| Wake Up! | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Studio album by | |
| Released | 27 November 2015 |
| Genre | |
| Length | 55:19 |
| Label | Believe Digital |
| Producer |
|
| Singles from Wake Up! | |
| |
Wake Up! Music Album with His Words and Prayers is a progressive rock album by Pope Francis released on 27 November 2015 on Believe Digital. The album is formed of speeches by Pope Francis recorded in numerous locations worldwide between 2013 and 2015 with accompanying music tracks of prayers and hymns by various Italian artists and producers.
Under the art direction of Don Giulio Neroni, who also curated other albums for Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI, various Italian artists and producers also contributed to the music like Giorgio Kriegsch, Mite Balduzzi, Giuseppe Dati, Lorenzo Piscopo, the orchestral director Dino Doni, and former member of Italian progressive rock band Le Orme Tony Pagliuca. [1] [2] The album was released through the Believe Digital label. [3]
The album sets papal prayers and speeches to pop, rock, and classical music. [4] The lyrics are varyingly Spanish, Portuguese or Italian, although the title track "Wake Up! Go! Go! Forward!" is in English. While most of the music is described by Rolling Stone as "New Age neoclassicism" not unlike the work of Vangelis or Kitaro, "Wake Up! Go! Go! Forward!" is identified as "the most rocking". [4] The inclusion of rock music into Wake Up? stood in contrast to previous music albums which were released by popes John Paul II and Benedict VI. [5] [6]
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AnyDecentMusic? | 4.1/10 [7] |
| Metacritic | 52/100 [8] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [9] |
| The Arts Desk | [10] |
| Clash | 1/10 [11] |
| Consequence of Sound | C [12] |
| Crack Magazine | 3/10 [13] |
| The Daily Telegraph | [14] |
| Pitchfork | 5/10 [15] |
| Rolling Stone | [4] |
| Under the Radar |    [16] |
Tom Maxwell of Al Jazeera America states "Musically, the album is similar to but more animated than what one would hear during a yoga class or massage session" and that "What might be most noteworthy about Wake Up! is how groundbreaking it is. ... For such a figure [as the pope] to release an album of music at all is scarcely precedented, much less one that incorporates popular musical forms of the last few decades." [17]
Entertainment reporter Chi Chi Izundu on BBC Newsbeat expressed the opinion that some of the album "has the vibe of 80s rock", and another part is "hauntingly beautiful" and that the album is "all in all, a very pleasant listen". [18]
Helen Brown in The Telegraph calls it a "mellow, accessible album" and states "Proceeds go to help refugees at a time when displaced people are struggling to find room at the inn. Whatever your stance on the Catholic Church, or its leader, I suspect Pope Francis has made a good call here. At a time of increasingly inflamed religious emotions, the world could use a little Holy chill out." [14]
The first track released from the album was "Wake Up! Go! Go! Forward!" on 26 September 2015. [2]
Wake Up! includes the following tracks. [19]
| No. | Title | Speech location and date | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Annuntio Vobis Gaudium Magnum!" | Vatican City on 13 March 2013 | 6:53 |
| 2. | "Salve Regina" | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on 25 July 2013 and Cagliari, Italy on 22 September 2013 | 5:17 |
| 3. | "Cuidar el planeta" | Rome, Italy on 20 November 2014 | 4:46 |
| 4. | "¿Por qué sufren los niños?" | Manila, Philippines on 18 January 2015 | 5:20 |
| 5. | "Non lasciatevi rubare la speranza!" | Vatican City on 7 June 2013 | 3:57 |
| 6. | "¡La Iglesia no puede ser una ONG!" | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on 25 July 2013 | 4:49 |
| 7. | "Wake Up! Go! Go! Forward!" | South Korea, 17 August 2014 | 5:12 |
| 8. | "¡La fe es entera, no se licúa!" | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on 25 July 2013 | 4:32 |
| 9. | "Pace! Fratelli!" | Vatican City on 8 June 2014 | 5:52 |
| 10. | "Santa famiglia di Nazareth" | Vatican City on 27 October 2013 | 5:10 |
| 11. | "Fazei o que ele vos disser!" | Vatican City on 31 May 2013 | 3:31 |
| Chart (2015) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Christian Albums (Billboard) [20] | 50 |
| US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard) [21] | 20 |
| US World Albums (Billboard) [22] | 4 |
Linkin Park is an American rock band formed in Agoura Hills, California, in 1996. The band's current lineup consists of vocalist/rhythm guitarist/keyboardist Mike Shinoda, lead guitarist Brad Delson, DJ/turntablist Joe Hahn, bassist Dave Farrell, co-lead vocalist Emily Armstrong, and drummer Colin Brittain. The lineup for the band's first seven studio albums included lead vocalist Chester Bennington and drummer Rob Bourdon until Bennington's death by suicide in July 2017, which caused the band to enter an indefinite hiatus. In September 2024, Linkin Park's reformation was announced along with the addition of Armstrong and Brittain.
System of a Down is an Armenian-American heavy metal band formed in Glendale, California, in 1994. Since 1997, the band has consisted of founding members Serj Tankian ; Daron Malakian ; Shavo Odadjian ; along with John Dolmayan (drums), who replaced original drummer Andy Khachaturian in 1997.
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pioneered the gritty, rhythmically driven sound that came to define hard rock. Their first stable line-up consisted of vocalist Mick Jagger, guitarist Keith Richards, multi-instrumentalist Brian Jones, bassist Bill Wyman, and drummer Charlie Watts. During their early years, Jones was the primary leader. Andrew Loog Oldham became their manager in 1963 and encouraged them to write their own songs. The Jagger–Richards partnership soon became the band's primary songwriting and creative force.
Weezer is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1992. Since 2001, the band has consisted of Rivers Cuomo, Patrick Wilson, Brian Bell, and Scott Shriner. They have sold 10 million albums in the US and more than 35 million worldwide.
Deftones is an American alternative metal band formed in Sacramento, California in 1988. They were formed by frontman Chino Moreno, lead guitarist Stephen Carpenter and drummer Abe Cunningham, with bassist Chi Cheng and keyboardist and turntablist Frank Delgado joining the line-up in 1990 and 1999, respectively. The band's experimental nature has led some critics to describe them as "the Radiohead of metal".
Madonna Louise Ciccone is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Regarded as the "Queen of Pop", she has been recognized for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting and visual presentation. Madonna's works, which incorporate social, political, sexual, and religious themes, have generated both controversy and critical acclaim. A cultural icon spanning both the 20th and 21st centuries, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame called her one of the most "well-documented figures of the modern age" in 2008. Various scholarly reviews, literature, and art works have been created about her along with an academic mini subdiscipline devoted to her called Madonna studies.
The Cranberries were an Irish rock band formed in Limerick, Ireland, in 1989. The band was originally named The Cranberry Saw Us and featured singer Niall Quinn, guitarist Noel Hogan, bassist Mike Hogan, and drummer Fergal Lawler; Quinn was replaced as lead singer by Dolores O'Riordan in 1990, and the group changed their name to the Cranberries. The band classified themselves as an alternative rock group, but incorporated aspects of indie rock, jangle pop, dream pop, folk rock, post-punk, and pop rock into their sound.
Gwen Renée Stefani Shelton is an American singer-songwriter and fashion designer. She is a co-founder, lead vocalist, and the primary songwriter of the band No Doubt, whose singles include "Just a Girl", "Spiderwebs", and "Don't Speak", from their 1995 breakthrough studio album Tragic Kingdom, as well as "Hey Baby" and "It's My Life" from later albums.
Cheap Trick is an American rock band from Rockford, Illinois, formed in 1973 by guitarist Rick Nielsen, bassist Tom Petersson, lead vocalist Robin Zander and drummer Bun E. Carlos. Their work bridged elements of '60s guitar pop, '70s hard rock, and the emerging punk rock sound, and would help set the template for subsequent power pop artists.
Like a Prayer is the fourth studio album by American singer-songwriter Madonna, released on March 21, 1989, by Sire Records. It saw the singer reunited with Patrick Leonard and Stephen Bray, with whom she had collaborated on her previous studio album True Blue (1986), and the soundtrack to the 1987 film Who's That Girl; artist Prince also collaborated on the record, co-writing and co-producing one of the tracks alongside Madonna. Her most introspective release at the time, Like a Prayer is a pop record with elements of rock and dance pop. Its lyrics deal with personal themes she had been too afraid to approach up at that point: her Catholic upbringing, her troubled marriage to actor Sean Penn, the death of her mother, and her relationship with her father.
"Wake Me Up When September Ends" is a song by the American rock band Green Day and the fourth single from their seventh studio album, American Idiot (2004). Written by the band's front man Billie Joe Armstrong, the song is about the death of Armstrong's father in September 1982 and his life since. The song's lyrics have also been interpreted in other ways, including as a song about the victims and survivors of the September 11 attacks. The song is a rock ballad, starting with an acoustic guitar and later introducing an electric guitar and bells. It was recorded at Ocean Way Recording.
"Like a Prayer" is a song by American singer Madonna from her 1989 fourth studio album of the same name. It was released as the album's lead single on March 3, 1989, by Sire Records. Written and produced by both Madonna and Patrick Leonard, the song heralded an artistic and personal approach to songwriting for Madonna, who believed that she needed to cater more to her adult audience. Thematically, the song speaks about a passionate young girl in love with God, who becomes the only male figure in her life.
"Going Under" is a song by American rock band Evanescence from their debut studio album, Fallen (2003). It was released by Wind-up Records as the album's second single on August 18, 2003. Lee wrote the song about coming out of a difficult relationship. Guitarist Ben Moody and David Hodges share songwriting credits on the song, produced by Dave Fortman. Musically, "Going Under" is primarily a nu metal song featuring electronic drum beats and a piano interlude.
"The Prayer" is a song performed by Canadian singer Celine Dion and Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli. It was written by David Foster, Carole Bayer Sager, Tony Renis and Alberto Testa.
Cassadee Blake Pope is an American pop and country singer. She was the lead vocalist and songwriter of the pop punk band Hey Monday, with whom she released one studio album and two EPs. Pope embarked on a solo career in early 2012 and released the EP Cassadee Pope in May 2012. She took part in the 3rd season of The Voice and became the first female winner in December 2012. Her debut solo country album, Frame by Frame, was released in 2013 to a top 10 Billboard 200 charting. It debuted at No. 1 on Top Country Albums, with 43,000 copies sold in its first week.
Imagine Dragons are an American pop rock band formed in 2008, based in Las Vegas, Nevada, and currently consisting of lead singer Dan Reynolds, guitarist Wayne Sermon, and bassist Ben McKee. The band first gained exposure with the release of their single "It's Time", followed by their debut album Night Visions (2012), which resulted in the chart-topping singles "Radioactive" and "Demons". Rolling Stone named "Radioactive", which held the record for most weeks charted on the Billboard Hot 100, the "biggest rock hit of the year". MTV called them "the year's biggest breakout band", and Billboard named them their "Breakthrough Band of 2013" and "Biggest Band of 2017", and placed them at the top of their "Year in Rock" rankings for 2013, 2017, and 2018. Imagine Dragons topped the Billboard Year-End "Top Artists – Duo/Group" category in 2018.
Tim Bergling, known professionally as Avicii, was a Swedish DJ, remixer, and record producer. At age 16, he began posting his remixes on electronic music forums, which led to his first record deal. He rose to prominence in 2011 with his single "Levels". His debut studio album, True (2013), blended electronic music with elements of multiple genres and received generally positive reviews. It peaked in the top 10 in more than 15 countries and topped international charts; the lead single, "Wake Me Up", topped most music markets in Europe and reached number four in the United States.
Twenty One Pilots are an American musical duo from Columbus, Ohio. Initially a band, the group was formed in 2009 by lead vocalist Tyler Joseph along with Nick Thomas and Chris Salih, who both left in 2011. Since their departure, the line-up has consisted of Joseph and drummer Josh Dun. The duo is best known for their singles "Stressed Out", "Ride", and "Heathens", which achieved commercial success between 2015 and 2016. The duo received a Grammy Award for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance at the 59th Annual Grammy Awards for "Stressed Out".
Gore is the eighth studio album by the American alternative metal band Deftones, released on April 8, 2016, by Reprise Records. Its release was met with critical acclaim, debuting at number two on the US Billboard 200; it is the band's fifth album to debut within the chart's top-ten and is their highest-charting since their 2003 eponymous album.
Hardwired... to Self-Destruct is the tenth studio album by American heavy metal band Metallica, released as a double album on November 18, 2016, by the band's record label Blackened Recordings. It was Metallica's first studio album in eight years following Death Magnetic (2008), marking the longest gap between studio albums in the band's career, and its first studio album released through Blackened. The album was produced by Greg Fidelman, who engineered and mixed Death Magnetic.
