The Decline of British Sea Power is the debut studio album by English indie rock band Sea Power, then known as "British Sea Power", released on 2 June 2003. "The Lonely", "Carrion" and "Remember Me" were all released as singles from the album, as well as older recordings of "Fear of Drowning" and "Remember Me", which differ from the versions on this album.
Sea Power, previously known as British Sea Power and initially as British Air Powers, are an English alternative rock band. The group's original lineup consisted of Jan Scott Wilkinson, known as Yan; Martin Noble, known as Noble; and Alison Cotton. By the time the band had begun its recording career, Cotton had departed, and two new members had joined: Neil Hamilton Wilkinson, known as Hamilton, and Matthew Wood, known as Woody. Eamon Hamilton joined the band in autumn 2002. He left in 2006 and was replaced by Phil Sumner, with Abi Fry joining the band in 2008.
"The Power of Love" is a song originally recorded and released by British band Frankie Goes to Hollywood. It was written by Holly Johnson, Peter Gill, Mark O'Toole and Brian Nash, four of the five members of the band. It was released by the group as their third single.
"Trouble" is a song by English rock band Coldplay, for their debut album, Parachutes (2000). The band wrote and co-produced it with British record producer Ken Nelson. The song's arrangement is built around the acoustic piano. It was released on 23 October 2000 as the album's third single, reaching number 10 on the UK Singles Chart and becoming the band's second top 10 single in the country. Although "Trouble" failed to chart in the United States, the music press deemed it almost as successful as its predecessor, "Yellow".
"Big Yellow Taxi" is a song written, composed, and originally recorded by Canadian singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell in 1970, and originally released on her album Ladies of the Canyon. It was a hit in her native Canada as well as Australia and the UK. It only reached No. 67 in the US in 1970, but was later a bigger hit there for her in a live version released in 1974, which peaked at No. 24. Charting versions have also been recorded by The Neighborhood, and most notably by Amy Grant in 1994 and Counting Crows in 2002. The song was also sampled in Janet Jackson's "Got 'til It's Gone" (1997).
"It Ended on an Oily Stage" was the first published single from British Sea Power's second album Open Season. It reached number 18 in the UK Singles Chart and was critically praised, with the NME giving it their Track of the Week award. It received heavy airplay from the alternative radio sector. This track was previously called "Elegiac Stanzas" but was renamed when the band questioned whether radio presenters would be able to pronounce it.
"Please Stand Up" was the second single from British Sea Power's second album Open Season. It heralded a far more mainstream, pop-oriented and produced sound for the band. Despite predictions of it being a crossover hit, it failed to grab the attention of the public and was not popular with many of the band's fans. The video was much more commercialised than the band's normal, homemade, efforts with Super 8 film but was banned by MTV in the United States for including the line A little excitement makes us wetter wetter. The band have said that they were disillusioned by the response to the track and plan to branch off in a different direction on future releases.
Carrion refers to the carcass of a dead animal.
"Childhood Memories" was the fourth single to be released by British Sea Power. Despite its low chart position and not being included on any album, it is a live favourite and it still appears occasionally in the band's setlists. The lyrics contrast with childlike structure of the music, dealing with the meltdown of a Nuclear power plant. This track was previously known as "Memories of Childhood!".Acoustic guitar and keyboards are prominent throughout the track. The 7" release was wrongly labeled as having "Favours in the Beetroot Fields" as the flipside, whereas it is actually "Strange Communication". It peaked at a lowly number 90 on the UK Singles Chart.
"The Lonely" is a song by British Sea Power. The song was the group's third single and their second on Rough Trade. It was their first single to garner much press coverage and resulted in a chart position. Unusually, the nominal A-side actually featured as the flipside on both versions. The main position is taken by "The Spirit of St. Louis", a tale of Charles Lindbergh's flight across the Atlantic. This is still regularly performed live, despite it only appearing on this release. The title track was written as a tribute to Geoff Goddard, a friend of the band who wrote the 1960s number-one single, "Johnny Remember Me".
"Remember Me" is a song by British Sea Power, released in 2001 as their second single and the first released after signing to Rough Trade Records. It was also the first track to be recorded with longtime producer Mads Bjerke. Whilst it is generally felt to be an uplifting song, the lyrics deal with a decline into old age and the mental decay that comes with it. It has been played at almost every gig the band have ever played and was re-recorded for their debut album, The Decline of British Sea Power. That version was also released as the final single from The Decline of British Sea Power in 2003 and reached number 30 in the UK Singles Chart. B-side "A Lovely Day Tomorrow" was also re-recorded three years later and released as a limited edition single. The CD also features "Birdy", an instrumental track that was rumoured to have included lyrics that never made the release since Yan never got around to recording them.
"Elevation" is a song by Irish rock band U2. It is the third track on their tenth studio album, All That You Can't Leave Behind (2000), and was released as the album's third single on 25 June 2001. The song became the band's 16th number-one single in their native Ireland and their second number one in the Netherlands. It also topped the charts in Canada and reached the top 10 in Australia, Denmark, Finland, Italy, Norway, Scotland, Spain, and the United Kingdom. A different mix of the song, entitled the "Tomb Raider mix", was included on the soundtrack of the 2001 film Lara Croft: Tomb Raider. In 2002, "Elevation" won the Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal at the 44th Annual Grammy Awards ceremony. The song lent its namesake to the band's 2001 Elevation Tour.
"Remember Me"/"I Am a Cider Drinker" was a split single released by British Sea Power and The Wurzels. The 7" single features The Wurzels covering BSP's "Remember Me" and BSP covering The Wurzels' 1976 hit "I Am a Cider Drinker". The release was limited to 1,966 and only available on BSP's November 2005 tour or through their official website.
Remember Me was a Japan-only EP by Sea Power, then known as "British Sea Power", collating the title track, the five B-sides from its UK single re-release and three tracks from the earlier "Carrion/Apologies to Insect Life" UK single. It is sought after mainly for its rarity, unique Japanese style packaging and as the only place to find "The Scottish Wildlife Experience" on CD.
"Did My Time" is a song written and recorded by American nu metal band Korn for the film, Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life. It was released as a single in July 2003 in support of the film, and was later featured on the band's sixth studio album, Take a Look in the Mirror.
"Reason Is Treason" is the second single release from British rock band Kasabian. As a limited release it was ineligible for chart entry.
"Bonedriven" is a song by the British rock band Bush, released on 16 April 1997. It is the third single from the band's second album Razorblade Suitcase (1996). It followed the band's hit singles "Swallowed" and "Greedy Fly." "Bonedriven" and "Cold Contagious" are the only Bush singles from 1994–1999 not to be included on the band's 2005 greatest hits compilation, The Best of '94–'99, apparently excluded in favor of two additional tracks from the band's remix album Deconstructed that were not released as singles.
"Fresh" is a song by the American group Kool & the Gang. Released as a single in 1984 from the album Emergency, the song peaked at #9 on the U.S. Hot 100 chart, and #11 on the UK chart. It also reached number one on both the U.S. R&B chart and U.S. Dance chart.
Machineries of Joy is a studio album by British indie rock band Sea Power, then known as "British Sea Power". It was released in April 2013 on the Rough Trade record label.
English rock band Sea Power, previously known as British Sea Power, have released 10 studio albums, 4 soundtrack albums, 6 extended plays, 58 compilation appearances, 27 singles, 12 music videos and 4 miscellaneous
