How to Save a Life | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | September 13, 2005 | |||
Recorded | 2005 | |||
Studio | Echo Park Studios (Bloomington, Indiana); Sony Music Studios (New York City, New York); Coupe Studios (Boulder, Colorado); FTM Studios (Lakewood, Colorado). | |||
Genre | Alternative rock, pop rock | |||
Length | 45:56 | |||
Label | Epic | |||
Producer | Aaron Johnson, Mike Flynn | |||
The Fray chronology | ||||
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Singles from How to Save a Life | ||||
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How to Save a Life is the debut studio album by American alternative rock band The Fray. Released on September 13, 2005, by Epic Records, the album peaked within the top 15 of the Billboard 200 and was a top ten hit in Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand and the UK. Its first two singles, "Over My Head (Cable Car)" and "How to Save a Life", both became hit songs and led the band to mainstream recognition. [1]
Critical responses to How to Save a Life were mixed, with some critics complimenting its similarities in style to British piano-driven bands like Keane and Coldplay, but in turn disparaging its unoriginality, as well as its schmaltzy and self-pitying lyrics. The album received double platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), and was also certified platinum in Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the UK; it became the best-selling digital album of all time until Eminem's Recovery (2010), breaking the record held previously by Coldplay's X&Y (2005). [2] [3] [4] Billboard listed the album on their Best Digital Albums of the Decade list – at number 21. [5]
After independently releasing two EPs, The Fray were looking for a record company to release a full-length album. The band released their song "Cable Car" to Denver radio station KTCL, and the song saw significant airplay. [6] Denver alternative newsweekly Westword named the band "Best New Band" in 2004, and this prompted Epic Records A&R man Mike Flynn to sign the band to a recording contract on December 17, 2004. [7] The album was recorded over six weeks in Echo Park Studios in Bloomington, Indiana, and was produced by Aaron Johnson and Mike Flynn. [8] Former bass guitar player Dan Battenhouse left the band a year before entering the studio; Jake Smith, former lead singer and guitarist of the band The Mysteries of Life, took over bass guitar duties.
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [9] |
Blender | [10] |
Entertainment.ie | [11] |
Entertainment Weekly | C+ [12] |
HM Magazine | [13] |
Rolling Stone | [14] |
Stylus Magazine | D [15] |
Overall, critical reception for the album was mixed. The piano-oriented sound of the album drew comparisons with British piano-rock band Keane, and Coldplay (whose music – although classified as alternative – is driven by the piano). [14] [16]
AllMusic, whilst giving the album a modestly positive review, stated that the band "lacked originality" and the album itself lacked any "inspiration and excitement". [9] Stylus Magazine gave the album a negative review, stating "The Fray, as a rule, are moribund, emotionally strained, uninvolving, and have a tendency to sound like The Cranberries fronted by a man." [15] Rolling Stone and Blender echoed many of these statements, both giving the album three stars out of five. [10] [14]
All tracks are written by Isaac Slade and Joe King, except where noted
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "She Is" | 3:56 | |
2. | "Over My Head (Cable Car)" | 3:58 | |
3. | "How to Save a Life" | 4:23 | |
4. | "All at Once" | Slade, King, Aaron Johnson | 3:48 |
5. | "Fall Away" | Slade, King, Dan Battenhouse | 4:23 |
6. | "Heaven Forbid" | 3:59 | |
7. | "Look After You" | 4:28 | |
8. | "Hundred" | Slade, Monica Conway | 4:13 |
9. | "Vienna" | Slade, King, Battenhouse | 3:51 |
10. | "Dead Wrong" | Slade, King, Mike Flynn | 3:05 |
11. | "Little House" | 2:30 | |
12. | "Trust Me" | 3:22 | |
Total length: | 45:56 |
In later editions, an extra track was added:
The Fray
Additional musicians
The album was released on September 13, 2005 by Epic Records. While the album did not make a splash commercially or critically initially, the success of "Over My Head (Cable Car)" propelled the album from the Top Heatseekers chart to the top 20 of The Billboard 200 chart. The release of the second single, "How to Save a Life", a world-wide smash, helped the album enter the top 5 in several charts across the world, and brought The Fray mainstream popularity. [17] The song remains the band's best known and most successful song to date.
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
|
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Australia (ARIA) [48] | Platinum | 70,000^ |
Canada (Music Canada) [49] | Platinum | 100,000^ |
New Zealand (RMNZ) [50] | Platinum | 15,000^ |
United Kingdom (BPI) [51] | Platinum | 300,000^ |
United States (RIAA) [52] | 4× Platinum | 4,000,000‡ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
By the Way is the eighth studio album by the American rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers, released July 9, 2002, on Warner Bros. Records. It sold more than 286,000 copies in its first week, and peaked at number two on the Billboard 200. Singles included "By the Way", "The Zephyr Song", "Can't Stop" and "Universally Speaking". Additionally, "Dosed" was released as a promotional single in the US and Canada. The lyrical subject matter vocalist Anthony Kiedis addresses in By the Way is a divergence from previous Red Hot Chili Peppers albums, with Kiedis taking a more candid and reflective approach to his lyrics.
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The Fray is an American rock band from Denver, Colorado, formed in 2002 by schoolmates Isaac Slade and Joe King. Their debut studio album, How to Save a Life (2005) was released by Epic Records and received quadruple platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), as well as platinum certification in Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. Its release was supported by their first hit single, "Over My Head ", which peaked at number eight on the Billboard Hot 100. The band saw their furthest success with the song's follow-up, "How to Save a Life", which peaked at number three on the chart and was also a hit in Australia, Canada, Ireland, Italy, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom. Both songs received Grammy Award nominations: Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals, and Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group, respectively.
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