The Swimming Hour

Last updated
The Swimming Hour
TheSwimmingHour.jpg
Studio album by
ReleasedApril 3, 2001
Genre Indie rock
Length50:27
Label Rykodisc
Producer Andrew Bird, David Boucher
Andrew Bird chronology
Oh! The Grandeur
(1999)
The Swimming Hour
(2001)
Fingerlings
(2002)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg link
Pitchfork Media 9.0/10 link

The Swimming Hour is Andrew Bird's third album with Andrew Bird's Bowl of Fire. It comprises a blend of musical styles from the 20th century including jazz, gospel, rock, classical, Latin and folk, often accompanied by thoughtful, playful or haunting vocals and lyrics.

Track listing

All tracks are written by Andrew Bird.

No.TitleLength
1."Two Way Action"4:43
2."Core and Rind"3:02
3."Why?"3:31
4."11:11"3:34
5."Case in Point"4:49
6."Too Long" (Mississippi Sheiks cover)2:33
7."Way Out West"4:06
8."Waiting to Talk"4:13
9."Fatal Flower Garden" (Nelstone's Hawaiians cover)4:43
10."Satisfied"3:17
11."Headsoak"3:53
12."How Indiscreet"4:34
13."Dear Old Greenland"3:29

Other appearances

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Augie March</span> Australian indie/pop rock band

Augie March are an Australian pop and indie rock band, which formed in 1996 in Shepparton, Victoria. Since 2001 the group consists of vocalist and rhythm guitarist Glenn Richards, lead guitarist Adam Donovan, bass guitarist Edmondo Ammendola, drummer David Williams, and keyboardist Kiernan Box. Box had replaced Robert Dawson, the band's piano player since March 2000, who died in January 2001.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andrew Bird</span> American musician, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist

Andrew Wegman Bird is an American indie rock multi-instrumentalist, singer, and songwriter. Since 1996, he has released 16 studio albums, as well as several live albums and EPs, spanning various genres including swing music, indie rock, and folk music. He is primarily known for his unique style of violin playing, accompanied by loop and effect pedals, whistling, and voice. In the 1990s, he sang and played violin in several jazz ensembles, including Squirrel Nut Zippers and Kevin O'Donnell's Quality Six. He went on to start his own swing ensemble, Andrew Bird's Bowl of Fire, which released three albums between 1998 and 2001. Weather Systems (2003) was his first solo album after Bowl of Fire disbandment, and it marked a departure from jazz music into indie music. Bird's 2019 album My Finest Work Yet was nominated for "Best Folk Album" at the 2020 Grammy Awards.

<i>Andrew Bird & the Mysterious Production of Eggs</i> 2005 studio album by Andrew Bird

Andrew Bird & the Mysterious Production of Eggs is the third album of Andrew Bird's career post-Bowl of Fire, released in 2005, following his Weather Systems in 2003. The album art, along with track illustrations in the accompanying booklet were drawn by Jay Ryan. Bird expanded on his earlier work on Weather Systems; the song "Skin Is, My" is an outgrowth of his earlier song "Skin".

<i>Weather Systems</i> (Andrew Bird album) 2003 studio album by Andrew Bird

Weather Systems, released in 2003, is Andrew Bird's second solo album and his first after disbanding Bowl of Fire. Bird has said that the album was simply a side project during his four or five year recording of Andrew Bird & the Mysterious Production of Eggs. At least two of the songs on the album suggest this fact: "I" is a slower, more dreary version of Armchair Apocrypha's "Imitosis," and "Skin" is a similarly slow, instrumental version of The Mysterious Production of Eggs' "Skin is, My."

<i>Music of Hair</i> 1996 studio album by Andrew Bird

Music of Hair is Andrew Bird's first released album. The album came out in 1996. The tracks featured were written in Bird's early twenties, and the album was released when he was 23. The album features contributions from musicians Colin Bunn, Dave Dieckmann, Kat Eggleston, Al Ehrich, Kevin O'Donnell; and, James "Jimbo" Mathus, Katharine Whalen and Chris Phillips from Squirrel Nut Zippers.

Andrew Paul Woolfolk II was an American saxophonist. Woolfolk was a longtime member of the band Earth, Wind & Fire from 1973 to 1985, and from 1987 to 1993. He also collaborated with artists such as Deniece Williams, Stanley Turrentine, Phil Collins, Twennynine, Philip Bailey, and Level 42.

Andrew Bird's Bowl of Fire was an American band fronted by musician Andrew Bird. After releasing his first solo album, Music of Hair, Bird appeared on three albums by Squirrel Nut Zippers before becoming the bandleader for Andrew Bird's Bowl of Fire.

<i>Thrills</i> (Andrew Birds Bowl of Fire album) 1998 studio album by Andrew Birds Bowl of Fire

Thrills is an album created by Andrew Bird. It was released on April 7, 1998, on the Rykodisc label. It is the first Andrew Bird album released with Andrew Bird's Bowl of Fire.

<i>Armchair Apocrypha</i> 2007 studio album by Andrew Bird

Armchair Apocrypha is American singer-songwriter Andrew Bird's fourth studio album and his third post-Bowl of Fire album. The album features more electric guitars, a change from the more acoustic-oriented Eggs, though the songs are similar in character if slightly more straightforward.

<i>Noble Beast</i> 2009 studio album by Andrew Bird

Noble Beast is American singer-songwriter Andrew Bird's fifth solo studio album, released on January 20, 2009. Two songs from this album were previewed on his webpage, "Oh No" and "Carrion Suite", while the entire album was made available by NPR as a streaming feed. Noble Beast was made available as a standard CD release, a special limited-edition deluxe two-CD package and a double-LP package.

<i>Saxmen</i> 1993 studio album by David Murray

Saxmen is an album by David Murray on the Red Baron label released in 1993. It features performances by Murray, John Hicks, Ray Drummond and Andrew Cyrille.

<i>Break It Yourself</i> 2012 studio album by Andrew Bird

Break It Yourself is American singer-songwriter Andrew Bird's sixth solo studio album, released on March 5, 2012 through Mom+Pop records in the US and Bella Union in the UK. The track "Lusitania" features a duet with Annie Clark from St. Vincent.

<i>Hands of Glory</i> 2012 studio album by Andrew Bird

Hands of Glory is the seventh studio album by American singer-songwriter Andrew Bird. It was released in October 2012 through Mom+Pop Records.

<i>Things Are Really Great Here, Sort Of…</i> 2014 studio album by Andrew Bird

Things Are Really Great Here, Sort Of... is American singer-songwriter Andrew Bird's eighth solo studio album. It was released on June 3, 2014 through Wegawam Music Co.

<i>Are You Serious</i> (Andrew Bird album) 2016 studio album by Andrew Bird

Are You Serious is the tenth solo studio album by Andrew Bird, released on April 1, 2016. The album features collaborations with Fiona Apple and Blake Mills.

Echolocations: River is the eleventh solo studio album by American songwriter and musician Andrew Bird. It is the second album in his Echolocations series, the first one being "Echolocations: Canyon." The album makes prominent use of field recording, with Bird performing in the Los Angeles River under the Hyperion Bridge. Additional studio recordings were added to supplement the field recordings and flesh out the compositions.

Fingerlings 4 is the fourth in Andrew Bird’s series of live albums called Fingerlings. It features live recordings from the December 2009 Gezelligheid performances at 4th Presbyterian church in Chicago, IL. The album art was made by Jay Ryan.

<i>I Want to See Pulaski at Night</i> 2013 EP by Andrew Bird

I Want to See Pulaski at Night is an EP by American musician Andrew Bird, released November 19, 2013.

<i>My Finest Work Yet</i> 2019 studio album by Andrew Bird

My Finest Work Yet is the twelfth solo studio album by Andrew Bird, released on March 22, 2019. It is notable for being Andrew Bird's first overtly political album, covering topics such as divisive political atmosphere, climate change, and apathy.

<i>Hark!</i> (Andrew Bird album) 2020 studio album by Andrew Bird

Hark! is the 13th solo studio album by Andrew Bird, released on December 11, 2020. It is Bird's first full-length holiday-themed release.