The Sweet Escape
Encyclopedia
The Sweet Escape is the second and final solo studio album
by American recording artist Gwen Stefani
, released in the United States on December 5, 2006 by Interscope Records
. Having originally intended to return to No Doubt
after her 2004 solo album Love. Angel. Music. Baby.
, Stefani decided to record a second album as a way to release some of the material left over from the L.A.M.B. writing sessions. The album musically resembles its predecessor while exploring more modern pop sounds. It was released to generally mixed reviews from contemporary music critics, receiving criticism for its strong similarities to L.A.M.B.
It was preceded by the lead single "Wind It Up
", which charted moderately across the world, and produced the follow-up single "The Sweet Escape
", which proved more successful worldwide. The Sweet Escape reached the top five in the US, Canada, and Australia and peaked inside the top twenty in the United Kingdom. The Sweet Escape Tour
, started in April 2007, covered North America, Central America, Australia, Asia, and Europe.
and record a sixth studio album with the band. After the commercial success of L.A.M.B., she decided to release several leftover tracks from the album as an EP
or as extra tracks on a DVD
. However, Pharrell Williams
, with whom she had collaborated to write "Hollaback Girl
", convinced Stefani to create "a L.A.M.B. part two", and the two recorded several songs during sessions in Miami, Florida
in July 2005.
The two produced "Wind It Up
", "Orange County Girl", "U Started It", "Yummy", "Breaking Up", and "Candyland" during these sessions, and the songs were used for a fashion show premiering the 2006 collection of Stefani's fashion line L.A.M.B.
She included performances of "Wind It Up" and "Orange County Girl" when she embarked on the Harajuku Lovers Tour in October 2005. Stefani put the project on hold in December 2005 when she discovered that she was pregnant, but returned to the studio in August 2006. The album's working title
was Candyland, sharing its name with an unreleased track that has only been looped via her fashion show soundtrack. The title was changed to The Sweet Escape, the title of the second track, to emphasize the album's themes of wanting to escape to a better life.
was taken by photographer Jill Greenberg
. The image was part of a series of promotional images taken by Greenberg, inspired by her previous End Times exhibition. To create End Times, Greenberg gave lollipop
s to toddler
s but took them back after several moments, provoking emotional outbursts. Greenberg used the images as a representation of American politics
and society
. Greenberg was accused of child abuse
for the photo shoots; Stefani, however, commented, "I didn't think 'child abuse'—I just thought, 'That's beautiful.' Every kid cries," she asserts, and as if on cue, Kingston pipes up in the next room. " Other people reacted like, 'Oh my God. That's so disturbing,' or 'That's so sad.' I guess that's what art's all about. It's supposed to make you think."
Gwen Stefani's appearance on the album cover is inspired by that of Elvira Hancock, a coke whore portrayed by Michelle Pfeiffer
in the 1983 film Scarface
. Stefani first gained inspiration for the style while shooting the music video for "Cool" in Lake Como
, Italy. During the shoot, Stefani saw her No Doubt
bandmate Tony Kanal
and his girlfriend, who had on a "long, peach, polyester [late-1970s style] dress". It was this dress that got Stefani thinking "about Michelle Pfeiffer and how amazingly styled she was [in Scarface]", which in turn drew inspiration for the cover. The pair of oversized sunglasses
on the album cover is intended to represent her "guarded exterior", and the other images symbolize her various emotions.
, which assigns a normalized
rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average
score of 58, based on 24 reviews. Stephen Thomas Erlewine
wrote for Allmusic: "From the stilted production to the fashion fetish, all the way down to her decision to rap
on far too much of the album, all the dance-pop here seems like a pose." Alex Miller's review for the NME
was more emphatic, dubbing it "this year's bargain-bin fodder", and stated that "the majority of this record serves only to bury what made Gwen Stefani unique in the first place." For Entertainment Weekly
, Sia Michel
said that the album "has a surprisingly moody, lightly autobiographical feel" but that "Stefani isn't convincing as a dissatisfied diva". Pitchfork Media
's Mark Pytlik described the album's oddities as a career risk for Stefani, where most of the "gonzo pop songs yield some degree of payout" but that Stefani's tight scheduling during production of the album leaves the result "somewhere between the vanguard
and the insipid." Paul Flynn of The Observer
, however, characterized the album as less interesting than Fergie's The Dutchess
and Nelly Furtado
's Loose
.
The album received criticism for its similarities to Love. Angel. Music. Baby. Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine
noted that "[h]istory will likely view The Sweet Escape as a retread of Stefani's well-received solo debut, but it shares that album's general inconsistency and, thus, its peaks and valleys". In his review for Rolling Stone
, Rob Sheffield
agreed, viewing it as "her hasty return" to music lacking the energy of L.A.M.B. and in which "she sounds exhausted." The New York Times
Jon Pareles
commented that Stefani "rebooks some of the same producers and repeats some of the old tricks with less flair", adding that "superficiality is more fun when it doesn't get so whiny." Caroline Sullivan disagreed in her review for The Guardian
, in which she stated that although some of the songs date back to the 2003 writing sessions for L.A.M.B., "generally The Sweet Escape feels minty-fresh." PopMatters
' review by Quentin B. Huff, however, referred to The Sweet Escape as L.A.M.B.: Reloaded and described The Sweet Escape and L.A.M.B. as "the same album, just add more rap, a glossy Next-Top-Model
-ish photo for the cover, and a few more recent-sounding influences."
, It sold another 149,000 copies during its second week, falling to number fourteen. The record has since been certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America
, and has sold 1.7 million copies in the US. The Canadian Recording Industry Association
certified The Sweet Escape platinum eight days prior to the album's release, and double platinum on March 5, 2007.
In the United Kingdom, the album was certified gold within three weeks of its release, and peaked at number fourteen in March 2007. It was less successful across Europe, peaking in the top ten in Norway and Switzerland; the top twenty in Austria, Finland, Germany, Ireland, and Sweden; and the top forty in Belgium, France and the Netherlands. The Sweet Escape reached number two for two consecutive weeks on the ARIA Albums Chart
, and the Australian Recording Industry Association
certified it double platinum.
was Stefani's follow-up to Harajuku Lovers Tour 2005
. It went worldwide as compared to her previous tour which was constricted only to North America and had more than double the number of shows. It was Stefani's last solo effort as she rejoined her band No Doubt
after the tour ended. The main feature were usage of various props such as a prison for Stefani's opening act, a six-piece band and a large multimedia screen in the backdrop showing videos and animations.
The tour had its own set of controversies. A group of students making up for The National Union of Malaysian Muslim Students, banned Stefani's concert that was slated to take place August 21, 2007 at Putra Indoor Stadium
in Kuala Lumpur
. The union's vice president, Abdul Muntaqim, said, "Her performance and her attire are not suitable for our culture. It promotes a certain degree of obscenity and will encourage youth to emulate the western lifestyle. The concert should be stopped." The organizer of the event, Maxis Communications
, later responded, "Stefani has confirmed that her concert will not feature any revealing costumes. She will abide by the Malaysian authorities' guidelines to ensure that her show will not be offensive to local sensitivities." In April, Akon drew criticism for engaging in on-stage dirty dancing with a fifteen-year-old preacher's daughter, at a club in Trinidad and Tobago
, as part of a fake contest. As a result, the tour's sponsor Verizon Wireless
decided not to sponsor the tour.
Stefani donated $166,000 from her October 30, 2007 concert in San Diego to the San Diego Foundation, in benefit of the victims of the October 2007 California wildfires
. On her June 22 and June 23 concerts in Irvine, California
, Stefani was joined onstage by her No Doubt bandmates. They performed the band's songs "Just a Girl
", "Spiderwebs
", "Sunday Morning
", "Hella Good
" and their cover of Talk Talk
's "It's My Life
".
Studio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...
by American recording artist Gwen Stefani
Gwen Stefani
Gwen Renée Stefani is an American singer-songwriter and fashion designer. Stefani is the lead vocalist for the rock and ska band No Doubt. Stefani recorded her first solo album Love. Angel. Music. Baby. in 2004. The album was inspired by music of the 1980s, and was a success with sales of over...
, released in the United States on December 5, 2006 by Interscope Records
Interscope Records
Interscope Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group that currently operates as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-History:...
. Having originally intended to return to No Doubt
No Doubt
No Doubt is an American rock band from Anaheim, California that formed in 1986. The ska-pop sound of their first album No Doubt , failed to make an impact...
after her 2004 solo album Love. Angel. Music. Baby.
Love. Angel. Music. Baby.
Love. Angel. Music. Baby. is the debut solo studio album by American recording artist Gwen Stefani, released in the United States on November 23, 2004 by Interscope Records...
, Stefani decided to record a second album as a way to release some of the material left over from the L.A.M.B. writing sessions. The album musically resembles its predecessor while exploring more modern pop sounds. It was released to generally mixed reviews from contemporary music critics, receiving criticism for its strong similarities to L.A.M.B.
It was preceded by the lead single "Wind It Up
Wind It Up (Gwen Stefani song)
"Wind It Up" is a song written by Gwen Stefani and Pharrell Williams originally for inclusion on Stefani's Harajuku Lovers Tour 2005. Because of favorable reception, the song was later recorded for her second solo album, The Sweet Escape...
", which charted moderately across the world, and produced the follow-up single "The Sweet Escape
The Sweet Escape (song)
"The Sweet Escape" is a song by American recording artist Gwen Stefani from her second solo album, The Sweet Escape . It was written by Stefani, Akon, and Giorgio Tuinfort. Akon, who is also a featured artist, developed the song's beat before collaborating with Stefani...
", which proved more successful worldwide. The Sweet Escape reached the top five in the US, Canada, and Australia and peaked inside the top twenty in the United Kingdom. The Sweet Escape Tour
The Sweet Escape Tour
The Sweet Escape Tour is the second concert tour by American pop and rock singer Gwen Stefani. The tour began in April 2007 in support of her second solo album The Sweet Escape.-About the show:...
, started in April 2007, covered North America, Central America, Australia, Asia, and Europe.
Background
Following the release of her debut album Love. Angel. Music. Baby., Stefani announced that she had intended to return to No DoubtNo Doubt
No Doubt is an American rock band from Anaheim, California that formed in 1986. The ska-pop sound of their first album No Doubt , failed to make an impact...
and record a sixth studio album with the band. After the commercial success of L.A.M.B., she decided to release several leftover tracks from the album as an EP
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...
or as extra tracks on a DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
. However, Pharrell Williams
Pharrell Williams
Pharrell Williams , commonly known simply as Pharrell, is an American rapper, singer, record producer, composer, and fashion designer. Williams and Chad Hugo make up the record production duo The Neptunes, producing hip hop and R&B music...
, with whom she had collaborated to write "Hollaback Girl
Hollaback Girl
"Hollaback Girl" is a song by American recording artist Gwen Stefani from her debut solo album, Love. Angel. Music. Baby. . As part of Stefani's vision of creating "a silly dance record", the song is influenced by 1980s dance and pop music...
", convinced Stefani to create "a L.A.M.B. part two", and the two recorded several songs during sessions in Miami, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
in July 2005.
The two produced "Wind It Up
Wind It Up (Gwen Stefani song)
"Wind It Up" is a song written by Gwen Stefani and Pharrell Williams originally for inclusion on Stefani's Harajuku Lovers Tour 2005. Because of favorable reception, the song was later recorded for her second solo album, The Sweet Escape...
", "Orange County Girl", "U Started It", "Yummy", "Breaking Up", and "Candyland" during these sessions, and the songs were used for a fashion show premiering the 2006 collection of Stefani's fashion line L.A.M.B.
L.A.M.B.
L.A.M.B. is a fashion line by American singer Gwen Stefani, the lead vocalist of the rock band No Doubt. The line manufactures apparel and fashion accessories. The line was founded in 2003 but made its runway debut the following year in 2004. The fashion line manufactures accessories like shoes,...
She included performances of "Wind It Up" and "Orange County Girl" when she embarked on the Harajuku Lovers Tour in October 2005. Stefani put the project on hold in December 2005 when she discovered that she was pregnant, but returned to the studio in August 2006. The album's working title
Working title
A working title, sometimes called a production title, is the temporary name of a product or project used during its development, usually used in filmmaking, television production, novel, video game, or music album.-Purpose:...
was Candyland, sharing its name with an unreleased track that has only been looped via her fashion show soundtrack. The title was changed to The Sweet Escape, the title of the second track, to emphasize the album's themes of wanting to escape to a better life.
Album cover
The album coverAlbum cover
An album cover is the front of the packaging of a commercially released audio recording product, or album. The term can refer to either the printed cardboard covers typically used to package sets of 10" and 12" 78 rpm records, single and sets of 12" LPs, sets of 45 rpm records , or the front-facing...
was taken by photographer Jill Greenberg
Jill Greenberg
Jill Greenberg is an American photographer and artist. She is known for her portraits and fine art work.-Biography:Greenberg was born in Montreal, Quebec, and grew up in a suburb of Detroit. She graduated with honors in 1989 from the Rhode Island School of Design with a BFA in Photography and...
. The image was part of a series of promotional images taken by Greenberg, inspired by her previous End Times exhibition. To create End Times, Greenberg gave lollipop
Lollipop
A lollipop, pop, lolly, sucker, or sticky-pop is a type of confectionery consisting mainly of hardened, flavored sucrose with corn syrup mounted on a stick and intended for sucking or licking. They are available in many flavors and shapes.- Types :Lollipops are available in a number of colors and...
s to toddler
Toddler
A toddler is a young child, usually defined as being between the ages of one and three. Registered nurse, midwife and author, Robin Barker, states 'Any time from eight months onwards your baby will begin to realise he is a separate person from you...
s but took them back after several moments, provoking emotional outbursts. Greenberg used the images as a representation of American politics
American politics
American politics is an area of study within the academic discipline of political science. It is primarily, but not exclusively, studied by researchers in the United States...
and society
Culture of the United States
The Culture of the United States is a Western culture originally influenced by European cultures. It has been developing since long before the United States became a country with its own unique social and cultural characteristics such as dialect, music, arts, social habits, cuisine, and folklore...
. Greenberg was accused of child abuse
Child abuse
Child abuse is the physical, sexual, emotional mistreatment, or neglect of a child. In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Department of Children And Families define child maltreatment as any act or series of acts of commission or omission by a parent or...
for the photo shoots; Stefani, however, commented, "I didn't think 'child abuse'—I just thought, 'That's beautiful.' Every kid cries," she asserts, and as if on cue, Kingston pipes up in the next room. " Other people reacted like, 'Oh my God. That's so disturbing,' or 'That's so sad.' I guess that's what art's all about. It's supposed to make you think."
Gwen Stefani's appearance on the album cover is inspired by that of Elvira Hancock, a coke whore portrayed by Michelle Pfeiffer
Michelle Pfeiffer
Michelle Marie Pfeiffer is an American actress. She made her film debut in 1980 in The Hollywood Knights, but first garnered mainstream attention with her performance in Brian De Palma's Scarface . Pfeiffer has won numerous awards for her work...
in the 1983 film Scarface
Scarface (1983 film)
Scarface is a 1983 American epic crime drama movie directed by Brian De Palma, written by Oliver Stone, produced by Martin Bregman and starring Al Pacino as Tony Montana...
. Stefani first gained inspiration for the style while shooting the music video for "Cool" in Lake Como
Lake Como
Lake Como is a lake of glacial origin in Lombardy, Italy. It has an area of 146 km², making it the third largest lake in Italy, after Lake Garda and Lake Maggiore...
, Italy. During the shoot, Stefani saw her No Doubt
No Doubt
No Doubt is an American rock band from Anaheim, California that formed in 1986. The ska-pop sound of their first album No Doubt , failed to make an impact...
bandmate Tony Kanal
Tony Kanal
Tony Kanal is an English musician, record producer and songwriter. Kanal is the bassist for the American rock band No Doubt...
and his girlfriend, who had on a "long, peach, polyester [late-1970s style] dress". It was this dress that got Stefani thinking "about Michelle Pfeiffer and how amazingly styled she was [in Scarface]", which in turn drew inspiration for the cover. The pair of oversized sunglasses
Sunglasses
Sunglasses or sun glasses are a form of protective eyewear designed primarily to prevent bright sunlight and high-energy visible light from damaging or discomforting the eyes. They can sometimes also function as a visual aid, as variously termed spectacles or glasses exist, featuring lenses that...
on the album cover is intended to represent her "guarded exterior", and the other images symbolize her various emotions.
Critical reception
The Sweet Escape received mixed responses from critics. At MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
, which assigns a normalized
Standard score
In statistics, a standard score indicates how many standard deviations an observation or datum is above or below the mean. It is a dimensionless quantity derived by subtracting the population mean from an individual raw score and then dividing the difference by the population standard deviation...
rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average
Weighted mean
The weighted mean is similar to an arithmetic mean , where instead of each of the data points contributing equally to the final average, some data points contribute more than others...
score of 58, based on 24 reviews. Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Stephen Thomas Erlewine is a senior editor for Allmusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for Allmusic, as well as a freelance writer, occasionally contributing liner notes. He is also frontman and guitarist for the Ann Arbor-based band Who Dat?Erlewine is the nephew...
wrote for Allmusic: "From the stilted production to the fashion fetish, all the way down to her decision to rap
Rapping
Rapping refers to "spoken or chanted rhyming lyrics". The art form can be broken down into different components, as in the book How to Rap where it is separated into “content”, “flow” , and “delivery”...
on far too much of the album, all the dance-pop here seems like a pose." Alex Miller's review for the NME
NME
The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...
was more emphatic, dubbing it "this year's bargain-bin fodder", and stated that "the majority of this record serves only to bury what made Gwen Stefani unique in the first place." For Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
, Sia Michel
Sia Michel
Sia Michel is the deputy editor of Arts & Leisure at The New York Times. She was previously the pop music editor for the Times....
said that the album "has a surprisingly moody, lightly autobiographical feel" but that "Stefani isn't convincing as a dissatisfied diva". 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...
's Mark Pytlik described the album's oddities as a career risk for Stefani, where most of the "gonzo pop songs yield some degree of payout" but that Stefani's tight scheduling during production of the album leaves the result "somewhere between the vanguard
Avant-garde
Avant-garde means "advance guard" or "vanguard". The adjective form is used in English to refer to people or works that are experimental or innovative, particularly with respect to art, culture, and politics....
and the insipid." Paul Flynn of The Observer
The Observer
The Observer is a British newspaper, published on Sundays. In the same place on the political spectrum as its daily sister paper The Guardian, which acquired it in 1993, it takes a liberal or social democratic line on most issues. It is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper.-Origins:The first issue,...
, however, characterized the album as less interesting than Fergie's The Dutchess
The Dutchess
The Dutchess is the debut and only studio album by American recording artist Fergie, who is a member of The Black Eyed Peas. The album was released on September 19, 2006. As of 2008, the album has sold more than six million copies worldwide...
and Nelly Furtado
Nelly Furtado
Nelly Kim Furtado is a Canadian singer-songwriter, record producer and actress. Furtado grew up in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.Furtado first gained fame with her debut album, Whoa, Nelly!, and its single "I'm Like a Bird", which won a 2001 Juno Award for Single of the Year and a 2002 Grammy...
's Loose
Loose (Nelly Furtado album)
Loose is the third studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter Nelly Furtado. It was released in North America on June 20, 2006 by Geffen Records. Timbaland and his then-protégé Danja produced the bulk of the album, which incorporates influences of dance, R&B and hip hop...
.
The album received criticism for its similarities to Love. Angel. Music. Baby. Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine
Slant Magazine
Slant Magazine is an online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New York Film Festival.- History :...
noted that "[h]istory will likely view The Sweet Escape as a retread of Stefani's well-received solo debut, but it shares that album's general inconsistency and, thus, its peaks and valleys". In his review for Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
, Rob Sheffield
Rob Sheffield
Rob Sheffield is an American music journalist and author. He is currently a contributing editor at Rolling Stone, writing music reviews and essays on pop culture. Prior to that, he was a contributing editor at Blender before the print version of the magazine folded in 2009, and at Spin...
agreed, viewing it as "her hasty return" to music lacking the energy of L.A.M.B. and in which "she sounds exhausted." The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
Jon Pareles
Jon Pareles
Jon Pareles is an American journalist who is the chief popular music critic in the arts section of the New York Times. He played jazz flute and piano, and graduated from Yale University with a degree in music. In the 1970s he was an associate editor of Crawdaddy!, and in the 1980s an associate...
commented that Stefani "rebooks some of the same producers and repeats some of the old tricks with less flair", adding that "superficiality is more fun when it doesn't get so whiny." Caroline Sullivan disagreed in her review for The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, in which she stated that although some of the songs date back to the 2003 writing sessions for L.A.M.B., "generally The Sweet Escape feels minty-fresh." 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,...
' review by Quentin B. Huff, however, referred to The Sweet Escape as L.A.M.B.: Reloaded and described The Sweet Escape and L.A.M.B. as "the same album, just add more rap, a glossy Next-Top-Model
America's Next Top Model
America's Next Top Model is a reality television show in which a number of women compete for the title of America's Next Top Model and a chance to start their career in the modeling industry....
-ish photo for the cover, and a few more recent-sounding influences."
Commercial performance
The Sweet Escape was moderately successful in North America, but did not achieve the success of its predecessor. The album sold 243,000 copies in the United States during its first week, debuting at number three on the Billboard 200Billboard 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...
, It sold another 149,000 copies during its second week, falling to number fourteen. The record has since been certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States...
, and has sold 1.7 million copies in the US. The Canadian Recording Industry Association
Music Canada
Music Canada was a Canadian music television miniseries which aired approximately monthly on CBC Television from 1966 to 1967.-Premise:This series featured various special productions of music and dance, from classical to modern styles.-Scheduling:...
certified The Sweet Escape platinum eight days prior to the album's release, and double platinum on March 5, 2007.
In the United Kingdom, the album was certified gold within three weeks of its release, and peaked at number fourteen in March 2007. It was less successful across Europe, peaking in the top ten in Norway and Switzerland; the top twenty in Austria, Finland, Germany, Ireland, and Sweden; and the top forty in Belgium, France and the Netherlands. The Sweet Escape reached number two for two consecutive weeks on the ARIA Albums Chart
ARIA Charts
The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June...
, and the Australian Recording Industry Association
Australian Recording Industry Association
The Australian Recording Industry Association is a trade group representing the Australian recording industry which was established in 1983 by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing the Association of Australian Record Manufacturers which was formed in 1956...
certified it double platinum.
The Sweet Escape Tour
The Sweet Escape TourThe Sweet Escape Tour
The Sweet Escape Tour is the second concert tour by American pop and rock singer Gwen Stefani. The tour began in April 2007 in support of her second solo album The Sweet Escape.-About the show:...
was Stefani's follow-up to Harajuku Lovers Tour 2005
Harajuku Lovers Tour 2005
The Harajuku Lovers Tour 2005 was the debut concert tour by American recording artist Gwen Stefani . The tour began in October 2005 in support of her debut solo album Love. Angel. Music. Baby. The tour coincided with the launch of her Harajuku Lovers line of accessories.-Background:Stefani...
. It went worldwide as compared to her previous tour which was constricted only to North America and had more than double the number of shows. It was Stefani's last solo effort as she rejoined her band No Doubt
No Doubt
No Doubt is an American rock band from Anaheim, California that formed in 1986. The ska-pop sound of their first album No Doubt , failed to make an impact...
after the tour ended. The main feature were usage of various props such as a prison for Stefani's opening act, a six-piece band and a large multimedia screen in the backdrop showing videos and animations.
The tour had its own set of controversies. A group of students making up for The National Union of Malaysian Muslim Students, banned Stefani's concert that was slated to take place August 21, 2007 at Putra Indoor Stadium
Putra Indoor Stadium
Putra Indoor Stadium or Stadium Putra is an indoor sporting arena located in National Sports Complex of Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The capacity of the arena is 16,000 people...
in Kuala Lumpur
Kuala Lumpur
Kuala Lumpur is the capital and the second largest city in Malaysia by population. The city proper, making up an area of , has a population of 1.4 million as of 2010. Greater Kuala Lumpur, also known as the Klang Valley, is an urban agglomeration of 7.2 million...
. The union's vice president, Abdul Muntaqim, said, "Her performance and her attire are not suitable for our culture. It promotes a certain degree of obscenity and will encourage youth to emulate the western lifestyle. The concert should be stopped." The organizer of the event, Maxis Communications
Maxis Communications
Maxis Communications Berhad is a Malaysian cellular operator company headquartered at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It was started in the year 1993. It uses the dialing pref ix identifier of "012" , "017" and “0142”. Their mobile services are provided over the 900 & 1800 MHz GSM band and as July 2005,...
, later responded, "Stefani has confirmed that her concert will not feature any revealing costumes. She will abide by the Malaysian authorities' guidelines to ensure that her show will not be offensive to local sensitivities." In April, Akon drew criticism for engaging in on-stage dirty dancing with a fifteen-year-old preacher's daughter, at a club in Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is an archipelagic state in the southern Caribbean, lying just off the coast of northeastern Venezuela and south of Grenada in the Lesser Antilles...
, as part of a fake contest. As a result, the tour's sponsor Verizon Wireless
Verizon Wireless
Cellco Partnership, doing business as Verizon Wireless, is one of the largest mobile network operators in the United States. The network has 107.7 million subscribers as of 2011, making it the largest wireless service provider in America....
decided not to sponsor the tour.
Stefani donated $166,000 from her October 30, 2007 concert in San Diego to the San Diego Foundation, in benefit of the victims of the October 2007 California wildfires
October 2007 California wildfires
The October 2007 California wildfires were a series of wildfires that began burning across Southern California on October 20. At least 1,500 homes were destroyed and over 500,000 acres of land burned from Santa Barbara County to the U.S.–Mexico border...
. On her June 22 and June 23 concerts in Irvine, California
Irvine, California
Irvine is a suburban incorporated city in Orange County, California, United States. It is a planned city, mainly developed by the Irvine Company since the 1960s. Formally incorporated on December 28, 1971, the city has a population of 212,375 as of the 2010 census. However, the California...
, Stefani was joined onstage by her No Doubt bandmates. They performed the band's songs "Just a Girl
Just a Girl
"Just a Girl" is a song written by Gwen Stefani and Tom Dumont for No Doubt's third album Tragic Kingdom. The song was released in 1995 as the album's lead single and helped the band break into mainstream music, peaking at number 23 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100.Upon release in the UK in 1996 the...
", "Spiderwebs
Spiderwebs
"Spiderwebs" is a ska punk song written by Gwen Stefani and Tony Kanal for No Doubt's third studio album Tragic Kingdom . It was released as the album's second single in 1995 . When "Spiderwebs" reached the radio airwaves in the U.S, it began a revival of the ska genre. The song is a combination of...
", "Sunday Morning
Sunday Morning (No Doubt song)
"Sunday Morning" is a song written by Tony Kanal, Gwen Stefani, and Eric Stefani for No Doubt's third album Tragic Kingdom . It was released as the album's sixth single in 1997.-Song information:...
", "Hella Good
Hella Good
"Hella Good" is a song written by Gwen Stefani, Tony Kanal, and The Neptunes for No Doubt's fifth studio album Rock Steady . The song draws influence from electro, rock, and funk music...
" and their cover of Talk Talk
Talk Talk
Talk Talk were an English musical group, active from 1981 to 1991. The group had a string of international hit singles including "Today", "Talk Talk", "It's My Life", "Such a Shame", "Dum Dum Girl", "Life's What You Make It" and "Living in Another World"....
's "It's My Life
It's My Life (Talk Talk song)
"It's My Life" is a song by the British synthpop band Talk Talk. Written by Mark Hollis and Tim Friese-Greene, it was the title track on the band's second album in 1984. The song was released as a single in January 1984, then again in 1985, and a third time in 1990 when it finally became a hit and...
".
Track listing
(*) denotes additional producerPersonnel
- Gwen Stefani – lead vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
- AkonAkonAliaune Damala Badara Thiam, better known as simply Akon , is a Senegalese American R&B recording artist and songwriter.According to Forbes, Akon grossed $21 million in 2010, $20 million in 2009 and $12 million in 2008. He rose to prominence in 2004 following the release of "Locked Up", the first...
– producerRecord producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
, vocals, programmingProgramming (music)Programming is a form of music production and performance using electronic devices, often sequencers or computer programs, to generate music. Programming is used in nearly all forms of electronic music and in most hip hop music since the 1990s. It is also frequently used in modern pop and rock...
, keyboardsKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
(track 2) - Andrew Alekel – engineerAudio 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...
(tracks 6, 8, 10) - Angel Aponte – additional engineer (track 5)
- Trinka Baggetta – A&RA&RArtists 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 :...
coordination - Matt Beck – guitarElectric guitarAn electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
(track 6) - Yvan Bing – assistant engineer (track 2)
- Stephen Bradley – baritoneBaritone saxophoneThe baritone saxophone, often called "bari sax" , is one of the largest and lowest pitched members of the saxophone family. It was invented by Adolphe Sax. The baritone is distinguished from smaller sizes of saxophone by the extra loop near its mouthpiece...
, trumpetTrumpetThe trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...
(track 10) - Julian Chan – engineer (track 8)
- Jolie Clemens – 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....
, layout - Andrew Coleman – engineer (tracks 7, 11)
- Greg Collins – bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
(track 4); engineer (tracks 4, 6, 8, 10, 12); guitar (track 6); additional vocal producer (tracks 6, 10); additional vocals engineer (track 11) - Cindy Cooper – photographyPhotographyPhotography is the art, science and practice of creating durable images by recording light or other electromagnetic radiation, either electronically by means of an image sensor or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film...
, art and packaging coordination - Pete Davis – additional programming, additional keyboards (tracks 1, 4–6, 8, 10–12)
- Loren Dawson – keyboards (track 5)
- Alex Dromgoole – assistant engineer (track 1, 2, 4–6, 8–12); guitar (tracks 8, 10); bass (track 10)
- Bojan Dugic – engineer (track 2)
- David Emery – assistant engineer (track 1, 2, 4–6, 8–12); guitar (track 8)
- Ron FairRon FairRon Fair is a veteran A&R executive, record producer arranger, recording engineer and songwriter. In a career that has spanned over 30 years at major record labels he has produced and arranged hits for several artists, but he is best known as a "guru/mentor", guiding the careers of unknown artists...
– orchestra producer (track 1) - Jason Finkel – assistant engineer (track 11)
- Nicole Frantz – photography, art and packaging coordination
- Brian "Big Bass" GardnerBrian GardnerBrian Gardner, also known as Brian "Big Bass" Gardner is a mastering engineer. He has worked on countless recordings since the mid-1960s, including classic rock, funk, disco, alternative rock, R&B, hip hop, pop punk, and dance pop. He is perhaps best known for his work on hip hop albums and in...
– 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... - Sean GarrettSean GarrettGarrett Hamler, better known by his stage name Sean Garrett is an American singer-songwriter, rapper, and record producer. He has produced fifteen number one singles in only seven years of producing music. That number puts him in fifth place on the Billboard list of producers with the most number...
– co-producer, backing vocals (track 5) - Brian Garten – engineer (tracks 1, 3, 7, 9)
- Simon Gogerly – engineer (track 12)
- Mark "Exit" Goodchild – engineer (track 2)
- Scheila GonzalezScheila GonzalezScheila Gonzalez is an American multi-instrumentalist and music educator. She is best known for playing the saxophone and other instruments with artists such as Dweezil Zappa, Alex Acuña, Ray Parker, Jr., and many others...
– saxophoneSaxophoneThe saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
, 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...
, clarinetClarinetThe clarinet is a musical instrument of woodwind type. The name derives from adding the suffix -et to the Italian word clarino , as the first clarinets had a strident tone similar to that of a trumpet. The instrument has an approximately cylindrical bore, and uses a single reed...
(track 10) - Martin GoreMartin GoreMartin Lee Gore is an English songwriter, lyricist, singer, guitarist, keyboardist, remixer and DJ. He is a founding member of Depeche Mode and has written the vast majority of their songs...
– guitar (track 12) - Jill GreenbergJill GreenbergJill Greenberg is an American photographer and artist. She is known for her portraits and fine art work.-Biography:Greenberg was born in Montreal, Quebec, and grew up in a suburb of Detroit. She graduated with honors in 1989 from the Rhode Island School of Design with a BFA in Photography and...
– photography, fine art concept - Keith Gretlein – engineer (track 2)
- Hart Gunther – assistant engineer (tracks 1, 3, 9)
- Richard HawleyRichard HawleyRichard Hawley is a guitarist, singer-songwriter and producer. After his first band Treebound Story broke up, Hawley found success as a member of Britpop band Longpigs in the 1990s. He later joined the band Pulp, led by his friend Jarvis Cocker...
– guitar (track 12) - Nellee HooperNellee HooperNellee Hooper is a British producer/remixer/composer best known for his work with Björk, No Doubt/Gwen Stefani, Madonna, Sinéad O'Connor, Garbage, Andrea Corr, U2, Sneaker Pimps, Soul II Soul and Massive Attack...
– producer (tracks 4, 12) - Jimmy IovineJimmy IovineJames "Jimmy" Iovine is an American music producer, entrepreneur and chairman of Interscope-Geffen-A&M.-Biography:...
– A&R direction - Neil Kanal – engineer, programming (tracks 6, 8, 10); keyboards (track 10)
- Tony KanalTony KanalTony Kanal is an English musician, record producer and songwriter. Kanal is the bassist for the American rock band No Doubt...
– producer, programming, keyboards (tracks 6, 8, 10) - Ryan Kennedy – assistant engineer (track 7)
- Anthony LoGerfo – percussionPercussion instrumentA percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration...
(track 10) - Aidan Love – programming (track 4)
- Tony Love – guitar (track 2)
- Gabrial McNairGabrial McNairGabrial "Gabe" McNair is a multi-instrumentalist and composer, most famous for his work in No Doubt since 1993 as a trombonist, keyboardist, and backing vocalist. He recorded and toured with Green Day during the Nimrod and Warning tours, playing trombone and tenor saxophone...
– keyboards (tracks 6, 8); 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...
, baritone (track 10) - Jonathan Merritt – engineer (track 8)
- Kevin Mills – engineer (tracks 2, 5); assistant engineer (track 12)
- Colin Mitchell – engineer (tracks 6, 8, 10)
- Dror Mohar – assistant engineer (tracks 6, 8, 10)
- Angelo MooreAngelo MooreAngelo Christoper Moore is an American musician, best known for his work as the founding member, lead singer and saxophonist for the Los Angeles alternative rock band Fishbone. Moore also performs and records spoken word poetry under the stage name of Dr. Madd Vibe.-Biography:In 1993 he released a...
– saxophone (track 8) - The NeptunesThe NeptunesThe Neptunes are a record production duo consisting of Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo, who are credited with contributing the sound for many successful hip hop, R&B and pop artists in the late-1990s and 2000s...
– producers (tracks 1, 3, 7, 9, 11) - Ewan PearsonEwan PearsonEwan Pearson is an English electronic music producer/remixer who works under various aliases including Maas, Sulky Pup, Villa America, World of Apples, and Dirtbox. He is also in Partial Arts with Al Usher. He has remixed for artists such as Cortney Tidwell, Seelenluft, Ladytron, Depeche Mode,...
– programming (track 12) - PharrellPharrell WilliamsPharrell Williams , commonly known simply as Pharrell, is an American rapper, singer, record producer, composer, and fashion designer. Williams and Chad Hugo make up the record production duo The Neptunes, producing hip hop and R&B music...
– rapRappingRapping refers to "spoken or chanted rhyming lyrics". The art form can be broken down into different components, as in the book How to Rap where it is separated into “content”, “flow” , and “delivery”...
(track 7) - Glenn Pittman – assistant engineer (track 5)
- Mark Ralph – guitar (track 4)
- Tim Rice-OxleyTim Rice-OxleyTimothy James Rice-Oxley , is an English multi-instrumentalist, best known as co-founder, the principal composer and pianist, backing vocalist of piano rock band Keane.-Life and career:...
– pianoPianoThe piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
, keyboards (track 4) - Kingston James McGregor Rossdale – baby sounds (track 7)
- Ian Rossiter – assistant engineer (tracks 4, 12)
- Mark "Spike" StentMark StentMark 'Spike' Stent is a British record producer, and audio engineer who has worked with The KLF, Björk, Keane, Depeche Mode, Muse, Erasure, Hard-Fi, Massive Attack, Janet Jackson, Madonna, Christina Aguilera, Marilyn Manson, Pet Shop Boys, Dave Matthews, No Doubt/Gwen Stefani, CSS, Beth Orton,...
– mixingAudio 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...
(track 1, 2, 4–6, 8–12); additional producer (tracks 1, 4, 6, 8, 10–12) - Swizz BeatzSwizz BeatzKasseem Dean , better known by his stage name, Swizz Beatz, is an American record producer, DJ, rapper and painter. At the age of 17, he gained attention in the hip-hop world through his friendship with rapper DMX. Grady Spivey and rapper Cassidy helped launch his label Full Surface Records...
– producer (track 5) - Talent Bootcamp Kids – additional vocals (track 1)
- Phil TanPhil TanPhil Tan is an Atlanta, GA-based music/audio engineer.He is a 3-time Grammy Award recipient, as mixing engineer for Mariah Carey's "The Emancipation of Mimi" , Ludacris' "Release Therapy" and Rihanna's "Only Girl " .Among the artists on Tan's list of credits: Jill Scott, Jennifer...
– mixing (track 7) - Steve Tolle – assistant engineer (track 5)
- Rich Travali – mixing (track 3)
- Giorgio Tuinfort – co-producer, programming, keyboards (track 2)
- Mark Williams – A&R direction
Weekly charts
| Chart (2006–07) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums Chart ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
2 |
| Austrian Albums Chart | 18 |
| Belgian Albums Chart Ultratop 50 Ultratop 50 singles, often just Ultratop 50, is the weekly chart of fifty best-selling singles in Flanders, Belgium, and is produced and published by the Ultratop organization. The chart has existed since March 31, 1995... (Flanders) |
40 |
| Belgian Albums Chart Ultratop 50 Ultratop 50 singles, often just Ultratop 50, is the weekly chart of fifty best-selling singles in Flanders, Belgium, and is produced and published by the Ultratop organization. The chart has existed since March 31, 1995... (Wallonia) |
42 |
| Canadian Albums Chart Canadian Albums Chart The Canadian Albums Chart is the official album sales chart in Canada. It is compiled every Wednesday by U.S.-based music sales tracking company Nielsen Soundscan, and published every Thursday by Jam! Canoe and Billboard, along with its sister charts the Canadian Singles Chart and the Canadian BDS... |
3 |
| Danish Albums Chart IFPI Denmark IFPI Denmark is the Danish branch of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry and is the official charts provider and recording sales certification body for Denmark.-Gold and platinum awards:... |
23 |
| Dutch Albums Chart MegaCharts MegaCharts is responsible for the composition and exploitation of a broad collection of official charts in the Netherlands, of which the Mega Top 50 and the Mega Album Top 100 are the most known ones. Mega Charts also provides information to the Stichting Nederlandse Top 40, of which the Dutch Top... |
35 |
| 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... |
23 |
| Finnish Albums Chart | 15 |
| French Albums Chart Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry... |
33 |
| 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... |
17 |
| Greek Foreign Albums Chart IFPI Greece International Federation of the Phonographic Industry Greece or IFPI Greece is the Greek branch of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry and is the official charts provider and recording sales certification body for Greece. Currently two charts are compiled, one for sales of... |
8 |
| Hungarian Albums Chart Mahasz Mahasz is the Hungarian music industry association, founded in 1992. Mahasz hands out the Hungarian Music Awards and maintains the music charts for Hungary.... |
20 |
| Irish Albums Chart Irish Albums Chart The Irish Albums Chart is the Irish music industry standard albums popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on its behalf by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured electronically... |
16 |
| Italian Albums Chart Federation of the Italian Music Industry The Federation of the Italian Music Industry is an umbrella organization that keeps track of virtually all aspects of the music recording industry in Italy.... |
78 |
| Japanese Albums Chart Oricon , established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in November 1967 and became known for its music charts. Oricon Inc... |
7 |
| Mexican Albums Chart | 39 |
| New Zealand Albums Chart Recording Industry Association of New Zealand The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell music in New Zealand... |
4 |
| Norwegian Albums Chart VG-lista VG-listen is a Norwegian record chart. It is weekly presented in the newspaper VG and the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation program Topp 20. It is considered the primary Norwegian record chart, charting albums and singles from countries and continent around the world. The data is collected by... |
5 |
| Polish Albums Chart Polish Music Charts The Polish Music Charts are two official album charts and seven singles charts in Poland, provided by ZPAV, the Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry . The first, the Top 100, is a monthly chart based on data received from the album companies... |
29 |
| Swedish Albums Chart Sverigetopplistan Sverigetopplistan, earlier known as Topplistan and Hitlistan and other names, is since October 2007 the Swedish national record chart, based on sales data from Swedish Recording Industry Association .... |
19 |
| 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... |
8 |
| 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... |
14 |
| US 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... |
3 |
Certifications
| Country | Certification |
|---|---|
| Australia Australian Recording Industry Association The Australian Recording Industry Association is a trade group representing the Australian recording industry which was established in 1983 by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing the Association of Australian Record Manufacturers which was formed in 1956... |
2× Platinum |
| Canada Music Canada Music Canada was a Canadian music television miniseries which aired approximately monthly on CBC Television from 1966 to 1967.-Premise:This series featured various special productions of music and dance, from classical to modern styles.-Scheduling:... |
2× Platinum |
| Denmark IFPI Denmark IFPI Denmark is the Danish branch of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry and is the official charts provider and recording sales certification body for Denmark.-Gold and platinum awards:... |
Gold |
| Germany Bundesverband Musikindustrie The Bundesverband Musikindustrie or simply BVMI represents the music industry in Germany. The association represents the interests of nearly 350 labels and music industry related enterprises.... |
Gold |
| Hungary Mahasz Mahasz is the Hungarian music industry association, founded in 1992. Mahasz hands out the Hungarian Music Awards and maintains the music charts for Hungary.... |
Gold |
| Japan Recording Industry Association of Japan The Recording Industry Association of Japan is an industry trade group composed of Japanese corporations involved the music industry... |
Gold |
| New Zealand Recording Industry Association of New Zealand The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell music in New Zealand... |
Platinum |
| Norway | Gold |
| Poland Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry The Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry is the organization that represents the interests of the music industry in Poland, and the Polish chapter of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry... |
Gold |
| Russia | 2× Platinum |
| Switzerland | Platinum |
| United Kingdom British Phonographic Industry The British Phonographic Industry is the British record industry's trade association.-Structure:Its membership comprises hundreds of music companies including all four "major" record companies , associate members such as manufacturers and distributors, and hundreds of independent music companies... |
Gold |
| United States Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States... |
Platinum |
Year-end charts
| Chart (2006) | Position |
|---|---|
| Worldwide | 37 |
| Chart (2007) | Position |
| Australian Albums Chart | 21 |
| Austrian Albums Chart | 58 |
| Belgian Albums Chart (Wallonia) | 90 |
| European Top 100 Albums | 42 |
| French Albums Chart | 118 |
| German Albums Chart | 71 |
| Hungarian Albums Chart | 87 |
| Swiss Albums Chart | 47 |
| US Billboard 200 Billboard Year-End Billboard Year-End charts are a cumulative measure of a single or album's performance in the United States, based upon the Billboard magazine charts during any given chart year. Billboard's "chart year" runs from the first week of December to the final week in November... |
15 |
Release history
| Country | Date | Label |
|---|---|---|
| Australia | December 1, 2006 | Universal Music Universal Music Group Universal Music Group is an American music group, the largest of the "big four" record companies by its commanding market share and its multitude of global operations... |
| Germany | ||
| Netherlands | ||
| France | December 4, 2006 | |
| United Kingdom | Polydor Polydor Records Polydor is a record label owned by Universal Music Group, headquartered in the United Kingdom.-Beginnings:Polydor was originally an independent branch of the Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft. Its name was first used as an export label in 1924, the British and German branches of the Gramophone... |
|
| United States | December 5, 2006 | Interscope Interscope Records Interscope Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group that currently operates as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-History:... |
| Sweden | December 6, 2006 | Universal Music |
| Italy | December 7, 2006 | |
| Japan | January 31, 2007 |
External links
- Official UK website for The Sweet Escape
- The Sweet Escape at MetacriticMetacriticMetacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...