The Original High

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The Original High
Adam Lambert - The Original High (Official Album Cover).png
Studio album by Adam Lambert
Released June 12, 2015 (2015-06-12)
Recorded 2014–15; Stockholm, Sweden
Genre
Label Warner Bros.
Producer
Adam Lambert chronology
Trespassing
(2012)Trespassing2012		 The Original High
(2015)
Singles from The Original High
  1. "Ghost Town"
    Released: April 21, 2015
  2. "Another Lonely Night"
    Released: October 9, 2015

The Original High is the third studio album by American recording artist Adam Lambert, released on June 12, 2015, by Warner Bros. Records. Executive produced by Max Martin and Shellback, the duo responsible for co-writing and producing Lambert's early-career hits "Whataya Want from Me" and "If I Had You", the album marks Lambert's first release since leaving previous record label, RCA Records. The record's style has been described as synthpop,[1] with additional influences of dance, house and funk genres.

The album was preceded by the release of its lead single, "Ghost Town", on April 21, 2015. "Another Lonely Night" was released as the album's second single on October 9, 2015.

The Original High peaked within the top 10 of 11 national album charts. It debuted at number 3 on the Billboard 200 chart selling 42,000 copies in its opening week. It also became Lambert's first ever UK top 10 album, debuting and peaking at number 8.

Background

In July 2013, it was reported that Lambert had left his record label of five years, RCA Records, due to "creative differences" and the label allegedly pushing him to record an album composed of cover songs from the 1980s.[2][3] The day after his announcement, Lambert was contacted by Warner Bros. Records.[4] A deal with the label was confirmed by Billboard in January 2015, along with news that his upcoming album would be executive produced by Max Martin and Shellback and was scheduled for release in the summer of 2015.[5] Songwriting for the album began in early 2014, with recording taking place between 2014 and 2015 in the producers' native Sweden.[4]

Lambert first revealed the album title on social media on January 29, 2015, also his birthday.[6] In March 2015, he unveiled additional details regarding the musical direction of the album in an interview with Hunger TV magazine.[7] Describing the style of the album as less "campy" and theatrical than his previous material, Lambert also identified the album's genre as "definitely pop but not bubblegum."[7][8]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
Source Rating
Metacritic 70/100[9]
Review scores
Source Rating
AllMusic 4/5 stars[10]
Digital Spy 3/5 stars[11]
Entertainment Focus 5/5 stars[12]
The Guardian 3/5 stars[13]
The Irish Times 2/5 stars[14]
The New York Times Positive[15]
Rolling Stone 3/5 stars[16]

The Original High received positive reviews from music critics. On Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 70 based on six reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[9] Stephen Thomas Erlewine from AllMusic gave the album four out of five stars, commenting that "Adam Lambert demonstrates he's in perfect control of his style and sound and knows how to combine both into a sterling modern pop record."[17] Jon Caramanica, music critic of The New York Times was also positive on the album, found the star focused and committed to his style and in the end noted: "While there are a few missteps--Mr. Lambert doesn’t have the R&B sultriness required for “Underground,” and “Rumors” bizarrely cribs the jaunty synth pattern from Lil Wayne’s “Lollipop”--there are almost no extravagances. After years of spectacle, Mr. Lambert may have been saved by modesty."[15]

Lauren Murphy from The Irish Times gave only two stars out of five, commented "this unfortunately titled record is neither original nor uplifting enough to generate a high of any description."[14] Brittany Spanos from the Rolling Stone magazine gave the album three out of five stars, stating that "even when the lyrics verge on ridiculousness [...], he's one of the biggest personalities in pop."[16] Maura Johnson from The Boston Globe wrote that the album is "an appealing snapshot of how Lambert has grown, and how he’s still willing to surprise his listeners and himself."[18] Joey Guerra of the Houston Chronicle was similarly impressed, writing that the album "builds on the brash appeal that made [Lambert] a star."[19] Pip Ellwood of Entertainment Focus called The Original High "the strongest record that Lambert has released to date."[12]

Commercial performance

In the US market, music industry forecasters predicted that the album could enter the top 10 of the US Billboard 200 chart dated 4 July, with about 35,000 units in its first week.[20] It debuted on the Billboard 200 at number three, selling 42,000 copies in its first week, but totalling 47,000 units including streams and tracks.[21]

On the UK Albums Chart, The Original High debuted at number eight, selling 9,817 copies in its first week, giving Lambert his first-ever UK top ten debut.[22][23] The album also achieved Lambert's highest-ever album position in the Netherlands, debuting at number ten.[24]

Track listing

The Original High – Standard edition[25]
No. Title Writer(s) Producer(s) Length
1. "Ghost Town"  
3:28
2. "The Original High"  
  • Shellback
  • Mattman & Robin
 3:26
3. "Another Lonely Night"  
  • Lambert
  • Martin
  • Fox
  • Payami
  • Martin
  • Payami
 3:45
4. "Underground"  
  • Payami
  • Janiak
3:37
5. "There I Said It"  
  • Lambert
  • Payami
  • Janiak
  • Payami
  • Carlsson[a]
 4:21
6. "Rumors" (featuring Tove Lo)
  • Lambert
  • Oscar Görres
  • Tove Lo
  • Shellback
  • Shellback
  • OzGo
 3:45
7. "Evil in the Night"  
  • Fox
  • Shellback
  • Kotecha
  • Payami
  • Oscar Holter
  • Shellback
  • Holter
  • Payami
 3:56
8. "Lucy" (featuring Brian May)
  • Lambert
  • Payami
  • Freja Blomberg
  • Fredrik Samsson
  • Martin
  • Payami
  • Samsson
  • Carlsson[a]
 3:32
9. "Things I Didn't Say"  
  • Ilya
  • Holter
 3:58
10. "The Light"  
  • Lulou
  • Carlsson[a]
 3:35
11. "Heavy Fire"  
  • Lambert
  • Anton Rundberg
  • Hampus Norlander
  • Joakim Jarl
  • Elin Blom
  • Svidden
  • Julia Karlsson
  • Eklöw
3:19
Total length:
 40:42
Notes
  • ^[a] signifies a vocal producer
  • ^[b] signifies an additional producer
  • ^[c] signifies a remixer

Personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of The Original High (Deluxe Version).[26]

Performers

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  • Adam Lambert – vocals (all tracks)
  • Shellback – keys (2, 6, 7), programming (2, 6, 7), guitar (2, 7), bass (7), backing vocals (2, 6, 7)
  • Mattman & Robin – keys (2), programming (2), guitar (2), bass (2), percussion (2)
  • Ali Payami – programming (1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 13), bass (1, 3, 4, 5, 8), keys (1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8), perc (1, 3, 4, 5, 8, 13)
  • Tobias Karlsson – guitars (1, 13, 14), keys (13, 14), bass (13, 14), programming (13, 14)
  • Tove Lo – vocals (6)
  • Oscar Holter – keys (7, 9), bass (9), guitar (9), programming (7, 9), backing vocals (9)
  • Ilya – programming (9), bass (9), keys (9), guitars (9), backing vocals (9)
  • Thrice Noble – programming (13), additional keys and guitar (13)
  • Savan Kotecha – backing vocals (9)
  • Lulou – guitars, keys, bass, programming, perc (10)
  • Svideen – keys, bass, programming, perc (11)
  • Jarly – keys, bass, programming, perc (11)
  • Style of Eye – keys, bass, programming, perc (11)
  • Andreas Schuller – perc, synth (12)
  • John West – guitar (12)
  • Brian May – guitar (8)
  • OzGo – keys (6), guitar (6), programming (6)
  • Axident – guitar, percussion (2)
  • Max Martin – backing vocals (4)
  • Sterling Fox – backing vocals (1, 3)
Production and recording

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  • Max Martin – production (1, 3, 8) exec. production (all tracks)
  • Shellback – production (2, 6, 7) exec. production (all tracks)
  • Ali Payami – production (1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8) additional production (13)
  • Tobias Karlsson – production (13, 14), engineering (13, 14)
  • Mattman & Robin – production (2)
  • Fredrik Samsson – production (8)
  • Ilya – production (9), vocal production (4, 9)
  • Lulou – production (10)
  • OzGo – production (6)
  • Axident – production (12)
  • Oscar Holter – production (7, 9), vocal production (9)
  • Svidden – production (11)
  • Jarly – production (11), vocal editing (11)
  • Style of Eye – production (11)
  • Cory Bice – engineering (1, 9), assistant engineering (3, 5, 8)
  • Michael Ilbert – additional engineering (1)
  • Tobias Karlsson – vocal recording
  • Peter Carlsson – engineering (9), vocal production (5, 8, 10, 11), vocal recording (2), vocal editing (3, 7)
  • Spyke Lee – assistant engineering (2, 6, 7)
  • Sam Holland – engineering (3, 5, 8, 10)
  • Jeremy Lertola – assistant engineering (3)
  • Axident – engineering (12)
  • Eric Weaver – engineering (13, 14)
  • Serban Ghenea – mixing (1–9)
  • John Hanes – assistant mix engineering (1–9)
  • Michael Ilbert – mixing (10–14)
  • Tim Roberts – assistant mix engineering (2, 6, 7)
  • Nanni Johansson – assistant mix engineering (10–14)
  • Tom Coyne – mastering (all tracks)
  • Randy Merrill – assistant mastering engineering (all tracks)

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2015) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[27] 4
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[28] 43
Czech Albums (ČNS IFPI)[29] 8
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[30] 61
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[31] 110
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[32] 3
Dutch Albums (MegaCharts)[24] 10
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[33] 4
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[34] 20
Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ)[35] 4
Irish Albums (IRMA)[36] 41
Italian Albums (FIMI)[37] 51
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[38] 47
Korean Albums (Gaon)[39] 39
Korean International Albums (Gaon)[40] 10
New Zealand Albums (Recorded Music NZ)[41] 6
Polish Albums (ZPAV)[42] 3
Scottish Albums (OCC)[43] 10
South African Albums (RISA)[44] 13
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[45] 51
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[46] 23
UK Albums (OCC)[47] 8
US Billboard 200[48] 3
US Digital Albums (Billboard)[49] 2
US Top Tastemaker Albums (Billboard)[50] 23

Year-end charts

Chart (2015) Position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[51] 87
Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ)[52] 85

Certifications

Region Certification Sales/shipments
Canada (Music Canada)[53] 4,800
United Kingdom (BPI)[54] 9,817
United States (RIAA)[55] 42,000
Poland (ZPAV)[56] Platinum 20,000
Russia (NFPF)[57] Platinum 10,000

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone

Release history

List of release dates, showing region, formats, label, editions, and reference
Region Date Format(s) Label Edition(s) Ref.
Australia June 12, 2015
Warner Bros.
  • Standard
  • deluxe
[58]
United States June 16, 2015
[25]

References

  1. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  6. ↑ Thrilled to announce the title of my upcoming album: THE ORIGINAL HIGH #theoriginalhigh Adam Lambert on Twitter. 29 January 2015. Retrieved 20 April 2015.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  8. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  10. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  11. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  13. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  17. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  18. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  19. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  20. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  21. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  22. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  23. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  24. ↑ 24.0 24.1 "Dutchcharts.nl – Adam Lambert – The Original High" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved June 20, 2015.
  25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 25.2 The Original High American release:
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  26. ↑ The Original High (Deluxe Version) (CD Liner Notes). Adam Lambert. Warner Bros. Records. 2015. 549641-2.
  27. ↑ "Australiancharts.com – Adam Lambert – The Original High". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 27, 2015.
  28. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – Adam Lambert – The Original High" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved June 24, 2015.
  29. ↑ "Czech Albums – Top 100". ČNS IFPI. Note: On the chart page, select 201527 on the field besides the word "Zobrazit", and then click over the word to retrieve the correct chart data. Retrieved July 7, 2015.
  30. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Adam Lambert – The Original High" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved June 20, 2015.
  31. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Adam Lambert – The Original High" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved June 26, 2015.
  32. ↑ "Adam Lambert – Chart history" Billboard Canadian Albums Chart for Adam Lambert. Retrieved June 25, 2015.
  33. ↑ "Adam Lambert: The Original High" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved June 21, 2015.
  34. ↑ "Longplay-Chartverfolgung at Musicline" (in German). Musicline.de. Phononet GmbH. Retrieved June 20, 2015.
  35. ↑ "Top 40 album DVD és válogatáslemez-lista – 2015. 27. hét" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ. Retrieved July 10, 2015.
  36. ↑ "GFK Chart-Track Albums: Week 25, 2015". Chart-Track. IRMA. Retrieved June 20, 2015.
  37. ↑ "Italiancharts.com – Adam Lambert – The Original High". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 25, 2015.
  38. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  39. ↑ "South Korea Gaon Album Chart". On the page, select "{{{date}}}" to obtain the corresponding chart. Gaon Chart Retrieved June 25, 2015.
  40. ↑ "South Korea Gaon International Album Chart". On the page, select "{{{date}}}", then "국외", to obtain the corresponding chart. Gaon Chart Retrieved June 25, 2015.
  41. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  42. ↑ "Oficjalna lista sprzedaży :: OLIS - Official Retail Sales Chart". OLiS. Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
  43. ↑ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  44. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  45. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Adam Lambert – The Original High". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 25, 2015.
  46. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Adam Lambert – The Original High". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 24, 2015.
  47. ↑ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 21, 2015.
  48. ↑ "Adam Lambert – Chart history" Billboard 200 for Adam Lambert. Retrieved June 24, 2015.
  49. ↑ "Adam Lambert – Chart history" Billboard Digital Albums for Adam Lambert. Retrieved June 24, 2015.
  50. ↑ "Adam Lambert – Chart history" Billboard Top Tastemaker Albums for Adam Lambert. Retrieved June 24, 2015.
  51. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  52. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  53. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  54. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. Enter The Original High in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select album in the field By Format. Click Search
  55. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH
  56. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  57. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  58. ↑ The Original High Australian release:
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External links

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