Honeycomb (album)

Last updated

Honeycomb
Honeycomb album.jpg
Studio album by
ReleasedJuly 19, 2005
StudioBetter Songs and Gardens, Nashville, Tennessee
Genre
Length50:19
Label
Producer Jon Tiven
Frank Black chronology
Frank Black Francis
(2004)
Honeycomb
(2005)
Fast Man Raider Man
(2006)
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic 71/100 [1]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [2]
Entertainment Weekly A [3]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [4]
NME 8/10 [5]
The Guardian Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svg [6]
Pitchfork 6.0/10 [7]
Popmatters Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [8]
Rolling Stone Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [9]
Spin B [10]
Uncut Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [11]

Honeycomb is the tenth studio album by American alternative rock musician Frank Black, released in July 2005 on Back Porch Records. His first original solo work since 1996's The Cult of Ray , Honeycomb was recorded in Nashville, and features notable local session musicians, such as Steve Cropper and ex-Presley guitarist Reggie Young.

Contents

Background

Frank Black had discussed making a Black on Blonde record for about ten years with producer Jon Tiven, where he would travel to Nashville (like Dylan with Blonde on Blonde ) and record with local musicians. In 2005, Black eventually found the time to record such an album. He went to Nashville and met with musicians whom Tiven had selected for the record. [12] Black said, "I knew he'd ask all stellar people, though I had no idea it was going to be guys like Steve Cropper. They were challenged... well, more amused than challenged. I don't think it was hard for them, but they had to think a little bit." [13]

Covers

Unusually for a Frank Black album, it has 3 cover songs: "Song of the Shrimp," "Sunday Sunny Mill Valley Groove Day" (by Doug Sahm) and "Dark End of the Street". Black said that, for the cover of "Song of the Shrimp," he took his cue from the version by Townes Van Zandt, adding that he had never heard Elvis Presley's version. [14]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Frank Black, except where noted.

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Selkie Bride" 3:08
2."I Burn Today" 4:09
3."Lone Child" 3:14
4."Another Velvet Nightmare"Black, Reid Paley 4:36
5."Dark End of the Street" Dan Penn, Chips Moman 3:56
6."Go Find Your Saint" 2:05
7."Song of the Shrimp" Roy C. Bennett, Sid Tepper 3:10
8."Strange Goodbye" 2:12
9."Sunday Sunny Mill Valley Groove Day" Doug Sahm 4:07
10."Honeycomb" 3:57
11."My Life Is in Storage" 3:19
12."Atom in My Heart" 2:46
13."Violet" 2:14
14."Sing for Joy" 5:04
Total length:50:19

Personnel

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes. [15]

Musicians
Technical

References

  1. "Honeycomb by Frank Black". Metacritic . Retrieved September 6, 2017.
  2. Phares, Heather. "Frank Black: Honeycomb". Allmusic . Retrieved September 6, 2017.
  3. Browne, David (July 18, 2005). "Honeycomb". Entertainment Weekly . Archived from the original on October 17, 2012. Retrieved September 6, 2017.
  4. Larkin, Colin (2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th concise ed.). Omnibus Press. ISBN   978-0-85712-595-8.
  5. Sterry, Mike. "Black, Frank : Honeycomb". NME . Retrieved September 6, 2017.
  6. Clarke, Betty (July 14, 2005). "CD: Frank Black, Honeycomb". The Guardian . Retrieved September 6, 2017.
  7. Tangari, Joe (July 19, 2005). "Frank Black: Honeycomb". Pitchfork . Retrieved September 6, 2017.
  8. Lundy, Zeth (August 9, 2005). "Frank Black: Honeycomb". Popmatters . Retrieved September 6, 2017.
  9. "Frank Black: Honeycomb". Rolling Stone . August 2005. p. 82.
  10. "Frank Black: Honeycomb". Spin : 97. August 2005.
  11. Hoskyns, Barney (July 29, 2005). "Frank Black – Honeycomb". Uncut . Archived from the original on September 6, 2017. Retrieved September 6, 2017.
  12. Ascott, Phil. "Frank Black". Total Guitar . #140. September 2005
  13. Barney Hoskyns. "The Backpages Interview: Frank Black". Rock's Backpages .(Subscription required.)
  14. "Interview: Frank Black – Uncut.co.uk". Archived from the original on October 28, 2005. Retrieved September 4, 2007.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  15. Honeycomb (Liner notes). Frank Black. Back Porch. 2005.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)