The Boatman's Call
| The Boatman's Call | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| File:Nick cave and the bad seeds-the boatman's call.jpg | ||||
| Studio album by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds | ||||
| Released | March 3, 1997 | |||
| Recorded | June—August 1996 at Sarm West Studios, London, United Kingdom | |||
| Genre | Alternative rock | |||
| Length | 52:07 | |||
| Label | Mute/Reprise | |||
| Producer | Flood, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds | |||
| Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds chronology | ||||
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| Singles from The Boatman's Call | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| Drowned in Sound | 10/10[2] |
| Entertainment Weekly | B+[3] |
| Los Angeles Times | [4] |
| NME | 8/10[5] |
| Pitchfork Media | 9.3/10[6] |
| Record Collector | [7] |
| Rolling Stone |  [8] |
| Select | [9] |
| Uncut | [10] |
The Boatman's Call is the tenth studio album by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, released in 1997. The album, which is entirely piano-based and a departure from the band's post-punk catalogue, remains one of the most critically acclaimed releases of Nick Cave's career.
Contents
Background and production
Recording for the album began at Sarm West Studios in London, United Kingdom in mid-1996, with "The Garden Duet", one of the album's outtakes, being the first song recorded. Though the bulk of The Boatman's Call was recorded at Sarm West, further recordings — including overdubs — were later done at Abbey Road Studios.
Musically, the album's tone is considered sombre and minimalist and marks a major departure for Cave and The Bad Seeds. Moving away from full-band arrangements and character-based narratives, the album's music and lyrics move towards the more intimate sound of Cave's solo voice accompanied by piano or a few other instruments. The tempo is also generally slow, reflecting many of the moods of the songs. Many of the lyrics seem to reflect on Cave's personal relationships and spiritual yearnings at the time of writing. Some songs are thought to be directed at either the mother of Cave's oldest son Luke, Viviane Carneiro (in "Where Do We Go Now But Nowhere?") or PJ Harvey, with whom he had a brief relationship around that time (as referenced in "West Country Girl", "Black Hair" and "Green Eyes"). Green Eyes includes a line from “Sonnet 18”, by Louise Labé (Kiss me, rekiss me, & kiss me again).
Cave performed "Into My Arms" at the funeral of Michael Hutchence and requested that the TV cameras be shut off for his performance out of respect for Hutchence. The song "People Ain't No Good" was also featured in the movie Shrek 2. In October 2010, the album was listed in the top 30 in the book, 100 Best Australian Albums.[11]
Track listing
All songs written and composed by Nick Cave.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Into My Arms" | 4:15 |
| 2. | "Lime Tree Arbour" | 2:56 |
| 3. | "People Ain't No Good" | 5:42 |
| 4. | "Brompton Oratory" | 4:06 |
| 5. | "There is a Kingdom" | 4:52 |
| 6. | "(Are You) The One That I've Been Waiting For?" | 4:05 |
| 7. | "Where Do We Go Now But Nowhere?" | 5:46 |
| 8. | "West Country Girl" | 2:45 |
| 9. | "Black Hair" | 4:14 |
| 10. | "Idiot Prayer" | 4:21 |
| 11. | "Far from Me" | 5:33 |
| 12. | "Green Eyes" | 3:32 |
|
Total length:
|
52:07 | |
Bonus tracks
| 2011 Remaster | ||
|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Length |
| 13. | "Little Empty Boat" (Words: Cave, Music: Cave, Bargeld, Casey, Harvey) | |
| 14. | "Right Now I'm A-Roaming" (Words: Cave, Music: Cave, Casey, Harvey, Savage, Wydler) | |
| 15. | "Black Hair (Band Version)" | |
| 16. | "Come Into My Sleep" | |
| 17. | "Babe, I Got You Bad" | |
Outtakes and other songs
A number of other songs were recorded at The Boatman's Call sessions, some of which were later released as b-sides to the album's two singles and also on Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds 2005 compilation album, B-Sides and Rarities.
- "The Garden Duet"
- "I Do, Dear, I Do"
- "Opium Tea" (released on B-Sides & Rarities)
- "Sheep May Safely Graze" (released on B-Sides & Rarities)
- "Wake Up My Lover"
- "Farewell, Goodbye, So Long"
- "I Got Another Woman Now, Dear"
- "Little Empty Boat" (released as a b-side on "Into My Arms")
- "Right Now I'm A-Roaming" (released as a b-side on "Into My Arms")
- "Come Into My Sleep" (released as a b-side on "(Are You) The One That I've Been Waiting For?")
- "Babe, I Got You Bad" (released as a b-side on "(Are You) The One That I've Been Waiting For?"')
Critical reception
The Boatman's Call received almost unanimous critical acclaim upon release with many reviewers citing it as Cave's most poignant album. NME rated it as the 23rd best album of 1997.[12]
Personnel
- Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
- Nick Cave – vocals (1-17), piano (1-3,8,11-13,15), organ (2,5,10-11), keyboards (casio) (4), vibes (3), keyboard (14)
- Mick Harvey – electric guitar (6,10,13-14,17), acoustic guitar (5,7-8,12), bass (2), organ (6,13-14,16-17), vibes (3), bass organ (9), backing vocals (14), xylophone (16)
- Blixa Bargeld – electric guitar (4-5,7,10-11,13-14,16-17), piano treatment (8), backing vocals (13-14)
- Martyn P. Casey – bass (1,3-8,10-11,13-17), backing vocals (13)
- Conway Savage – piano (5-7,10,14,16-17), backing vocals (5)
- Warren Ellis – violin (3,7-8,10-11), accordion (9), piano (9), looped violin (13)
- Jim Sclavunos – drums (6), melodica (12), bells (5,14), percussion (13), organ (15), bongos (16), tambourine (17)
- Thomas Wydler – drums (2-3,5,7-8,10-11,13-17), maracas (4), backing vocals (13)
- Technical personnel
- Flood - producer, engineer, mixing
- Chris Scard - co-producer, mixing
- Paul Corkett - engineer
- Paul Hicks - assistant engineer
- Paul Wright - assistant engineer
- Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - additional production
Chart positions
Singles
| Year | Single | Peak positions | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUS [25] |
FIN [26] |
NOR [27] |
NZD [28] |
SWE [29] |
UK [24] |
|||
| 1997 | "Into My Arms" | 26 | 10 | 8 | 41 | 46 | 53 | |
| "(Are You) The One That I've Been Waiting For?" | — | — | — | — | — | 67 | ||
References
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