Birds of My Neighborhood | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | August 10, 1999 | |||
Recorded | 1997–1999 | |||
Genre | Alternative, folk | |||
Length | 37:17 | |||
Label | Kneeling Elephant/RCA Badman | |||
Producer | The Innocence Mission | |||
The Innocence Mission chronology | ||||
|
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [1] |
Pitchfork | (7.7/10) [2] |
Birds of My Neighborhood is the fourth studio album by the Innocence Mission. Released in 1999 on Kneeling Elephant, a sub-label of RCA, the album was out of print until Badman Recording acquired the license to remaster and reissue it in 2006.
This was the group's first album as a trio following the departure of founding member Steve Brown in 1997. With the exception of his sole contribution to the album—drums and brushes on "Snow"—the album is largely bereft of drums. Don Peris played percussion on "Birdless" and the closing moments of "Green Grass, Red Tree," but otherwise the group adapted to its trio status by replacing Mike Bitt's electric bass with an upright bass and taking a more acoustic sound.
Their cover of "Follow Me" was recorded in late 1997 for Take Me Home, a John Denver tribute album which had an estimated release date of 1998. With the delay of that album's release, however, Don Peris asked that record's curator, Mark Kozelek of the Red House Painters, for permission to include the song on Birds of My Neighborhood. Kozelek agreed on the condition that the song still be included on the tribute album when a general release was finally given in April 2000. [3]
Sufjan Stevens recorded a cover version of "The Lakes of Canada" in 2007. [4] [5]
On February 5, 2021, a vinyl reissue was released, which came with an updated album cover. [6]
All tracks written by Karen Peris, except where noted.
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Where Does the Time Go?" | 3:32 |
2. | "Snow" | 3:47 |
3. | "Follow Me" (John Denver) | 3:19 |
4. | "The Lakes of Canada" | 4:35 |
5. | "You Are the Light" | 2:56 |
6. | "Birdless" | 3:34 |
7. | "I Haven't Seen This Day Before" | 2:09 |
8. | "She May Turn Around" | 2:17 |
9. | "I Was in the Air" (Don Peris) | 2:38 |
10. | "July" | 3:22 |
11. | "Going Away" (Karen Peris, Don Peris) | 3:06 |
12. | "Green Grass, Red Tree" (Don Peris) | 2:20 |
Total length: | 37:17 |
Sun Kil Moon is an American folk rock act from San Francisco, California, founded in 2002. Initially a continuation of the defunct indie rock band Red House Painters, Sun Kil Moon is now the primary recording moniker of vocalist and guitarist Mark Kozelek. The project is named after the Korean super flyweight boxer Sung-Kil Moon.
Ophelia is the second studio album by the American singer-songwriter Natalie Merchant, released on May 19, 1998, by Elektra Records. The album was supported by the singles "Kind & Generous" and "Break Your Heart", with the former being the most successful single of the album, reaching the top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay Chart. "Break Your Heart" also received single and video treatment. These and the other videos from the album, plus three from Tigerlily, were gathered on a Warner Music Vision home video, also entitled Ophelia. "I love the opportunity to flex my thespian muscle," Merchant quips on it. The album became Merchant's only top ten hit on the Billboard 200, where it peaked at number eight.
A Sun Came is the debut studio album by American singer-songwriter Sufjan Stevens, released in 2000 on Asthmatic Kitty. It was reissued four years later. Among Stevens' back catalog, A Sun Came is notable for being recorded on four-track.
The Innocence Mission is an American alternative rock and indie folk band that was formed in Lancaster, Pennsylvania in 1986. The group's current members are Karen Peris, her husband Don Peris, and Mike Bitts. While all of these members have contributed to the composition of the band's music, Karen Peris serves as the innocence mission's primary songwriter. She is also a multi-instrumentalist, additionally playing instruments such as the accordion and the Hammond organ on the band's releases. As of October 2024, the group has come out with a total of thirteen studio albums.
White Shoes is the tenth studio album by Emmylou Harris, released in 1983. The album includes a rockish version of "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend", a country remake of the Donna Summer hit "On the Radio", and a version of Sandy Denny's "Like an Old Fashioned Waltz". Both "In My Dreams" and "Pledging My Love" hit the #9 position on the Billboard country music singles chart in 1984.
Barry Manilow II is the second studio album by Barry Manilow released in 1974. Propelled by the major success of its lead single "Mandy" and featuring a further international hit in "It's a Miracle", the album was a commercial breakthrough for Manilow. First issued by Bell Records, it was reissued after the company was reorganized into Arista Records. The album's success spawned a notable parody in the picture sleeve of Ray Stevens' 1979 single, "I Need Your Help Barry Manilow".
Glow is the third album by the American folk rock band the Innocence Mission, released in 1995 on A&M Records. Musically, it marked a radical departure for the group, as the Sundays/10,000 Maniacs-inspired dream pop aesthetic found on their first two albums was replaced by a more straightforward, cleaner rock sound. The album was recorded over a several-month period at Kingsway Studios, New Orleans, Louisiana and Bad Animals Studios, Seattle, Washington.
Small Planes, subtitled Lost and Found Songs: 1996–2001, is the fifth studio album by American alternative rock band The Innocence Mission, released on September 25, 2001 by What Are Records?. It consists of new and previously unreleased songs recorded by the band following the release of their 1995 album Glow. The album was released to positive reviews, with several publications describing it as an "outtake" album that contains better material than the primary work of most other bands. Small Planes was issued on vinyl for the first time on November 3, 2021. The vinyl featured an alternate track listing and the song "A Thousand Miles", which had been excluded from the original release.
Now the Day Is Over is the seventh studio album by American alternative rock band The Innocence Mission, released by Badman Recording Co. on November 9, 2004. A collection of standards, traditional and classical works performed as lullabies, the album was recorded in August 2004 in the band's home studio. A portion of proceeds from sales of the album are donated to charitable organisations, including Catholic Relief Services.
We Walked in Song is the eighth studio album by the Innocence Mission. It was released in North America on March 13, 2007 by Badman Recording Co., with a vinyl edition containing the bonus track "Shooting Star (Sketch)" following a week later on March 20. All international versions of the album include the bonus track.
Are You a Dreamer? is a studio album by American singer-songwriter Denison Witmer. It was released on The Militia Group on July 26, 2005.
The discography of American alternative rock band The Innocence Mission consists of twelve studio albums, two compilation album, two releases issued for free download, five EPs, seventeen singles, ten music videos, and numerous appearances on soundtrack, tribute and sampler albums. The band have had their songs included on over a hundred different compilations and soundtracks, with many of those including the same select few songs. Therefore, only compilations and soundtracks which featured exclusive or otherwise rare content have been included. Also included on this list are their various solo albums and collaborations with other recording artists.
A Sideman's Journey is the first solo album by German musician and artist Klaus Voormann, released in July 2009. Voormann is best known as the creator of the cover art for The Beatles' album Revolver as well as for being a much-in-demand session musician during the 1970s. He played bass on a large number of well-known albums by ex-Beatles John Lennon, George Harrison and Ringo Starr − including All Things Must Pass, Imagine and The Concert for Bangladesh − and by artists such as Harry Nilsson, Doris Troy, Lou Reed, Gary Wright, Carly Simon and Randy Newman. Before then, Voormann had been a member of the 1960s pop group Manfred Mann. A Sideman's Journey is notable for including performances by Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and Yusuf Islam, among others.
My Room in the Trees is the ninth studio album by the Innocence Mission, released July 13, 2010 by Badman Recording Company.
Hello I Feel the Same is the tenth studio album by American alternative band The Innocence Mission. It was released on October 16, 2015, via Korda Records, a cooperative record label founded by The Ocean Blue, a band with whom the Innocence Mission formed a "long and deep friendship that goes back to some of each band's first shows in Pennsylvania and their major label debut records on Sire and A&M". An edition on translucent green vinyl was released from early January 2016. It is their first studio album since 2010's My Room in the Trees, making five years the longest gap between studio albums in their career.
Sun on the Square is the eleventh studio album by American alternative band The Innocence Mission, released in the United States via Badman Recording Co. and in Japan by P-Vine Records on June 29, 2018, with a European release following one week later on Bella Union. The record is available for streaming via Badman's official SoundCloud channel.
Wrestling the Angels is Kelly Minter's second studio album, third overall as she had previously released an independent album titled Wheels Of Change in 1997. According to Minter, the album's title, Wrestling the Angels, was inspired by her reading of Jacob's struggle in Genesis.
See You Tomorrow is the twelfth studio album by American alternative band The Innocence Mission, released on January 17, 2020, by Bella Union in Europe and Australia and by Thérèse Records in the United States and Canada.
A Song Is Way Above the Lawn is the second solo album by Karen Peris, lead vocalist and songwriter of American alternative rock band the Innocence Mission. The album was released worldwide on October 8, 2021, via Bella Union.
"This Thread Is a Green Street" is a single by American alternative band The Innocence Mission, released as the first single from their thirteenth studio album Midwinter Swimmers on September 3, 2024. The song was written by Karen and Don Peris, with Karen also creating an animated music video for the song.