! Movies . Retrieved 12 December 2009.
  12. "Aktuelles VUT: VUT - Verband unabhängiger Musikunternehmer*innen e. V."
  13. "lescharts.com – Charlotte Gainsbourg  – 5:55" (in French). Retrieved 12 December 2009.
  14. "Charlotte Gainsbourg – 5:55 – austriancharts.at" (in German). Retrieved 12 December 2009.
  15. "ultratop.be – Charlotte Gainsbourg  – 5:55". Ultratop (in Dutch). Retrieved 12 December 2009.
  16. "ultratop.be – Charlotte Gainsbourg  – 5:55". Ultratop (in French). Retrieved 12 December 2009.
  17. "dutchcharts.nl – Charlotte Gainsbourg  – 5:55" (in Dutch). Retrieved 12 December 2009.
  18. "5:55 – Charlotte Gainsbourg – The Visualizer – European Albums". Billboard. 4 October 2003. Retrieved 12 December 2009.
  19. "Gainsbourg, Charlotte / Longplay" (in German). musicline.de. Archived from the original on 28 January 2012. Retrieved 15 June 2010.
  20. "swedishcharts.com – Charlotte Gainsbourg  – 5:55" . Retrieved 12 December 2009.
  21. "Charlotte Gainsbourg – 5:55 – hitparade.ch" (in German). Retrieved 12 December 2009.
  22. "Charlotte Gainsbourg Album & Song Chart History". Billboard . Retrieved 12 December 2009.
  23. 1 2 3 "Charlotte Gainsbourg > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums". AllMusic . Retrieved 12 December 2009.
  24. "Charlotte Gainsbourg Album & Song Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved 12 December 2009.
  25. "Charlotte Gainsbourg Album & Song Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved 12 December 2009.
  26. 1 2 3 "lescharts.com – Charlotte Gainsbourg – The Songs That We Sing" (in French). Retrieved 12 December 2009.
  27. "The Songs That We Sing – Charlotte Gainsbourg". Billboard . Retrieved 12 December 2009.