Pale Green Ghosts is the second solo album by former The Czars frontman John Grant, released on March 11, 2013, on the Bella Union label.[13] Recorded in Reykjavík and produced by Icelandic musician Birgir Þórarinsson, the album features a range of local musicians alongside Irish singer Sinéad O'Connor providing backing vocals.[13]

Pale Green Ghosts
Studio album by
ReleasedMarch 11, 2013
GenreSynth-pop, soft rock
Length60:40
LabelBella Union
ProducerBirgir Þórarinsson, John Grant
John Grant chronology
Queen of Denmark
(2010)
Pale Green Ghosts
(2013)
Grey Tickles, Black Pressure
(2015)
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?8.3/10[1]
Metacritic83/100[2]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
The Daily Telegraph[4]
The Guardian[5]
The Independent[6]
Mojo[7]
NME8/10[8]
Pitchfork7.0/10[9]
Q[10]
Record Collector[11]
Uncut8/10[12]

The title refers to the Russian olive trees that stand along the I-25 highway near Grant's childhood home in Parker, Colorado.[14] The track "Pale Green Ghosts" includes a string arrangement inspired by the second movement of Prelude in C-sharp minor by Rachmaninoff.[15] Pale Green Ghosts was chosen as Album of the Year 2013 by Rough Trade.[16]

Track listing

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All tracks are written by John Grant

Pale Green Ghosts track listing
No.TitleLength
1."Pale Green Ghosts"6:04
2."Black Belt"4:18
3."GMF"5:13
4."Vietnam"5:29
5."It Doesn't Matter to Him" (featuring Sinéad O'Connor)6:27
6."Why Don't You Love Me Anymore" (featuring Sinéad O'Connor)6:10
7."You Don't Have To"5:51
8."Sensitive New Age Guy"4:40
9."Ernest Borgnine"4:53
10."I Hate This Town"4:01
11."Glacier" (featuring Sinéad O'Connor)7:34
Disc 2
No.TitleLength
1."Black Belt" (Hercules and Love Affair Remix)7:48
2."Black Belt" (Gluteus Maximus Vocal Remix)8:24
3."Pale Green Ghosts" (Nivolt Remix)5:20
4."Pale Green Ghosts" (No Ceremony /// Remix)4:48
5."Why Don't You Love Me" (Nivolt Remix)5:48
6."Why Don't You Love Me" (Bon Homme Remix)7:39

Personnel

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  • John Grant – lead vocals, synth programming
  • Chris Pemberton – piano
  • Sinéad O'Connor – backing vocals
  • Arnar Geir Ómarsson – drums
  • McKenzie Smith – drums
  • Jakob Smári Magnússon – bass (tracks 3 and 10)
  • Paul Alexander – bass
  • Pétur Hallgrímsson – guitar
  • Óskar Gudjónsson – saxophone
  • Birgir Þórarinsson (a.k.a. Biggi Veira) – synth programming

Charts

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Weekly charts

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Weekly chart performance for Pale Green Ghosts
Chart (2013) Peak
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[17] 42
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[18] 122
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[19] 68
Irish Albums (IRMA)[20] 16
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[21] 42
UK Albums (OCC)[22] 16
US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[23] 28
Scottish Albums (OCC)[24] 20

Year-end charts

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2013 year-end chart performance for Pale Green Ghosts
Chart (2013) Rank
Icelandic Albums (Tónlist)[25] 1

References

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  1. ^ "Pale Green Ghosts by John Grant reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved December 30, 2019.
  2. ^ "Reviews for Pale Green Ghosts by John Grant". Metacritic. Retrieved May 23, 2013.
  3. ^ Monger, James Christopher. "Pale Green Ghosts – John Grant". AllMusic. Retrieved July 22, 2013.
  4. ^ Brown, Helen (March 19, 2013). "John Grant, Pale Green Ghost, album review". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved July 22, 2013.
  5. ^ Petridis, Alexis (March 7, 2013). "John Grant: Pale Green Ghosts". The Guardian. London. Retrieved April 1, 2013.
  6. ^ Montgomery, Hugh (March 9, 2013). "CD of the week: Album: John Grant, Pale Green Ghosts (Bella Union)". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on September 19, 2015. Retrieved July 22, 2013.
  7. ^ "John Grant: Pale Green Ghosts". Mojo (233): 86. April 2013.
  8. ^ Levine, Nick (March 8, 2013). "John Grant – 'Pale Green Ghosts'". NME. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved November 27, 2013.
  9. ^ Hopper, Jessica (May 16, 2013). "John Grant: Pale Green Ghosts". Pitchfork. Retrieved November 27, 2013.
  10. ^ "John Grant: Pale Green Ghosts". Q (321): 112. April 2013.
  11. ^ Staunton, Terry (April 2013). "John Grant – Pale Green Ghosts". Record Collector (413). Retrieved May 6, 2019.
  12. ^ Mulholland, Garry (March 21, 2013). "John Grant – Pale Green Ghosts". Uncut. Archived from the original on March 28, 2013. Retrieved November 27, 2013.
  13. ^ a b Lynskey, Dorian (March 3, 2013). "John Grant: 'I wanted to let some of the anger out'". The Guardian. London. Retrieved March 24, 2013.
  14. ^ Cragg, Michael (January 22, 2013). "New music: John Grant – Pale Green Ghosts (No Ceremony Remix)". The Guardian. London. Retrieved March 24, 2013.
  15. ^ "Rachmaninoff remixed: one composer's enduring influence". London Philharmonic Orchestra. 2015. Archived from the original on April 6, 2015.
  16. ^ "Rough Trade Albums of the Year 2013". Rough Trade. Archived from the original on November 27, 2013. Retrieved November 27, 2013.
  17. ^ "Ultratop.be – John Grant – Pale Green Ghosts" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 26, 2022.
  18. ^ "Ultratop.be – John Grant – Pale Green Ghosts" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 26, 2022.
  19. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – John Grant – Pale Green Ghosts" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 26, 2022.
  20. ^ "Irish-charts.com – Discography John Grant". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 26, 2022.
  21. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – John Grant – Pale Green Ghosts". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 26, 2022.
  22. ^ "John Grant | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved May 26, 2022.
  23. ^ "John Grant Chart History (Heatseekers Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved May 26, 2022.
  24. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  25. ^ "Árslisti Tónlist.is 2013 - Plötur" (in Icelandic). Tónlist. Archived from the original on October 7, 2014. Retrieved May 26, 2022.