Chemical City is the second studio album by Canadian musician Sam Roberts, released in Canada on April 11, 2006, and in the United States on May 16, 2006. The album debuted at number three on the Canadian Albums Chart, selling 10,000 units in its first week.[2] The album was certified Platinum in Canada on May 17, 2018. The album had three singles: "The Gate", "Bridge To Nowhere", and "With a Bullet".
| Chemical City | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | April 11, 2006 | |||
| Recorded | 2004–2005 | |||
| Studio |
| |||
| Genre | Rock, roots rock[1] | |||
| Length | 47:56 | |||
| Label | Universal Music Canada | |||
| Producer | Joseph Donovan | |||
| Sam Roberts chronology | ||||
| ||||
Critical reception
edit| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [3] |
| Chart Attack | [4] |
| Jam! |  [5] |
| Pitchfork | 6.7/10[1] |
Jo-Ann Greene of AllMusic praised the album for capturing '70s classic rock in terms of packaging and tracks that are reminiscent of New Model Army, the Rolling Stones and Small Faces, calling it "a sumptuous helping of songs with strong melodies and anthemic choruses vying with more subtle, shaded pieces, all filled with meaty lyrics that are easily the equal of the music."[3] Cory D. Byron of Pitchfork also commended Roberts for his stripped down singer-songwriter take on classic rock but was more favorable to the record's upbeat tracks than its slower-paced ones, concluding that, "Ultimately the ballads do more to weigh it down than lift it up, but Chemical City still has plenty to offer fans of old-fashioned rock."[1]
Track listing
editAll songs written by Sam Roberts.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "The Gate" | 5:57 |
| 2. | "Bridge to Nowhere" | 3:09 |
| 3. | "With a Bullet" | 4:00 |
| 4. | "Mind Flood" | 8:09 |
| 5. | "Uprising Down Under" | 4:35 |
| 6. | "Mystified, Heavy" | 4:50 |
| 7. | "An American Draft Dodger in Thunder Bay" | 3:13 |
| 8. | "The Bootleg Saint" | 4:08 |
| 9. | "The Resistance" | 5:13 |
| 10. | "A Stone Would Cry Out" | 4:36 |
2021 Re-release
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 11. | "Fall Before You Finish" | 4:30 |
| 12. | "Major Minor" | 5:02 |
| 13. | "The Cathedral" | 7:03 |
| 14. | "Step Inside" | 5:54 |
Personnel
editAdapted from the booklet of Chemical City.[6]
Musicians
- Sam Roberts - Vocals, guitars, keyboards, strings, co-producer
- Dave Nugent - Guitars, backing vocals
- Eric Fares - Keyboards, backing vocals, acoustic guitar
- James Hall - Bass
- Josh Tragger - Drums, percussion on tracks 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 8, and 9
- Bill Anthopoulos - Drums, percussion on tracks 4 and 7
- Matt Mays - Vocals, guitar on track 5
- Danielle Duval - Vocals on tracks 8 and 9
- George "El Condor" Donoso - Additional drums on track 4
Technical staff
- Joseph Donovan - Producer, co-producer, engineer
- Mark Howard - Co-producer, engineer
- Don Murnaghan - Studio assistant
- Garnet Armstrong - Art director, design
- Susan Michalek - Design
- Ken Dewar - Illustrations
- David Gillespie - Photography
- Dave Spencer - Manager
- Patrick Sambrook - Co-manager
Certifications
edit| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Canada (Music Canada)[7] | Platinum | 100,000‡ |
|
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. | ||
References
edit- ^ a b c D. Byron, Cory (July 13, 2006). "Sam Roberts: Chemical City". Pitchfork. Retrieved June 6, 2013.
- ^ "Sam Roberts' 'City' enters at No. 3". Jam!. Archived from the original on July 10, 2012. Retrieved 2011-04-03.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ a b Greene, Jo-Ann. "Chemical City - Sam Roberts". AllMusic. Retrieved July 10, 2011.
- ^ CHARTattack review[usurped]
- ^ Sterdan, Darryl (April 13, 2006). "Roberts Sam: Chemical City". Jam!. Archived from the original on July 17, 2012. Retrieved July 10, 2011.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ Chemical City (booklet). Sam Roberts. Universal Music Canada. 2006. 0249852006.
{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ "Canadian album certifications – Sam Roberts – Chemical City". Music Canada. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
External links
edit- Chemical City - Chemical City Official Site