Odyssey Number Five
This article needs to be updated. The reason given is: Needs more information about the 20th Anniversary edition.(April 2021) |
Odyssey Number Five | ||||
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Universal Music | ||||
Producer | Nick DiDia | |||
Powderfinger chronology | ||||
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Singles from Odyssey Number Five | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
CMJ | (favourable)[3] |
Entertainment Weekly | B+[4] |
Los Angeles Times | [5] |
New Straits Times | (favourable)[6] |
New York Post | (highly favourable)[7] |
The New Zealand Herald | [8] |
PopMatters | (favourable)[9] |
Q | [10] |
Odyssey Number Five is the fourth
The album produced four
Many critics lauded the album as Powderfinger's best work, one stating that the album was "the Finger's Crowning Glory"; however, others were critical of the "imitation" contained in the album. Overall, the album won five ARIA Music Awards in 2001 and was certified
Background, recording, and production
In a 1997 interview, Powderfinger
Powderfinger worked with producer Nick DiDia on Odyssey Number Five, as they had done on Internationalist, finishing the album in August 2000 after six weeks of recording.[13] The band spent this time ensuring higher quality songs than on Internationalist, which had featured out-of-tune guitars on "Passenger".[13]
Odyssey Number Five was Powderfinger's shortest album when recorded, running approximately 45 minutes. The focus of the album was on restraint, with more simplistic lyrics than previously, and with a plain and simple message intended.[12] Fanning said of his songwriting ethic: "You try and make it something that’s got some substance, but also, you can never do that at the cost of it having relevance to what you’re singing."[12] Powderfinger manager Paul Piticco commented that "their ethos is to be pushing the limits of their songwriting ability".[12]
Like Powderfinger's previous album, Internationalist, Odyssey Number Five commented on
As well as providing social commentary, Odyssey Number Five also discussed love, a recurring motif in Fanning's songwriting. Fanning noted that one of the causes of this was his passion for
Odyssey Number Five marked Powderfinger's first successful attempt to enter the United States market. Fanning told
Album and single releases
Odyssey Number Five was released on 4 September 2000, on the
Four
The second single from the album was "
"Like a Dog" was released as the third single on 15 January 2001. The song was heavy in political sentiment, akin to "The Day You Come" on Internationalist.[16] The riff for the song was written by Ian Haug, and the song's music video featured Australian Aboriginal boxer Anthony Mundine, and was based on the 1980 Martin Scorsese film Raging Bull. Drummer Jon Coghill said the song revolved around the question of "why the hell won’t John Howard say sorry to the Aboriginal people!"[23] "Like a Dog" spent one week on the ARIA Singles Chart, at #40.[26]
Two songs from the album, "
In August 2020, Powderfinger released a "20th anniversary deluxe edition", with 10 additional tracks, four of them previously unreleased.[27]
Reception
Odyssey Number Five mostly gained positive reviews, and was more successful than its predecessor, Internationalist. Entertainment Weekly reviewer Marc Weingarten gave the album a B+. He stated that album entered new "terrain" in guitar rock, complimenting the "scratching and clawing guitars", drawing comparisons to Travis ("prim") and Oasis ("mock-grandiose").[4]
AllMusic reviewer Dean Carlson disliked the album, giving it a rating of one and a half stars. He described it as "little more than a slightly off-base perspective into the world of mid-90s American grunge", and described it as highly similar to Neil Young.[28] Despite this, Carlson praised the songs "Odyssey #5" and "My Happiness", stating that "too often, Powderfinger is too earnest, a bit too careful in their career". Carlson noted that despite his critique, the album achieved some success in the American market.[28]
Devon Powers of PopMatters complimented Fanning's vocals and said the focus of the album was "meaty, rolling ballads".[9] Powers noted that many of the songs on the album were "the kind of songs you put on repeat for hours, or days".[9] The main critique was for the "faster numbers", stating that "Like a Dog" "sounds mostly a little bored".[9] The review concluded by noting that the best songs on Odyssey were those not available as "fleeting radio singles and background music".[9]
Odyssey Number Five won the
In December 2021, the album was listed at no. 16 in Rolling Stone Australia’s ‘200 Greatest Albums of All Time’ countdown.[31]
Track listing
All songs written by Powderfinger:[32]
- "Waiting for the Sun" – 3:54
- "My Happiness" – 4:36
- "The Metre" – 4:33
- "Like a Dog" – 4:20
- "Odyssey #5" – 1:44
- "Up & Down & Back Again" – 4:24
- "My Kind of Scene" – 4:37
- "These Days" – 4:58
- "We Should Be Together Now" – 3:42
- "Thrilloilogy" – 6:10
- "Whatever Makes You Happy" – 2:28
- "Nature Boy" (UK release) – 3:37
Charts
Weekly charts
Chart (2000–2003) | Peak position |
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Australian Albums (ARIA)[33] | 1 |
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[34] | 15 |
Year-end charts
Chart (2000) | Position |
---|---|
Australian Albums (ARIA)[35] | 2 |
Chart (2001) | Position |
Australian Albums (ARIA)[36] | 7 |
Chart (2002) | Position |
Australian Albums (ARIA)[37] | 90 |
Decade-end charts
Chart (2000–2009) | Position |
---|---|
Australian Albums (ARIA)[38] | 11 |
Certifications
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Australia (ARIA)[39] | 8× Platinum | 560,000^ |
Australia (ARIA)[40] 20th Anniversary Edition |
Platinum | 70,000‡ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
Awards and nominations
ARIA Awards
Year | Nominated work | Award | Result[29] |
---|---|---|---|
2001 | Odyssey Number Five | Album of the Year | Won |
Highest Selling Album | Won | ||
Best Rock Album | Won | ||
Best Cover Art | Won | ||
Best Group | Won | ||
"My Happiness" | Single of the Year | Won | |
"Like a Dog" | Highest Selling Single | Nominated | |
Best Video | Nominated | ||
2002 | "The Metre" | Best Group | Nominated |
Other accolades
Year | Provider | Nominated work | Accolade | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
1999 | Triple J | "These Days" | Hottest 100 Inductee | No. 1[41] |
2000 | Triple J | "My Happiness" | Hottest 100 Inductee | No. 1[42] |
"My Kind of Scene" | Hottest 100 Inductee | No. 3[42] | ||
2001 | APRA
|
"My Happiness" | Song of the Year | Won[43] |
2010 | John O'Donnell, Toby Creswell, Craig Mathieson | Odyssey Number Five | 100 Best Australian Albums | No. 43[44] |
2011 | Triple J | Odyssey Number Five | Hottest 100 Australian Albums | No. 1[45] |
Personnel
Powderfinger
Production
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Additional musicians
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See also
References
- ^ a b Carlson, Dean. "Odyssey Number Five > Review". AllMusic. Retrieved 31 January 2008.
- ^ Christgau, Robert. "Robert Christgau: CG: Powerderfinger". Retrieved 31 January 2008.
- CMJ. 26 March 2001. p. 12.
- ^ a b Weingarten, Marc (30 March 2001). "Odyssey Number Five". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 6 January 2008.
- ^ Appleford, Steve (18 March 2001). "Powderfinger: Odyssey Number Five". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 20 November 2009.
- ^ Leo, Christie (17 June 2001). "Aussies rock with promise". Archived from the original on 2 November 2012. Retrieved 20 November 2009.
- ^ Aquilante, Dan (20 March 2001). "No Sugar Coating For Killing Heidi's Aussie-Pop". New York Post. Retrieved 20 November 2009.
- ^ Baillie, Russell (16 December 2000). "Powderfinger: Odyssey Number Five". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 20 November 2009.
- ^ a b c d e Powers, Devon. "Powderfinger: Odyssey #5". PopMatters. Retrieved 22 December 2007.
- ^ "Powderfinger: Odyssey Number Five". Q. June 2001. p. 113.
- ^ Nicholson, Geoff (17 November 1999). "Keeping An Even Keel". Time Off Publications.
- ^ a b c d e f g Wooldridge, Simon (September 2000). "This Sporting Life". Juice.
- ^ a b c d Yates, Rod (September 2000). "Trusty Old Jackets". Massive.
- ^ "Time to be pragmatic". The Australian. News.com.au. 20 December 2007. Archived from the original on 29 December 2007. Retrieved 6 January 2008.
In 1996, John Howard won by promising not a conservative revolution but to govern "for all of us" and to make Australians feel "relaxed and comfortable".
- Sain.
- ^ a b c Munro, Kelsey (February 2001). "Powderfinger 2001 - The Odyssey Continues". Esky.
- ^ a b Dennison, Pennie (September 2000). "Odyssey Number Five Is Born". Sain Unlimited.
- ^ Billboard.com. Retrieved 23 December 2007.
- ^ McCarthy, Shannon (24 May 2001). "Powderfinger Finds Their Bit of Happiness". Real Detroit Weekly.
- ^ Billboard. Archived from the originalon 20 February 2008. Retrieved 23 December 2007.
- ^ a b Sawford, Gavin (12 July 2001). "Powder to the People". RM Rave.
- ^ "Great Australian Albums series 2 (2008) – The Screen Guide". Screen Australia. Retrieved 11 November 2022.
- ^ a b Deegan, Ray (November 2001 – January 2002). "Powderfinger — Jon Coghill". Drum Scene.
- Fingerprints: The Best of Powderfinger, 1994 - 2000companion booklet.
- ^ "Discography". Powderfinger. Archived from the original on 17 March 2008. Retrieved 9 March 2008.
- ^ a b c "Discography — Powderfinger". australian-charts.com. Archived from the original on 30 September 2012. Retrieved 26 December 2007.
- ^ Martin, Josh (8 August 2020). "Powderfinger announce 'Odyssey Number Five' 20th anniversary reissue with new tracks". NME. Retrieved 29 April 2021.
- ^ Allmusic. Retrieved 23 December 2007.
- ^ a b "History: Winners by Artist: Powderfinger". Australian Recording Industry Association. Archived from the original on 26 September 2007. Retrieved 18 September 2007.
- ^ Apter, Jeff (April 2001). "Powderfinger — Band of the Year". Rolling Stone Australia.
- ^ Rolling Stone’s 200 Greatest Australian Albums of All Time. Rolling Stone Australia, Rolling Stone Australia, 06 December 2021. Retrieved 06 December 2021.
- ^ "Powderfinger — Odyssey Number Five". australian-charts.com. Retrieved 23 December 2007.
- ^ "Australiancharts.com – Powderfinger – Odyssey Number Five". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 January 2020.
- ^ "Charts.nz – Powderfinger – Odyssey Number Five". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 January 2020.
- ^ "End of Year Charts – ARIA Top 100 Albums 2000". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 4 May 2017.
- ^ "End of Year Charts – ARIA Top 100 Albums 2001". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 4 May 2017.
- ^ "End of Year Charts – ARIA Top 100 Albums 2002". ARIA Charts. Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 4 May 2017.
- ^ "2009 ARIA End of Decade Albums Chart". ARIA. January 2010. Retrieved 16 January 2020.
- ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2004 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 23 January 2020.
- ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2020 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 29 April 2021.
- ^ "history | triple j hottest 100 - 2008 | triple j". www.abc.net.au. 26 December 2008. Retrieved 9 May 2019.
- ^ a b "Hottest 100 2000". Triple J. Archived from the original on 4 November 2012. Retrieved 11 June 2007.
- ^ "APRA Music Awards 2001". Winners. Australasian Performing Right Association. Archived from the original on 21 December 2007. Retrieved 24 December 2007.
- ISBN 978-1-74066-955-9.
- ^ "Triple J Hottest 100 Australian Albums of All Time, 2011". Triple J. Archived from the original on 31 May 2013. Retrieved 26 June 2013.
- ^ Allmusic. Retrieved 23 December 2007.