Ordinary Angels

Last updated
"Ordinary Angels"
Ordinary Angels by Frente!.jpg
Single by Frente!
from the album Marvin the Album
Released1993
Length2:37
Label Mammoth, Mushroom
Songwriter(s) A Hart, S Austin
Producer(s) Daniel Denholm
Frente! singles chronology
"No Time"
(1993)
"Ordinary Angels"
(1993)
"Lonely"
(1994)

"Ordinary Angels" is a song by Australian indie pop group Frente!. The song was not released as single in Australia but was included on the Clunk EP, which peaked at number three on the Australian ARIA Singles Chart in 1992. [1] "Ordinary Angels" was released in North America and Europe in 1993 and was included on their first full-length album Marvin the Album . The song won the Breakthrough Artist – Single category at the ARIA Music Awards of 1993. [2]

Contents

Background

According to Angie Hart, 'Ordinary Angels' was written in a day. "We'd flown to Sydney to meet with (record label) RooArt who were courting us with a demo deal. We stupidly offered them a brand-new song as a sweetener, thinking it would make things more solid. Of course we hadn't written it yet. We had nothing and Simon and I were devastated. We were both exhausted and despondent and through sobs, the first lines of the song emerged. It stacked like a puzzle, word by word, chord by chord. It is still one of my favourites to this day." [3]

Track listings

European CD single

  1. "Ordinary Angels" (A Hart, S Austin) – 2:37
  2. "Book Song" (S Austin) – 2:39
  3. "Seamless" (M Picton) – 2:59
  4. "Nadi" (A Hart) – 0:34

North American CD single

  1. "Ordinary Angels" – 2:51
  2. "Most Beautiful" (acoustic version) – 2:32
  3. "Ordinary Angels" (acoustic version) – 2:41
  4. "Accidently Kelly Street" (acoustic version) – 3:18

1994 CD remixes

  1. "Ordinary Angels" – 2:48
  2. "Ordinary Angels" (7-inch remix) – 2:48
  3. "Ordinary Angels" (Ayonarra mix) – 2:52

Related Research Articles

Baby Animals is an Australian hard rock band active from October 1989 to 1996 and reformed in 2007. The original line-up was Frank Celenza on drums; Suze DeMarchi on lead vocals and guitar; Dave Leslie on guitar and backing vocals; and Eddie Parise on bass guitar and backing vocals. They recorded two studio albums, Baby Animals – which peaked at No. 1 on the ARIA Albums Chart, and Shaved and Dangerous – which reached No. 2. At the ARIA Music Awards of 1992 the group won three trophies: Album of the Year and Breakthrough Artist – Album for Baby Animals and Breakthrough - Single for "Early Warning". Baby Animals was listed in 100 Best Australian Albums. The reunited line-up are DeMarchi, Leslie, Dario Bortolin on bass guitar and Mick Skelton on drums and percussion. Their fourth studio album, This Is Not the End, was issued in May 2013, which reached the top 20.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frente!</span> Australian alternative rock band

Frente! is an Australian folk-pop and indie pop group which originally formed in 1989. The original line-up consisted of Simon Austin on guitar and backing vocals, Angie Hart on lead vocals, Tim O'Connor on bass guitar, and Mark Picton on drums.

<i>Marvin the Album</i> 1992 studio album by Frente!

Marvin the Album is the Australian folk-pop and alternative rock group Frente!'s debut album, released 24 November 1992, and recorded in 1992 at Platinum Studios in Melbourne, Australia. Music videos were made for the tracks "Accidently Kelly Street" [sic], "Ordinary Angels" and "No Time", each of which were also released as singles. Additional videos were made for "Lonely" and "Bizarre Love Triangle" when these tracks were appended to the international release.

Leonardo's Bride were an Australian pop band that formed in 1992. It consisted of Abby Dobson on lead vocal and acoustic guitar; Dean Manning on electric guitar, piano, wurlitzer and hammond; Jon Howell on drums; and Patrick Wong on bass guitar, backing vocals and cello. They released two EPs, Debut and Temperamental Friend and two albums, Angel Blood and Open Sesame, before disbanding in 2001.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Angie Hart</span> Australian singer

Angela Ruth Hart, billed as Angie Hart, is an Australian singer best known for her role as lead vocalist in the alternative pop rock band Frente! and the indie pop duo Splendid with her then-husband Jesse Tobias. Hart's solo career commenced in 2006 with the release of the album, Grounded Bird (2007).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Simon Austin</span>

Simon Sean Nicholas David Austin is an Australian guitarist, songwriter, producer and sound engineer. Austin was a founding member of Frente! in Melbourne in 1989 with Angie Hart on vocals, Tim O'Connor on bass guitar and Mark Picton on drums. Their top five hits on the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) Singles Chart were "Ordinary Angels" and "Accidently [sic] Kelly Street". Their debut album, Marvin the Album, reached top five on the ARIA Albums Chart in the same year. After Frente! disbanded in 1996, Austin moved into record production and sound engineering.

<i>Twitch</i> (EP) 1996 EP by Jebediah

Twitch is an EP, and the first official release, by Australian alternative rock band Jebediah. It was released on 5 August 1996 by record label Murmur.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Go (Pearl Jam song)</span> 1993 single by Pearl Jam

"Go" is a song by American rock band Pearl Jam, released in October 1993 as the first single from the band's second studio album, Vs. (1993). Although credited to all members of Pearl Jam, it features lyrics written by vocalist Eddie Vedder and music primarily written by drummer Dave Abbruzzese. The song peaked at number three on the US Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart and reached the top five in New Zealand and Norway. "Go" received a Grammy nomination for Best Hard Rock Performance at the 1995 Grammy Awards. The song was included on Pearl Jam's 2004 greatest hits album, rearviewmirror .

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lips of an Angel</span> 2006 single by Hinder

"Lips of an Angel" is a song by American rock band Hinder, produced and co-written by Brian Howes and Joseph Lombardo. It was released in April 2006 as the second single from their 2005 debut album, Extreme Behavior. It was their breakthrough hit, charting within the top ten on several US Billboard genre charts, reaching number three on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100, and peaking at number one in Australia and New Zealand. It has sold 3.6 million copies in the US as of January 2015, making it one of the most downloaded rock songs.

"Elderly Woman Behind the Counter in a Small Town" is a song by the American rock band Pearl Jam. The song is the tenth track on the band's second studio album, Vs. (1993). Although credited to all members of Pearl Jam, it was primarily written by vocalist Eddie Vedder. The length of the song's title was a reaction by the band to the fact that most of its songs featured one-word titles. The song is often referred to simply as "Elderly Woman" or "Small Town" by the band and its fans. Despite the lack of a commercial single release, the song reached number 17 on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart. An acoustic version of the song can be found on the "Go" single. The song was included on Pearl Jam's 2004 greatest hits album, rearviewmirror .

<i>Company of Strangers</i> (Company of Strangers album) 1992 studio album by Company of Strangers

Company of Strangers is the first and only studio album by Australian supergroup Company of Strangers. The album was recorded in 1992, and first released in Australia in December 1992. It peaked at number 9 on the ARIA Charts and was certified gold.

The Seventh Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards was held on 14 April 1993 at the Entertainment Centre in Sydney. Host, Richard Wilkins, was assisted by presenters, James Reyne, Elle Macpherson, Billy Birmingham, Tim Finn, Neil Finn, Daryl Somers and others, to distribute 24 awards. There were live performances and the awards were televised.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">She Talks to Angels</span> 1991 single by the Black Crowes

"She Talks to Angels" is a song by American rock band the Black Crowes. It is the eighth track on their first album, Shake Your Money Maker (1990), and was the fourth single released from the album in 1991. The song reached number 30 on the US Billboard Hot 100, number one on the Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart, and number 21 in New Zealand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Even When I'm Sleeping</span> 1997 single by Leonardos Bride

"Even When I'm Sleeping" is a song by Australian band Leonardo's Bride that was the second single from their first studio album, Angel Blood. Released on 13 April 1997, "Even When I'm Sleeping" peaked at No. 4 on the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) Singles Chart in July 1997 and was certified gold.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Accidently Kelly Street</span> 1992 single by Frente!

"Accidently Kelly Street" is the debut single of Australian indie pop group Frente!, released in October 1992 ahead of their debut studio album, Marvin the Album. The title includes an unintentional misspelling of "accidentally" that the band decided to keep. The song peaked at No. 4 on both the Australian and New Zealand singles charts, and it was a minor hit in the United Kingdom in 1994, peaking at No. 80 on the UK Singles Chart.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Careless (song)</span> 1989 single by Paul Kelly and the Messengers

"Careless" is a song by Australian rock group Paul Kelly and the Messengers, released in October 1989 as the second single from their 1989 studio album, So Much Water So Close to Home. The song was written by Kelly and co-produced with Scott Litt. The single was released in October 1989 on the Mushroom Records label. It peaked at number 116 on the ARIA singles chart. The song was later covered by Renée Geyer on Difficult Woman (1994), Angie Hart on Women at the Well (2002), and Ozi Batla on Before Too Long (2010).

<i>Clunk</i> (EP) 1992 EP by Frente!

Clunk is the second extended play (EP) by Australian alternative rock group Frente!. The five-track EP, produced by Daniel Denholm, was released in March 1992 via the White Label imprint of Mushroom Records. It peaked at No. 3 on Australia's ARIA Singles Chart. Its lead track, "Ordinary Angels", won Breakthrough Artist – Single at ARIA Music Awards of 1993. That track also appeared on their debut album, Marvin the Album, in November and was released as a single in Europe and North America in 1993.

<i>Labour of Love</i> (Frente! EP) 1993 EP by Frente!

Labour of Love is the third Extended Play by Australian alternative rock group Frente!. It was released outside of Australia in 1993. The EP peaked at number 10 on the US Top Heatseekers chart.

<i>Lonely</i> (Frente! EP) 1994 EP by Frente!

Lonely is the fourth extended play (EP) by Australian alternative rock group Frente!. It was released in Australia in May 1994 and peaked at number seven on the Australian Singles Chart, earning a gold sales certification. Prior to the EP's release, "Lonely" was originally issued as a three-track single in January 1994 and peaked at number 88 on the Australian Singles Chart.

<i>Live at Fez, New York 2004</i> 2014 live album by Frente!

Live at Fez, New York 2004 is the first live album by Australian alternative rock group Frente!. It was recorded in New York City in 2004 The album was released as a download in 2014 to pledgers of Frente!'s pledgemusic campaign to re-release a remastered Marvin the Album . It was self-released and unable to chart.

References

  1. "Frente! – Clunk (EP)". australian-charts.com. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  2. "Winners by Year 1993". Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). Archived from the original on 14 December 2007. Retrieved 4 December 2013.
  3. Gazzo, Jane (2022). Sound as Ever - The Greatest Decade in Australian Music 1990-1999. Melbourne Books. p. 51.