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Classics (She & Him album)

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Classics
Studio album by
She & Him
ReleasedDecember 2, 2014 (2014-12-02)
GenreIndie pop, jazz
Length38:46
LabelColumbia
ProducerM. Ward
She & Him chronology
Volume 3
(2013) 		Classics
(2014) 		Christmas Party
(2016)

Classics is the fifth studio album by She & Him, a collaboration between M. Ward and actress Zooey Deschanel. It was released by Columbia Records on December 2, 2014. The album features 13 covers of classic songs, recorded live and accompanied by a 20-piece orchestra.[1] Classics was released for a First Listen on NPR on November 23, 2014.[2]

Critical reception

[edit]
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic67/100[3]
Review scores
SourceRating
The A.V. ClubC+[4]
AllMusic[5]
American Songwriter[6]
Drowned in Sound7/10[7]
Exclaim!6/10[8]
NME[9]
Paste7.0/10[10]
Pitchfork6.6/10[11]
Rolling Stone[12]
Slant Magazine[13]

At Metacritic, which assigns a "weighted average" rating out of 100 to selected independent ratings and reviews from mainstream critics, the album has received a Metascore of 67, based on 16 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[3]

Two publications, Alternative Press and Slant Magazine, awarded the album three and a half stars. Robert Ham for the former refers to "Deschanel is a delight, at times coy and romantic, and in other moments, moody and pensive",[14] which Jeremy Winograd for the latter calls "Deschanel and Ward's versions are surprisingly engaging."[13] In doling out a seven out of ten reviews on behalf of Paste and Drowned in Sound, Hilary Saunders for the former tells "Classics presents these songs faithfully and inoffensively, and She & Him cover them with the best of intentions",[10] and Marc Burrows for the latter finds "it's a hard heart that dismisses a solid record of wonderful songs done well."[7] Rating the album a 6.6 out of ten at Pitchfork, Hazel Cills tells "If Classics proves anything, it’s that these songs stick around for a reason."[11] In rating the music four stars for AllMusic, Timothy Monger replies "Classics is meant to be pure entertainment and even though most of these songs have been sung before by a variety of other artists, in the hands of She & Him, it comes off less like a novelty and instead sits very comfortably in their growing catalog of fine releases."[5]

Two publications conferred three star ratings upon the album, which were Rolling Stone and American Songwriter, for the former publication Jonathan Bernstein believes "The surprisingly loungy results are unusually daring for these two",[12] which for the latter Hal Horowitz ascertains "Ultimately despite, or perhaps because of, its minor ambitions, Classics succeeds on its own terms."[6] Annie Zaleski writing for The A.V. Club rated the album a C+, suggests "Yet for all of its impeccable arrangements, Classics almost feels too perfect, an album so stylized that it inadvertently suppresses the emotion inherent in these songs... Losing something in translation is the potential downside of interpreting beloved standards, and while She & Him are lovingly faithful performers, Classics ends up as just pleasant background music."[4] In correspondingly granting the music here a six out of ten for Exclaim! and PopMatters, Alison Lang for the former says "As a result (maybe inevitably) any vestigial threads of quirkiness have fallen away; while Classics is a pleasant enough album, it will forever mark the moment when She & Him went full Starbucks... This is an album that's holiday-ready: safe, inoffensive, pretty grandma music",[8] while for the latter Charles Pitter writes "All in all, Classics is charming enough to merit a release, and it would be unfair to claim that by putting out a covers album, She & Him are treading water. The album is classy and appealing, and although it’s not particularly challenging, it’s still a lot more than just background music... In a world where we’re constantly bombarded with dissonance and discord, Classics is a soothing remedy for agitated minds."[15] Andy Welsh, reviewing for NME and awarding to the album a five out of ten, explains "But a whole album of Deschanel's wholesome, entertaining-the-troops voice and M Ward's tasteful instrumentation is cloying."[9]

Track listing

[edit]
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Stars Fell on Alabama"Mitchell Parish, Frank Perkins2:22
2."Oh No, Not My Baby"Gerry Goffin, Carole King3:21
3."It's Not for Me to Say"Robert Allen, Al Stillman3:15
4."Stay Awhile"Mike Hawker, Ivor Raymonde2:38
5."This Girl's in Love with You"Burt Bacharach, Hal David3:19
6."Time After Time"Sammy Cahn, Jule Styne3:22
7."She"Charles Aznavour, Herbert Kretzmer3:24
8."Teach Me Tonight"Sammy Cahn, Gene de Paul2:29
9."It's Always You"Johnny Burke, Jimmy Van Heusen3:06
10."Unchained Melody"Alex North, Hy Zaret3:51
11."I'll Never Be Free"Bennie Benjamin, George David Weiss3:23
12."Would You Like to Take a Walk?"Mort Dixon, Billy Rose, Harry Warren2:05
13."We'll Meet Again"Hugh Charles, Ross Parker2:32

Personnel

[edit]

Charts

[edit]
Chart performance for Classics
Chart (2014) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[16] 77
US Billboard 200[17] 41
US Top Alternative Albums (Billboard)[18] 4
US Folk Albums (Billboard)[19] 1
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[20] 7
US Top Tastemaker Albums (Billboard)[21] 4

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Leahey, Andrew (2014-08-12). "She & Him Pay Tribute to the 'Classics'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2014-11-04.
  2. ^ Thompson, Stephen (November 23, 2014). "First Listen: She & Him, 'Classics': NPR". NPR Music. Retrieved February 2, 2015.
  3. ^ a b "Critic Reviews for Classics by She & Him". Metacritic. Retrieved December 3, 2014.
  4. ^ a b Zaleski, Annie (December 2, 2014). "Review: She & Him's standards collection is pleasantly retro, if inessential". The A.V. Club. Retrieved December 3, 2014.
  5. ^ a b Monger, Timothy. "Classics – She & Him". AllMusic. Retrieved December 7, 2014.
  6. ^ a b Horowitz, Hal (December 3, 2014). "She & Him: Classics". American Songwriter. Retrieved December 3, 2014.
  7. ^ a b Burrows, Marc (December 1, 2014). "Album Review: She & Him – Classics". Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on December 4, 2014. Retrieved December 3, 2014.
  8. ^ a b Lang, Alison (December 5, 2014). "She & Him – Classics Pop & Rock Reviews". Exclaim!. Retrieved December 7, 2014.
  9. ^ a b Welsh, Andy (December 12, 2014). "NME Reviews – She & Him – 'Classics'". NME. Retrieved December 16, 2014.
  10. ^ a b Saunders, Hilary (December 9, 2014). "She & Him: Classics Review". Paste. Retrieved December 10, 2014.
  11. ^ a b Cills, Hazel (December 2, 2014). "She & Him – Classics". Pitchfork. Retrieved December 3, 2014.
  12. ^ a b Bernstein, Jonathan (December 2, 2014). "She & Him's New Album: Classics". Rolling Stone. Retrieved December 3, 2014.
  13. ^ a b Winograd, Jeremy (December 2, 2014). "She & Him: Classics". Slant Magazine. Retrieved December 3, 2014.
  14. ^ Ham, Robert (December 2, 2014). "She & Him go back in time for the standards-filled 'Classics'". Alternative Press. Retrieved December 3, 2014.
  15. ^ Pitter, Charles (December 8, 2014). "She & Him: Classics". PopMatters. Retrieved December 9, 2014.
  16. ^ Ryan, Gavin (December 13, 2014). "Michael Bublé Christmas Creates ARIA Chart Record". Noise11. Retrieved December 13, 2014.
  17. ^ "She & Him Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved November 5, 2016.
  18. ^ "She & Him Chart History (Top Alternative Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved November 5, 2016.
  19. ^ "She & Him Chart History (Top Americana/Folk Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved November 5, 2016.
  20. ^ "She & Him Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved November 5, 2016.
  21. ^ "She & Him Chart History (Top Tastemaker Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved November 5, 2016.
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