Urban Renewal (tribute album)

Urban Renewal is a tribute album to singer Phil Collins, released in February 2001 in most European markets and in the United States on 25 February 2003, containing remakes of his songs by R&B and hip hop performers. Collins remarked:

Urban Renewal
Studio album by
Various artists
ReleasedFebruary 2001
GenreR&B/hip hop
LabelWEA
Singles from Urban Renewal
  1. "Another Day in Paradise"
    Released: March 2001
  2. "In the Air Tonite"
    Released: August 2001
  3. "Something Happened on the Way to Heaven"
    Released: November 2003

"We all think black R&B artists know what they're talking about. The first time I was aware of it was when I watched a documentary on Ice-T. This smug UK journalist looking at his record collection said, 'What's with all the Phil Collins stuff?' He said, 'Don't mess with my Phil.' I remember thinking, 'My God!' You feel like ringing people up and saying, 'Are you watching this?!'"[1]

Although the album itself was not a worldwide success, only charting in Germany at number three, individual singles from the album performed well in various markets, including "Another Day in Paradise" as performed by Brandy and Ray J and "In the Air Tonite" as performed by rapper Lil' Kim. A remake by Deborah Cox, "Something Happened on the Way to Heaven", was later released as a dance remix on her 2003 album, Remixed. It reached number one on the Billboard Dance Radio Airplay chart and peaked at 95 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Critical reception

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The chief pop and rock critic of The Guardian, Alexis Petridis, described it as a "horrid and inexplicable album of hip-hop and R&B covers" with the "solitary redeeming track" being the version of "Sussudio".[2] In 2006, Q magazine listed Urban Renewal as No. 3 in their list of the 50 worst albums ever.[3]

Track listing

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Urban Renewal – Standard edition
No.TitlePerformer(s)Length
1."Ray J Prelude"Ray J0:40
2."Another Day in Paradise"Brandy and Ray J4:29
3."Sussudio"Ol' Dirty Bastard4:20
4."Something Happened on the Way to Heaven"Deborah Cox4:31
5."This Must Be Love"Dane Bowers featuring Kelis3:34
6."In the Air Tonite"Lil' Kim featuring Phil Collins4:23
7."Gotta Hold Over Me"Coko4:05
8."I Don't Care Anymore" (Produced by The Neptunes)Kelis featuring Pharrell3:50
9."Can't Turn Back the Years"Joe4:38
10."Do You Remember?"Debelah Morgan4:11
11."Against All Odds"Montell Jordan4:18
12."One More Night"Changing Faces4:36
13."All of My Life"TQ4:28
14."I Wish It Would Rain Down"Brian McKnight and Monique S.V.4:10
15."Take Me Home"Malik Pendleton4:34
Total length:60:01
Urban Renewal – Japanese deluxe edition (bonus tracks)
No.TitlePerformer(s)Length
16."Separate Lives"Chico DeBarge4:08
17."Long Long Way to Go"Tony Rich Project5:01
18."Another Day in Paradise" (Black Legend VS. J-Reverse Club Mix)"Brandy and Ray J4:22
Total length:1:14:05

Charts

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References

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  1. ^ White, Terri: "Cash for questions", Q, December 2014, pp30–33
  2. ^ Petridis, Alexis (9 November 2001). "They are not worthy". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 5 November 2016.
  3. ^ "Q – The 50 Worst Albums Ever!". Q Magazine (238). May 2006. Retrieved 17 January 2012.
  4. ^ "Austriancharts.at – {{{artist}}} – Urban Renewal (Songs Of Phil Collins)" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 September 2020.
  5. ^ "Ultratop.be – {{{artist}}} – Urban Renewal (Songs Of Phil Collins)" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 September 2020.
  6. ^ "Lescharts.com – {{{artist}}} – Urban Renewal (Songs Of Phil Collins)". Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 September 2020.
  7. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – {{{artist}}} – Urban Renewal (Songs Of Phil Collins)" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 22 September 2020.
  8. ^ "Charts.nz – {{{artist}}} – Urban Renewal (Songs Of Phil Collins)". Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 September 2020.
  9. ^ "Swisscharts.com – {{{artist}}} – Urban Renewal (Songs Of Phil Collins)". Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 September 2020.
  10. ^ "Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 22 September 2020.