Ruby Blue (album)
Encyclopedia
Ruby Blue is the debut solo album of Irish singer Róisín Murphy
, released by Echo Records
on 13 June 2005 (see 2005 in music
). After she and Mark Brydon
dissolved their electronic
duo Moloko
, Murphy began working with producer and musician Matthew Herbert
, known for his musique concrète
approach to music. The songs were first released through three extended play
s and were then compiled into a studio album.
The album often samples
sounds made by everyday objects and actions, including cosmetics, brass mice, dancing and ornaments. It mixes the electronic music for which Moloko was known with jazz
and pop styles. The album received positive reviews from music critics.
Ruby Blue was commercially unsuccessful upon its June 2005 European release, charting at No. 88 in the United Kingdom, and fared poorly when released in the United States the next year. It produced two singles
, "If We're in Love" and "Sow into You
". Songs from the album were used in the television series Grey's Anatomy
and So You Think You Can Dance. "Ramalama (Bang Bang)" features in a 2009 advert featuring Anne Hathaway
for Lancome.
. When she finished touring, she found herself alone and had to re-evaluate the friendships she had built. During this time, she got to know Herbert, whom she had met when he remixed several of Moloko's songs. Murphy had wanted to work with him again, commenting that "it felt very natural…because Matthew makes things seem quicker and easier." During the first day of recording with Herbert, he had her bring an unspecified object so that they could hit it against a microphone and record the sound it made. Herbert's approach was that for Murphy to go solo, the album should revolve around her and the sounds that surround her. They wanted to carry out recording and audio mixing
in one room, so Herbert invested in a studio. There, Herbert recorded Murphy's voice without accompaniment so that she could better hear how her voice naturally sounded. On occasion, the two added instruments to a track by having her hire an instrumentalist, sometimes to play an unusual instrument such as a hammered dulcimer
.
After the pair had recorded a few songs, Murphy found that she enjoyed working with Herbert, and her label let her work freely without any deadline. When she presented them the album, they found it odd and did not hear any songs that would make successful singles. The A&R
division suggested that Murphy make some changes to make it more radio-friendly. Murphy refused, stating that she "wanted it to be as pure as possible." The label later came to support her. The songs on Ruby Blue were gradually released on 12" vinyl EPs titled Sequins 1
, Sequins 2
, and Sequins 3
, in January, February, and May 2005 respectively.
The cover of Ruby Blue was painted by Simon Henwood. Murphy met Henwood in a pub, and Henwood, who was known for his simplified paintings of teenagers, thought that she would be a good subject for a painting. Henwood came to Murphy's house the next week and, while they were looking through her wardrobe, decided to have her dressed in sequin
s. Murphy positioned her body in abstract shapes for Henwood to paint. She developed a character, which Henwood described as a "disco electro pop diva with a 1940s look". His canvases were displayed at The Hospital in Victoria, London
, and Murphy purchased them "for [her] kids so they can see what [she] once looked like." The three EPs and both singles used Henwood's paintings in the cover, and he later directed the music videos for the singles.
and woodwinds, are layered over sampled noises such as alarm clocks, a water cooler, hairspray and helmets. Murphy's vocals were described as a combination of "a less-pained Billie Holiday
and a less-sheltered Doris Day
." She identified OutKast
's 2003 double album Speakerboxxx/The Love Below
as an influence, stating that "it was experimental, it was soulful
and funk
y." The album's lyrics are based on her romantic relationships with Brydon and then with Henwood.
and uses out of tune instrumentation and a repetitive chorus. Following "Sinking Feeling", which uses a beat constructed from clicking sounds, is "Night of the Dancing Flame", which combines synthesisers with 1920s jazz. It is written in waltz time and was compared to Stevie Wonder
's work during his peak. After opening with noises such as rustling and coughing, the longest track "Through Time" proceeds into a ballad that was compared to those by Carole King
. The fifth track "Sow into You" was released as the album's second single. The song uses a metaphor of rain and harvests to describe love and sex, atop a baroque pop
brass arrangement. "Dear Diary" is a torch song
mixing northern soul
with disco
music with the sounds of doorbells and telephones ringing.
The seventh track "If We're in Love" was released as the album's lead single
. It is a downtempo
song featuring a boogie
swing rhythm and sharp brass parts, opening with phased
vocals and closing with a call and response
between brass and keyboard parts. "Ramalama (Bang Bang)", the eighth track, contains a chorus of onomatopoeic lyrics delivered over a tribal rhythm. The title track uses overdriven guitar parts and layers of overdubbed vocals. Its lyrics caution a woman who has become out of control and its title was chosen to contrast feelings of passion and melancholy. "Off on It", a more experimental song with an unsteady rhythm, precedes "Prelude to Love in the Making", an excerpt of less than one minute taken from "Love in the Making" on Sequins 2. The album closes with "The Closing of the Doors", a cabaret
-style ballad driven by the piano.
said the album "happily represents something of a midpoint between the downright oddity of Moloko's early albums...and the mix of disco sensibility and wrenching balladry of their swansong". PopMatters
referred to the album as "one of the best examples of production shaping but not overwhelming the artist's vision." The Guardian
agreed, stating that because of Herbert's production, Murphy sounded "sonically enticing and varied…at times sultry, rude, powerful and tender across white noise
, waltz time signatures and jazz sass" but was mixed on the album overall, adding that the pair "their noodling eclipse the songs, leaving few you'll actually be able to sing back to anyone." Pitchfork Media
remarked that "it's hard to imagine anyone not ranking this is the best thing Murphy has ever done" and that "when the songwriting is on, Ruby Blue seems perfect, the ultimate combination of human warmth and technological know-how." The publication listed the album at number forty-one in its list of the top fifty albums of 2005.
, dropping off the chart the next week, and charted at number eighty-eight on the UK Albums Chart
. It had the most success in Belgium
, where it reached number seven and remained on the albums chart for twelve weeks. Elsewhere in Europe, it reached the top forty in Finland
and the top fifty in Austria
, Germany, the Netherlands
and Switzerland
. Echo released the album in the United States on 25 April 2006, but it did not chart on the Billboard 200
.
A third of the album's songs were used in the second season of medical drama Grey's Anatomy. "Ruby Blue", "Ramalama (Bang Bang)", "Love in the Making" and "Night of the Dancing Flame" were used for "Make Me Lose Control", "Deny, Deny, Deny
", "Bring the Pain
" and "Much Too Much
" respectively. The show's music supervisor, Alexandra Patsavas
, stated that she had been a fan of Moloko and gave Ruby Blue a positive review. "Ruby Blue" is included in the first volume of the show's soundtrack
.
Three songs have been used for reality show So You Think You Can Dance
. "Ramalama (Bang Bang)" was used for a group performance on the sixth week of the second season
. Contestants wore costumes and make-up to show them as zombie
s in a performance combining the 1968 horror film Night of the Living Dead
with Michael Jackson
's 1983 music video for "Thriller
". At the 59th Primetime Emmy Awards
, the performance was part of a three-way tie for Outstanding Choreography with a So You Think You Can Dance performance of Céline Dion
's "Calling You
", choreographed by Mia Michaels
, and the television special Tony Bennett
: An American Classic. "Night of the Dancing Flame" was used for a couple's jazz dance
in the fourth week of the following season with contesttants Neil Haskell and Lauren Gottlieb
. The performances were choreographed by Wade Robson
. Robson also did a number to "Ruby Blue" in the Fifth Season of So You Think You Can Dance
. "Ruby Blue" was also used as a backdrop for a dance sequence in the film Make It Happen
.
Technical credits
Róisín Murphy
Róisín Marie Murphy is an Irish singer-songwriter and record producer, known for her electronic style.Murphy first came to note as part of the electronic music duo Moloko. Her partner in the band was then-boyfriend Mark Brydon. After the two ended their romantic relationship, Murphy released her...
, released by Echo Records
Echo Records
The Echo Label was a record label started by Chrysalis Group in 1994, and linked with Pony Canyon in Japan. The Chrysalis Group were the original owners of Chrysalis Records, which they sold to EMI....
on 13 June 2005 (see 2005 in music
2005 in music
-Events:*During the year 2005, 12 rock music albums scored number 1 in the USA. This was the first time even ten albums have scored number 1 since 1996.-January:...
). After she and Mark Brydon
Mark Brydon
Mark Errington Brydon is an English bassist, guitarist, composer, arranger, recording engineer, remix artist and producer best known as a member of the group Moloko.-Previous work:...
dissolved their electronic
Electronic music
Electronic music is music that employs electronic musical instruments and electronic music technology in its production. In general a distinction can be made between sound produced using electromechanical means and that produced using electronic technology. Examples of electromechanical sound...
duo Moloko
Moloko
Moloko were an Anglo-Irish electronic/pop duo consisting of Róisín Murphy from Wicklow, Ireland and Mark Brydon, from Sunderland, England.- Origin of band name :...
, Murphy began working with producer and musician Matthew Herbert
Matthew Herbert
Matthew Herbert , also known as Herbert, Doctor Rockit, Radio Boy, Mr. Vertigo, Transformer, and Wishmountain, is a British electronic musician...
, known for his musique concrète
Musique concrète
Musique concrète is a form of electroacoustic music that utilises acousmatic sound as a compositional resource. The compositional material is not restricted to the inclusion of sounds derived from musical instruments or voices, nor to elements traditionally thought of as "musical"...
approach to music. The songs were first released through three extended play
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
s and were then compiled into a studio album.
The album often samples
Sampling (music)
In music, sampling is the act of taking a portion, or sample, of one sound recording and reusing it as an instrument or a different sound recording of a song or piece. Sampling was originally developed by experimental musicians working with musique concrète and electroacoustic music, who physically...
sounds made by everyday objects and actions, including cosmetics, brass mice, dancing and ornaments. It mixes the electronic music for which Moloko was known with jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
and pop styles. The album received positive reviews from music critics.
Ruby Blue was commercially unsuccessful upon its June 2005 European release, charting at No. 88 in the United Kingdom, and fared poorly when released in the United States the next year. It produced two singles
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
, "If We're in Love" and "Sow into You
Sow into You
"Sow into You" is an electronica song written and produced by Róisín Murphy and Matthew Herbert for Murphy's debut solo album Ruby Blue, released in 2005. The song uses a metaphor of rain and harvesting for love and sex. It was released as the album's second single in October 2005 .-Critical...
". Songs from the album were used in the television series Grey's Anatomy
Grey's Anatomy
Grey's Anatomy is an American medical drama television series created by Shonda Rhimes. The series premiered on March 27, 2005 on ABC; since then, seven seasons have aired. The series follows the lives of interns, residents and their mentors in the fictional Seattle Grace Mercy West Hospital in...
and So You Think You Can Dance. "Ramalama (Bang Bang)" features in a 2009 advert featuring Anne Hathaway
Anne Hathaway (actress)
Anne Jacqueline Hathaway is an American actress. After several stage roles, she appeared in the 1999 television series Get Real. She played Mia Thermopolis in The Princess Diaries...
for Lancome.
Background
Murphy and Mark Brydon ended their romantic relationship but were still contractually obligated to record another album, which became Moloko's 2003 album StatuesStatues (album)
-Weekly charts:-Certifications:-Year-end charts:...
. When she finished touring, she found herself alone and had to re-evaluate the friendships she had built. During this time, she got to know Herbert, whom she had met when he remixed several of Moloko's songs. Murphy had wanted to work with him again, commenting that "it felt very natural…because Matthew makes things seem quicker and easier." During the first day of recording with Herbert, he had her bring an unspecified object so that they could hit it against a microphone and record the sound it made. Herbert's approach was that for Murphy to go solo, the album should revolve around her and the sounds that surround her. They wanted to carry out recording and audio mixing
Audio mixing (recorded music)
In audio recording, audio mixing is the process by which multiple recorded sounds are combined into one or more channels, most commonly two-channel stereo. In the process, the source signals' level, frequency content, dynamics, and panoramic position are manipulated and effects such as reverb may...
in one room, so Herbert invested in a studio. There, Herbert recorded Murphy's voice without accompaniment so that she could better hear how her voice naturally sounded. On occasion, the two added instruments to a track by having her hire an instrumentalist, sometimes to play an unusual instrument such as a hammered dulcimer
Hammered dulcimer
The hammered dulcimer is a stringed musical instrument with the strings stretched over a trapezoidal sounding board. Typically, the hammered dulcimer is set on a stand, at an angle, before the musician, who holds small mallet hammers in each hand to strike the strings...
.
After the pair had recorded a few songs, Murphy found that she enjoyed working with Herbert, and her label let her work freely without any deadline. When she presented them the album, they found it odd and did not hear any songs that would make successful singles. The A&R
A&R
Artists and repertoire is the division of a record label that is responsible for talent scouting and overseeing the artistic development of recording artists. It also acts as a liaison between artists and the record label.- Finding talent :...
division suggested that Murphy make some changes to make it more radio-friendly. Murphy refused, stating that she "wanted it to be as pure as possible." The label later came to support her. The songs on Ruby Blue were gradually released on 12" vinyl EPs titled Sequins 1
Sequins 1
Sequins 1 is a limited edition extended play by Irish singer Róisín Murphy. It was released by Echo Records on 12-inch vinyl in January 2005.-Songs:...
, Sequins 2
Sequins 2
-Track listing:All tracks written and composed by Róisín Murphy and Matthew Herbert.# "Sow into You" – 3:56# "Love in the Making" – 5:06# "Dear Diary" – 5:50# "Leaving the City" – 4:49-Personnel:The following people contributed to Sequins 2:...
, and Sequins 3
Sequins 3
-Track listing:All tracks written and composed by Róisín Murphy and Matthew Herbert.# "If We're in Love" – 4:31# "Sinking Feeling" – 3:32# "Ramalama " – 3:35# "The Closing of the Doors" – 3:29-Personnel:...
, in January, February, and May 2005 respectively.
The cover of Ruby Blue was painted by Simon Henwood. Murphy met Henwood in a pub, and Henwood, who was known for his simplified paintings of teenagers, thought that she would be a good subject for a painting. Henwood came to Murphy's house the next week and, while they were looking through her wardrobe, decided to have her dressed in sequin
Sequin
Sequins are disk-shaped beads used for decorative purposes. They are available in a wide variety of colors and geometrical shapes. Sequins are commonly used on clothing, jewelry, bags, shoes and lots of other accessories. Large sequins, fastened only at the top, have been used on billboards and...
s. Murphy positioned her body in abstract shapes for Henwood to paint. She developed a character, which Henwood described as a "disco electro pop diva with a 1940s look". His canvases were displayed at The Hospital in Victoria, London
Victoria, London
Victoria is a commercial and residential area of inner city London, lying wholly within the City of Westminster, and named after Queen Victoria....
, and Murphy purchased them "for [her] kids so they can see what [she] once looked like." The three EPs and both singles used Henwood's paintings in the cover, and he later directed the music videos for the singles.
Composition
Ruby Blue mixes electronica with early twentieth century vocal jazz, an interest of Herbert's. The instruments, primarily brassBrass instrument
A brass instrument is a musical instrument whose sound is produced by sympathetic vibration of air in a tubular resonator in sympathy with the vibration of the player's lips...
and woodwinds, are layered over sampled noises such as alarm clocks, a water cooler, hairspray and helmets. Murphy's vocals were described as a combination of "a less-pained Billie Holiday
Billie Holiday
Billie Holiday was an American jazz singer and songwriter. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and musical partner Lester Young, Holiday had a seminal influence on jazz and pop singing...
and a less-sheltered Doris Day
Doris Day
Doris Day is an American actress, singer and, since her retirement from show business, an animal rights activist. With an entertainment career that spanned through almost 50 years, Day started her career as a big band singer in 1939, but only began to be noticed after her first hit recording,...
." She identified OutKast
OutKast
Outkast is an American hip hop duo based in East Point, Georgia, consisting of Atlanta native André "André 3000" Benjamin and Savannah, Georgia-born Antwan "Big Boi" Patton. They were originally known as Two Shades Deep but later changed the group's name to OutKast...
's 2003 double album Speakerboxxx/The Love Below
Speakerboxxx/The Love Below
Speakerboxxx/The Love Below is the fifth studio album by American hip hop duo OutKast, released September 23, 2003 on LaFace Records in the United States. Issued as a double album, it clocks in at over two hours and consists of a solo album from both of the group's members...
as an influence, stating that "it was experimental, it was soulful
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
and funk
Funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in the mid-late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground...
y." The album's lyrics are based on her romantic relationships with Brydon and then with Henwood.
Songs
The opening track "Leaving the City" slowly builds up during the introductionIntroduction (music)
In music, the introduction is a passage or section which opens a movement or a separate piece. In popular music this is often abbreviated as intro...
and uses out of tune instrumentation and a repetitive chorus. Following "Sinking Feeling", which uses a beat constructed from clicking sounds, is "Night of the Dancing Flame", which combines synthesisers with 1920s jazz. It is written in waltz time and was compared to Stevie Wonder
Stevie Wonder
Stevland Hardaway Morris , better known by his stage name Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer and activist...
's work during his peak. After opening with noises such as rustling and coughing, the longest track "Through Time" proceeds into a ballad that was compared to those by Carole King
Carole King
Carole King is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. King and her former husband Gerry Goffin wrote more than two dozen chart hits for numerous artists during the 1960s, many of which have become standards. As a singer, King had an album, Tapestry, top the U.S...
. The fifth track "Sow into You" was released as the album's second single. The song uses a metaphor of rain and harvests to describe love and sex, atop a baroque pop
Baroque pop
Baroque pop, Baroque rock, or English baroque, often used interchangeably with chamber pop/rock, is a pop and rock music subgenre which originated in the mid-1960s in the United Kingdom and United States...
brass arrangement. "Dear Diary" is a torch song
Torch song
A torch song is a sentimental love song, typically one in which the singer laments an unrequited or lost love, either where one party is oblivious to the existence of the other, where one party has moved on, or where a romantic affair has affected the relationship...
mixing northern soul
Northern soul
Northern soul is a music and dance movement that emerged from the British mod scene, initially in northern England in the late 1960s. Northern soul mainly consists of a particular style of black American soul music based on the heavy beat and fast tempo of the mid-1960s Tamla Motown sound...
with disco
Disco
Disco is a genre of dance music. Disco acts charted high during the mid-1970s, and the genre's popularity peaked during the late 1970s. It had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, gay, psychedelic, and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and...
music with the sounds of doorbells and telephones ringing.
The seventh track "If We're in Love" was released as the album's lead single
Lead single
A lead single is usually the first single released by a musician or a band before the release of its home album.During the era of the grammophone record, all music arrived in the marketplace as what is now termed a single, one potential hit song backed by an additional song of generally less...
. It is a downtempo
Downtempo
Downtempo is a laid-back electronic music style similar to ambient music, but usually with a beat or groove unlike the beatless forms of Ambient music. The beat is sometimes made from loops that have a hypnotic feeling...
song featuring a boogie
Boogie
Boogie is a repetitive, swung note or shuffle rhythm, "groove" or pattern used in blues which was originally played on the piano in boogie-woogie music. The characteristic rhythm and feel of the boogie was then adapted to guitar, double bass, and other instruments. The earliest recorded...
swing rhythm and sharp brass parts, opening with phased
Phaser (effect)
A phaser is an audio signal processing technique used to filter a signal by creating a series of peaks and troughs in the frequency spectrum. The position of the peaks and troughs is typically modulated so that they vary over time, creating a sweeping effect...
vocals and closing with a call and response
Call and response (music)
In music, a call and response is a succession of two distinct phrases usually played by different musicians, where the second phrase is heard as a direct commentary on or response to the first...
between brass and keyboard parts. "Ramalama (Bang Bang)", the eighth track, contains a chorus of onomatopoeic lyrics delivered over a tribal rhythm. The title track uses overdriven guitar parts and layers of overdubbed vocals. Its lyrics caution a woman who has become out of control and its title was chosen to contrast feelings of passion and melancholy. "Off on It", a more experimental song with an unsteady rhythm, precedes "Prelude to Love in the Making", an excerpt of less than one minute taken from "Love in the Making" on Sequins 2. The album closes with "The Closing of the Doors", a cabaret
Cabaret
Cabaret is a form, or place, of entertainment featuring comedy, song, dance, and theatre, distinguished mainly by the performance venue: a restaurant or nightclub with a stage for performances and the audience sitting at tables watching the performance, as introduced by a master of ceremonies or...
-style ballad driven by the piano.
Critical reception
The album received positive reviews from music critics. Allmusic wrote that "Murphy keeps the alluring sensuality and unpredictable quirks that made Moloko unique, without sounding like she's rehashing where she's already been." Stylus MagazineStylus Magazine
Stylus Magazine was an online music and film magazine launched in 2002. It featured long-form music journalism, four daily music reviews, movie reviews, a number of different podcasts, an MP3 blog, and a text blog....
said the album "happily represents something of a midpoint between the downright oddity of Moloko's early albums...and the mix of disco sensibility and wrenching balladry of their swansong". PopMatters
PopMatters
PopMatters is an international webzine of cultural criticism that covers many aspects of popular culture. PopMatters publishes reviews, interviews, and detailed essays on most cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, films, books, video games, comics, sports, theater,...
referred to the album as "one of the best examples of production shaping but not overwhelming the artist's vision." The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
agreed, stating that because of Herbert's production, Murphy sounded "sonically enticing and varied…at times sultry, rude, powerful and tender across white noise
White noise
White noise is a random signal with a flat power spectral density. In other words, the signal contains equal power within a fixed bandwidth at any center frequency...
, waltz time signatures and jazz sass" but was mixed on the album overall, adding that the pair "their noodling eclipse the songs, leaving few you'll actually be able to sing back to anyone." Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media, usually known simply as Pitchfork or P4k, is a Chicago-based daily Internet publication established in 1995 that is devoted to music criticism and commentary, music news, and artist interviews. Its focus is on underground and independent music, especially indie rock...
remarked that "it's hard to imagine anyone not ranking this is the best thing Murphy has ever done" and that "when the songwriting is on, Ruby Blue seems perfect, the ultimate combination of human warmth and technological know-how." The publication listed the album at number forty-one in its list of the top fifty albums of 2005.
Chart performance
Ruby Blue was released in Europe on 13 June 2005 and was less successful than Murphy's work with Moloko. The album reached number eighty on the Billboard European Top 100 AlbumsEuropean Top 100 Albums
The European Top 100 Albums chart is the European adaptation of the Billboard 200 albums chart. It was created in March 1984.The European Top 100 Albums, commonly referred to as Eurochart Top 100 Albums shows the sales of an act in 19 European countries based on IFPI data.The European Top 100...
, dropping off the chart the next week, and charted at number eighty-eight on the UK Albums Chart
UK Albums Chart
The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...
. It had the most success in Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, where it reached number seven and remained on the albums chart for twelve weeks. Elsewhere in Europe, it reached the top forty in Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
and the top fifty in Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, Germany, the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
and Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
. Echo released the album in the United States on 25 April 2006, but it did not chart on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
.
Soundtrack appearances
Deny, Deny, Deny
"Deny, Deny, Deny" is the fourth episode of the second season of the ABC series, Grey's Anatomy. The episode was written by Zoanne Clack and was directed by Wendey Stanzler. It originally aired on Sunday October 16, 2005, running for 43:03 min....
", "Bring the Pain
Bring the Pain (Grey's Anatomy)
"Bring the Pain" is the fifth episode of the second season of the ABC series, Grey's Anatomy. The episode was written by Shonda Rhimes and was directed by Mark Tinker. It originally aired on Sunday October 23, 2005, running for 42:11 min.-Starring:...
" and "Much Too Much
Much Too Much
"Much too Much" is the tenth episode of the second season of the ABC series, Grey's Anatomy. The episode was written by Gabrielle Stanton and Harry Werksman and was directed by Wendey Stanzler. It originally aired on November 27, 2005, running for 43:05 min.-Starring:*Ellen Pompeo as Dr. Meredith...
" respectively. The show's music supervisor, Alexandra Patsavas
Alexandra Patsavas
Alexandra Patsavas is an American music supervisor who has worked on over sixty films and television series, most notably The O.C., Grey's Anatomy and Gossip Girl.-Early life:Patsavas was born in Chicago, Illinois...
, stated that she had been a fan of Moloko and gave Ruby Blue a positive review. "Ruby Blue" is included in the first volume of the show's soundtrack
Grey's Anatomy (soundtrack)
Grey's Anatomy Original Soundtrack is the soundtrack album series for the television series Grey's Anatomy, with three volumes released in the series...
.
Three songs have been used for reality show So You Think You Can Dance
So You Think You Can Dance (U.S. TV series)
So You Think You Can Dance is an American dance competition and reality show that airs on Fox in the United States.The series first premiered on July 20, 2005, and was created by American Idol producers Simon Fuller and Nigel Lythgoe and is produced by 19 Entertainment and Dick Clark Productions...
. "Ramalama (Bang Bang)" was used for a group performance on the sixth week of the second season
So You Think You Can Dance (Season 2)
The second season of So You Think You Can Dance premiered May 25, 2006, with new host Cat Deeley.On August 16, Benji Schwimmer was announced as the winner of season 2 and received the grand prize of $100,000, a new hybrid SUV, and a one year contract with Celine Dion's Las Vegas show, A New...
. Contestants wore costumes and make-up to show them as zombie
Zombie
Zombie is a term used to denote an animated corpse brought back to life by mystical means such as witchcraft. The term is often figuratively applied to describe a hypnotized person bereft of consciousness and self-awareness, yet ambulant and able to respond to surrounding stimuli...
s in a performance combining the 1968 horror film Night of the Living Dead
Night of the Living Dead
Night of the Living Dead is a 1968 American independent black-and-white zombie film and cult film directed by George A. Romero, starring Duane Jones, Judith O'Dea and Karl Hardman. It premiered on October 1, 1968, and was completed on a USD$114,000 budget. After decades of cinematic re-releases, it...
with Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
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's 1983 music video for "Thriller
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". At the 59th Primetime Emmy Awards
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, the performance was part of a three-way tie for Outstanding Choreography with a So You Think You Can Dance performance of Céline Dion
Celine Dion
Céline Marie Claudette Dion, , , is a Canadian singer. Born to a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, Dion emerged as a teen star in the French-speaking world after her manager and future husband René Angélil mortgaged his home to finance her first record...
's "Calling You
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"Calling You" is an Academy Award nominated song from the Bagdad Café movie. Originally, it was recorded by Jevetta Steele. Bob Telson who wrote the song also recorded his version. Both appeared on the movie soundtrack in 1987.- Céline Dion version :...
", choreographed by Mia Michaels
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, and the television special Tony Bennett
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: An American Classic. "Night of the Dancing Flame" was used for a couple's jazz dance
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in the fourth week of the following season with contesttants Neil Haskell and Lauren Gottlieb
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. The performances were choreographed by Wade Robson
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. Robson also did a number to "Ruby Blue" in the Fifth Season of So You Think You Can Dance
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. "Ruby Blue" was also used as a backdrop for a dance sequence in the film Make It Happen
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.
Track listing
All songs written by Róisín Murphy and Matthew Herbert.- "Leaving the City" – 4:49
- "Sinking Feeling" – 3:32
- "Night of the Dancing Flame" – 3:26
- "Through Time" – 5:58
- "Sow into YouSow into You"Sow into You" is an electronica song written and produced by Róisín Murphy and Matthew Herbert for Murphy's debut solo album Ruby Blue, released in 2005. The song uses a metaphor of rain and harvesting for love and sex. It was released as the album's second single in October 2005 .-Critical...
" – 3:56 - "Dear Diary" – 5:50
- "If We're in LoveIf We're in Love"If We're in Love" is a song written and produced by Róisín Murphy and Matthew Herbert for Murphy's debut solo album Ruby Blue . It was released as the album's lead single in June 2005.-Music video:...
" – 4:31 - "Ramalama (Bang Bang)" – 3:35
- "Ruby Blue" – 2:48
- "Off on It" – 5:22
- "Prelude to Love in the Making" – 0:53
- "The Closing of the Doors" – 3:29
Personnel
Performance credits- Róisín Murphy – vocals
- David O'Higgins – saxophone
- Geoff Smith – dulcimerHammered dulcimerThe hammered dulcimer is a stringed musical instrument with the strings stretched over a trapezoidal sounding board. Typically, the hammered dulcimer is set on a stand, at an angle, before the musician, who holds small mallet hammers in each hand to strike the strings...
, drums - Max DeWardener – bass guitar, acoustic bass guitar
- Phil Parnell – piano
- Peter Wraight – fluteFluteThe flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
, trumpet, flugelhornFlugelhornThe flugelhorn is a brass instrument resembling a trumpet but with a wider, conical bore. Some consider it to be a member of the saxhorn family developed by Adolphe Sax ; however, other historians assert that it derives from the valve bugle designed by Michael Saurle , Munich 1832 , thus... - Trevor Mires – tromboneTromboneThe trombone is a musical instrument in the brass family. Like all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player’s vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate...
Technical credits
- Matthew Herbert, Róisín Murphy – production
- Alex Smith, Alexis Smith – assistant engineersAudio engineeringAn audio engineer, also called audio technician, audio technologist or sound technician, is a specialist in a skilled trade that deals with the use of machinery and equipment for the recording, mixing and reproduction of sounds. The field draws on many artistic and vocational areas, including...
- Mandy Parnell – audio masteringAudio masteringMastering, a form of audio post-production, is the process of preparing and transferring recorded audio from a source containing the final mix to a data storage device ; the source from which all copies will be produced...
- Simon Henwood – art directionArt directorThe art director is a person who supervise the creative process of a design.The term 'art director' is a blanket title for a variety of similar job functions in advertising, publishing, film and television, the Internet, and video games....
Charts
| Charts (2005) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Austrian Albums Chart | 50 |
| Belgian Albums Chart | 7 |
| Dutch Albums Chart | 49 |
| European Top 100 Albums European Top 100 Albums The European Top 100 Albums chart is the European adaptation of the Billboard 200 albums chart. It was created in March 1984.The European Top 100 Albums, commonly referred to as Eurochart Top 100 Albums shows the sales of an act in 19 European countries based on IFPI data.The European Top 100... |
80 |
| Finnish Albums Chart | 29 |
| German Albums Chart Media Control Charts The official music charts in Germany are gathered and published by the company Media Control GfK International on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindustrie... |
43 |
| Swiss Albums Chart Swiss Music Charts The Swiss Music Charts are Switzerland's main music sales charts. The charts are a record of the highest-selling singles and albums in various genres in Switzerland.The Swiss Charts include:* Singles Top 75... |
43 |
| UK Albums Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
88 |