Shapes and Patterns

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Shapes and Patterns
Swing Out Sister Shapes and Patterns album cover.jpg
Studio album by
Swing Out Sister
Released5 March 1997
RecordedJuly 1995 – May 1996
Genre
Length52:14
Label Mercury
Producer Paul Staveley O'Duffy
Swing Out Sister chronology
Best of Swing Out Sister
(1996)		Shapes and Patterns
(1997)		 Filth and Dreams
(1999)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [2]

Shapes and Patterns is the fifth studio album by British pop group Swing Out Sister. It was first released in Japan in March 1997 on Mercury Records, [3] and in Europe and the United States the following year.[ citation needed ] Producer Paul Staveley O'Duffy, who co-wrote half of the songs on the album, was back at the helm. As an orchestra was once again employed (led by Gavyn Wright), the lush arrangements characteristic of Kaleidoscope World (1989) resurfaced. The album features the track "Now You're Not Here" which was used as the theme to the Japanese programme Mahiru No Tsuki, as well as a reworked version of "Better Make It Better" which had featured on their previous studio album, The Living Return (1994). The album was promoted with the singles "Somewhere in the World" and "We Could Make It Happen."

Contents

This album would also mark the beginning of the group's collaborations with Japanese musicians in their studio sessions.

The liner notes, written by composer/singer-songwriter Mary Edwards, points out that the influences of Burt Bacharach, Jimmy Webb, and John Barry are perceptible in the string arrangements and Latin rhythms, as well as Minnie Riperton, Rotary Connection and The 5th Dimension. In an interview with Paul Sexton of Billboard magazine, a marketing executive from Mercury described the challenge associated with promoting the album in the U.S. due to the evolution of the group's music: "When you have a band like Swing Out Sister, you'd have a tough time pinpointing their sound. It's pop, it's urban, it's adult, it's jazz. Europe and Japan don't adhere to those rules as much as America does. It crosses over so many lines, and that's where Swing Out's strength is." [4]

Track listing

  1. "Somewhere in the World" - 3:45 (Andy Connell/Corinne Drewery/Paul Staveley O'Duffy)
  2. "Here and Now" - 5:06 (A. Connell/C. Drewery/P. S. O'Duffy)
  3. "We Could Make It Happen" - 5:13 (A. Connell/C. Drewery/P. S. O'Duffy)
  4. "Shapes and Patterns" - 0:52 (A. Connell/C. Drewery/P. S. O'Duffy)
  5. "Better Make It Better" - 5:23 (A. Connell/C. Drewery)
  6. "Something Out of This World" - 5:02 (A. Connell/C. Drewery/P. S. O'Duffy)
  7. "Joe Meek's Cat" - 0:23 (C. Drewery/A. Connell/P. S. O'Duffy)
  8. "Stoned Soul Picnic" - 5:08 (Laura Nyro)
  9. "You Already Know" - 4:34 (A. Connell/C. Drewery/P. S. O'Duffy)
  10. "Always" - 5:05 (A. Connell/C. Drewery/P. S. O'Duffy)
  11. "Now You're Not Here" - 4:36 (A. Connell/C. Drewery/P. S. O'Duffy)
  12. "Icy Cold as Winter" - 5:13 (A. Connell/C. Drewery/P. S. O'Duffy)
  13. "Shapes and Patterns" (Reprise) - 1:23 (A. Connell/C. Drewery/P. S. O'Duffy)

Personnel

Swing Out Sister

Additional musicians

Production

Sales and certifications

Certifications for Shapes and Patterns
RegionCertification Certified units/sales
Japan (RIAJ) [6] Gold100,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

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References

  1. 1 2 Gordon, Alex (1 January 1998). "Swing out Sister". In Knopper, Steve (ed.). MusicHound Lounge: The Essential Album Guide. Detroit: Visible Ink Press. p. 454.
  2. ↑ "Shapes and Patterns - Swing Out Sister - Songs, Reviews, Credits - AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 16 May 2017.
  3. ↑ "Swing Out Sister – Shapes And Patterns (1997, CD)". Discogs . Retrieved 27 March 2023.
  4. ↑ Hyatt, Wesley (1999). The Billboard Book of #1 Adult Contemporary Hits (Billboard Publications), page 382.
  5. ↑ Album details SwingOutSister.com. Retrieved 19 May 2009.
  6. ↑ "Japanese album certifications – Swing Out Sister – Shapes and Patterns" (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan . Retrieved 22 July 2022.Select 1997年3月 on the drop-down menu
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