A Better Man (album)

A Better Man
Studio album by Brian Kennedy
Released	4 October 1996 (Ireland) 7 October 1996 (UK)
Label	BMG RCA 19
Producer	Stephen Lipson
Brian Kennedy chronology
The Great War of Words (1990) A Better Man (1996) Now That I Know What I Want (1999)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]

A Better Man is the second studio album by Irish singer Brian Kennedy, released in 1996. It debuted at number one on the Irish Albums Chart. ^[2]

Three singles taken from the album reached both the Irish Top 20 and the UK Top 40: "A Better Man" (Ireland No. 6; ^[3] UK No. 28 ^[4] ), "Life, Love & Happiness" (Ireland No. 16; ^[5] UK No. 27 ^[4] ) and a cover of a song originally recorded by World Party, "Put the Message in the Box" (Ireland No. 18; ^[6] UK No. 37 ^[4] ).

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"A Better Man"	Brian Kennedy Phil Pickett Jon Lind	4:04
2.	"For One Kiss"	Kennedy Peter-John Vettese	4:45
3.	"Won't You Take Me Home"	Kennedy Andy Hill	4:55
4.	"No Other Words"	Kennedy Vettese	3:51
5.	"And So I Will Wait for You"	Simon Climie Denis Morgan	4:10
6.	"Life, Love & Happiness"	Kennedy Vettese	4:29
7.	"The Oldest Dream in the World"	Kennedy Calum MacColl	4:02
8.	"Put the Message in the Box"	Karl Wallinger	4:04
9.	"By the Mountain Road"	Kennedy MacColl	3:19
10.	"Ghost Music"	Kennedy Boo Hewerdine	4:46
11.	"Wish Me Well"	Paul Buchanan	4:23

Personnel

Adapted from the album's liner notes. ^[7]

Musicians

• Brian Kennedy – lead vocals (all tracks), harmonies (tracks 2, 4, 6), bouzouki (track 2), guitars (track 7)
• Teddy Borowiecki – accordion (track 9)
• Liam Bradley – drums (track 8), harmonies (track 8)
• Simon Climie – keyboards (track 5)
• Danny Cummings – percussion (track 8)
• James Hallawell – keyboards (track 8), harmonies (track 8)
• Boo Hewerdine – guitar (track 10)
• Andy Hill – keyboards (track 3)
• Luís Jardim – percussion (tracks 2–7, 9–11)
• Stephen Lipson – keyboards (tracks 1, 5, 7), guitars (tracks 1, 4, 5), bass (tracks 1, 2, 7, 8, 10), dulcimer (track 5), percussion (track 10), harmonies (track 7)
• London Community Gospel Choir – choir (track 6)
• Calum MacColl – guitars (tracks 1–3, 5–9, 11), keyboards (track 9), mandolin (track 1), zither (track 2), harmonies (tracks 7–9)
• Eddi Reader – harmonies (track 2)
• Andy Richards – keyboards (tracks 1, 3, 7)
• Kate St John – oboe (tracks 7, 10), cor anglais (tracks 7, 11)
• Peter-John Vettese – keyboards (tracks 1–7, 9–11), melodica (track 4), drums (track 1), harmonies (tracks 2, 4, 6)
• Gavyn Wright – violin (track 1)

Production

• Andy Hill – programming (track 3)
• Luís Jardim – programming (track 5)
• Stephen Lipson – production (all tracks), programming (tracks 1–6, 9–11)
• Calum MacColl – programming (track 9)
• Peter-John Vettese – programming (tracks 2, 4, 6, 10, 11)
• Engineered by Heff Moraes at the Aquarium
• Photography by Norman Watson
• Designed by Bill Smith Studio, London

Charts

Chart (1996)	Peak position
Ireland Albums (IFPI/IRMA) [2]	1
Scotland Albums (OCC) [8]	11
UK Albums (OCC) [9]	19

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Ireland (IRMA)	3× Platinum [10]	45,000
United Kingdom (BPI)	Silver [11]	60,000

References

1. "Brian Kennedy - A Better Man Album Reviews, Songs & More | AllMusic" – via www.allmusic.com.
2. "Hits of the World - Ireland Albums". Billboard . 26 October 1996. p. 53. Retrieved 19 July 2025.
3. "The Irish Charts - All there is to know - A Better Man". irishcharts.ie. IRMA. Retrieved 19 July 2025.
4. "BRIAN KENNEDY". Official Charts. February 24, 1990.
5. "The Irish Charts - All there is to know - Life, Love & Happiness". irishcharts.ie. IRMA. Retrieved 19 July 2025.
6. "The Irish Charts - All there is to know - Put The Message In The Box". irishcharts.ie. IRMA. Retrieved 19 July 2025.
7. A Better Man (liner notes). Brian Kennedy. RCA. 1996.
8. "Brian Kennedy - A Better Man". officialcharts.com. Retrieved 19 July 2025.
9. "Brian Kennedy - A Better Man". officialcharts.com. Retrieved 19 July 2025.
10. "Brian Kennedy announces the radio release of "Life, Love and Happiness 2016"". imro.ie. IMRO. Archived from the original on 13 December 2017. Retrieved 19 July 2025.
11. "Brian Kennedy - A Better Man". bpi.co.uk. BPI. Archived from the original on 22 December 2023. Retrieved 19 July 2025.

External links

• A Better Man at Discogs