The Sound of White
The Sound of White | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 6 September 2004 | |||
Recorded | 2004 | |||
Length | 49:46 | |||
Label | ||||
Producer | John Porter | |||
Missy Higgins chronology | ||||
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Singles from The Sound of White | ||||
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The Sound of White is the debut studio album by Australian pop singer-songwriter
Higgins' first single from the album was "
Background and recording
In 2001, while still at high school, Higgins wrote the song "All for Believing" as part of a music assignment.
In 2003, Higgins spent several months touring as a support act for other artists, and writing music for her debut album. She wrote most of the songs alone, and most of them on the piano.[6] She collaborated with Better Than Ezra musician Kevin Griffin on two songs; "Scar" and "Don't Ever". "Ten Days", inspired by Higgins' break-up with her boyfriend before she travelled to Europe, was co-written with Jay Clifford from Jump, Little Children.[7] "The River" was co-written with Clif Magness.
In November, Higgins released a self-titled extended play (EP), which contains four songs, including "All for Believing" and "Greed for Your Love", the song she had written in Europe.[4] In 2004, she travelled to the US to work with British musician and record producer John Porter and engineer and mixer Jay Newland. Porter assembled a group of session musicians for the album, including drummer Michael Barker, bassist John Patitucci and cellist Martin Tillman.[8][9]
Release
Higgins released her first single from the album, "
Higgins promoted the album in Australia in October 2004 with her first national tour as a headline act.[19]
The album was released in the USA on 7 June 2005.
Critical reception
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [20] |
Rolling Stone | [21] |
In his 2009 book Playlisted: Everything You Need to Know About Australian Music Right Now, Craig Mathieson said that The Sound of White was lyrically "descriptively giving, often heartbroken and occasionally delusional".[22]
Christian Hoard and Jonathan Ringen of
Accolades
In October 2010, The Sound of White was listed in the book, 100 Best Australian Albums.[24]
Awards and nominations
Higgins received six ARIA Awards for The Sound of White. In 2004, at the 18th Annual ARIA Music Awards, Higgins was nominated for 'Single of the Year', 'Best Female Artist', 'Breakthrough Artist — Single' and 'Best Pop Release', all for "Scar". She won the award for 'Best Pop Release'.[25] Squareyed Films received a nomination for 'Best Video' for "Scar". The following year, at the 19th Annual ARIA Music Awards, Higgins received five more awards; 'Best Female Artist' (for "Scar"), 'Breakthrough Artist — Album', 'Highest Selling Album', 'Best Pop Release' (for "The Sound of White") and 'Album of the Year'.[26] She was also nominated for 'Single of the Year' and 'Highest Selling Single', both for "The Special Two".[26] Cathie Glassby received a nomination for 'Best Cover Art' for The Sound of White.
In 2005 at the
Legacy and cultural influence
"One of the most popular releases in Australian history",[29] The Sound of White is credited as a turning point for women in Australian music;[29][30] with various female Australian musicians, including Alice Skye,[30] Amy Shark,[30] Gordi,[31] Gretta Ray,[30] Odette,[32] and Sammi Constantine[33] all citing the album as a musical influence.
Folktronica musician Gordi discussed the album's influence on her in a Love Letter to a Record piece for Australian music website Music Feeds, stating "[it's] the reason I write songs the way I do, so personally and so honestly, with nothing to hide and everything to give."[31] Pop musician Odette "resonated" with the album,[34] saying: "that album messed me up. If I ever meet Missy, I'll tell her that it's her fault I'm so emotional. Those songs were so relatable and really dark but emotionally bold."[32]
Track listing
The album was slightly varied for its international release, replacing the track "Casualty" with "Unbroken" and including the song "They Weren't There" as a secret track and a remixed version of "Scar", known as the Jay Newland Mix.
Australian release
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length | |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "All for Believing" | Missy Higgins | 3:27 | |
2. | "Don't Ever" | Higgins, The Sound of White " | Higgins | 4:49 |
13. | "They Weren't There" | Higgins | 4:07 |
International release
- "All for Believing" – 3:27
- "Ten Days" – 3:45
- "Scar" (Jay Newland Mix) – 3:32
- "Don't Ever" – 2:52
- "Nightminds" – 3:13
- "Unbroken" (Higgins, Griffin) – 3:41
- "Any Day Now" – 3:51
- "Katie" – 3:35
- "The River" – 4:23
- "The Special Two" – 4:27
- "This Is How It Goes" – 3:28
- "The Sound of White" – 9:06 (includes time for following track)
- "They Weren't There" (hidden track)
Personnel
|
|
Charts
Weekly charts
Chart (2004–2007) | Peak position |
---|---|
Australian Albums (ARIA)[35] | 1 |
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[36] | 19 |
Year-end charts
Chart (2004) | Position |
---|---|
Australian Albums (ARIA)[37] | 15 |
Chart (2005) | Position |
Australian Albums (ARIA)[38] | 1 |
Decade-end charts
Chart (2000–2009) | Position |
---|---|
Australian Albums (ARIA)[39] | 5 |
Australian Albums (ARIA)[39] | 2 |
Certifications
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Australia (ARIA)[40] | 12× Platinum | 840,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
|}
Release history
Region | Date | Format(s) | Label | Edition | Catalogue |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Australia | 6 September 2004 | CD, download
|
Eleven | original | ELEVENCD27 |
2×CD, download | original + Live at the Horden EP | ELEVENCD27SP | |||
2005 | re-issue | ELEVENCD27B | |||
Various (international) | 2005 | CD+DVD, download | Reprise Records | international version | — |
Australia | 2018 | Vinyl | Eleven | original | ELEVENV27 |
5 April 2024 | 2×CD, 2×LP | deluxe edition | ELEVENV27 |
References
- ^ Australasian Performing Right Association(APRA), retrieved 4 March 2010 Note: For other songs, user needs to click on 'Search again' tab and enter song's title e.g. Dont Ever
- Brant Publications, Inc
- ^ Zuel, Bernard (11 September 2004), "School of Rock", The Sydney Morning Herald, Fairfax Media, archived from the original on 5 June 2011, retrieved 22 March 2010
- ^ APN News & Media, retrieved 10 April 2010
- ^ Lanham, Tom (1 February 2005), "4 To Watch For: Missy Higgins", Paste, Paste Media Group, retrieved 22 March 2010
- ^ "Tuned In — Missy Higgins", 6ABC, American Broadcasting Company, 25 April 2009, retrieved 10 April 2010
- Newsround, BBC, retrieved 17 January 2010
- ^ Yusof, Zack (11 March 2005), "Missy Higgins Talks About Her Debut Album", The Star, Star Publications (Malaysia) Berhad, archived from the original on 9 March 2012, retrieved 22 March 2010
- ^ Rovi Corporation, retrieved 22 March 2010
- ^ "Discography Missy Higgins", Australian charts portal, Hung Medien, retrieved 4 March 2010
- ^ "Missy Higgins — The Sound of White (Album)", Australian charts portal, Hung Medien, retrieved 30 April 2010
- ^ "ARIA Charts — Accreditations – 2006 Albums", Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA), retrieved 16 May 2010
- ^ "Missy Higgins — The Sound of White (Album)", New Zealand charts portal, Hung Medien, retrieved 5 June 2010
- ^ "Missy Higgins — Ten Days (Song)", Australian charts portal, Hung Medien, retrieved 30 April 2010
- ^ "Missy Higgins — The Special Two EP (Song)", Australian charts portal, Hung Medien, retrieved 30 April 2010
- ^ "Missy Higgins — The Sound of White (Song)", Australian charts portal, Hung Medien, retrieved 30 April 2010
- ^ "Australian Star Missy Higgins Announces UK Tour", TourDates.co.uk, 7 April 2005, archived from the original on 28 September 2012, retrieved 4 May 2010
- ^ Nielsen Business Media, p. 49, retrieved 12 May 2010
- ^ Munro, Kelsey (18 October 2004), "Missy Higgins, Metro", The Sydney Morning Herald, Fairfax Media, retrieved 20 May 2010
- ^ a b c Widran, Jonathan, "The Sound of White > Review", Allmusic, Rovi Corporation, retrieved 22 March 2010
- ^ a b Hoard, Christian; Ringen, Jonathan (30 June 2005), "Missy Higgins: The Sound of White — U.S. Version", Rolling Stone, RealNetworks, Inc, archived from the original on 1 December 2007, retrieved 22 March 2010
- ISBN 978-1-74223-017-7.
- ^ George-Warren, Holly (13 June 2005), "The Sound of White (2005)", Entertainment Weekly, Time Inc., retrieved 12 May 2010
- ISBN 978-1-74066-955-9.
- ^ "ARIA Awards 2009 : History: Winners by Year: 2004: 18th Annual ARIA Awards", ARIA Awards, Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA), archived from the original on 4 March 2008, retrieved 20 May 2010
- ^ a b "ARIA Awards 2009 : History: Winners by Year: 2005: 19th Annual ARIA Awards", ARIA Awards, Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA), archived from the original on 19 May 2011, retrieved 20 May 2010
- Australasian Performing Right Association(APRA)|AMCOS, 30 July 2008, retrieved 20 May 2010
- ^ "Nominations 2005". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA)|AMCOS. Retrieved 22 May 2010.
- ^ a b English, Laura (6 September 2019). "Missy Higgins' debut album 'The Sound of White' turns 15 today so clear your arvo for a nostalgic listening sesh". Music Feeds. Archived from the original on 23 September 2019. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
- ^ Byrne, Declan (6 November 2018). "The generation of artists inspired by Missy Higgins". Triple J. Archivedfrom the original on 27 April 2021. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
- ^ a b Gordi (23 August 2017). "Love Letter to a Record: Gordi on Missy Higgins' 'The Sound of White'". Music Feeds. Archived from the original on 24 August 2017. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
- ^ a b Divola, Barry (9 July 2018). "Rising star Odette shines after dark times on debut". The West Australian. Archived from the original on 27 April 2021. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
- ^ Constantine, Sammi (30 July 2018). "Love Letter to a Record: Sammi Constantine on Missy Higgins' 'The Sound of White'". Music Feeds. Archived from the original on 19 September 2018. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
- NME Australia. Archivedfrom the original on 15 February 2021. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
- ^ "Australiancharts.com – Missy Higgins – The Sound of White". Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 April 2018.
- ^ "Charts.nz – Missy Higgins – The Sound of White". Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 April 2018.
- ^ "End of Year Charts – ARIA Top 100 Albums 2004". ARIA Charts. Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 27 April 2008.
- ^ "End of Year Charts – ARIA Top 100 Albums 2005". ARIA Charts. Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 27 April 2008.
- ^ a b "2009 ARIA End of Decade Albums Chart". ARIA. January 2010. Retrieved 16 January 2020.
- ^ "Feb Album Accreds 2024" (PDF). ARIA. March 2024. Retrieved 18 March 2024.