Calling All Angels

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For other uses, see Calling All Angels (disambiguation).

"Calling All Angels"
Train Calling All Angels Single.jpg
Single by Train
from the album My Private Nation
ReleasedApril 14, 2003 (2003-04-14)
Length4:01
LabelColumbia
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Brendan O'Brien
Train singles chronology
"She's on Fire"
(2002) 		"Calling All Angels"
(2003) 		"When I Look to the Sky"
(2004)
Audio sample
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Music video
"Calling All Angels" on YouTube

"Calling All Angels" is a song by American rock band Train. It was included on the band's third studio album, My Private Nation, and produced by Brendan O'Brien. It features Greg Leisz on pedal steel guitar.

It was the first track to be released from My Private Nation, on April 14, 2003, and peaked at number 19 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart. It also topped three other Billboard charts: the Adult Alternative Songs, Adult Contemporary, and Adult Top 40 listings. Outside the US, the song entered the top 40 in Australian and New Zealand.

Background[]

The song was inspired by a conversation singer Pat Monahan had with his therapist. Monahan said, "She said, "Just remember that we are made up of angels and traitors, and the angel is the one that says, 'You're beautiful and you can do anything you want,' and the traitor is the one that says, 'You're ugly and you can't get anything right.'" And so that song just came from that conversation of, if we all called our angels, what a cool life this would be for all of us."[1]

Critical reception[]

"Calling All Angels" received mixed reviews from rock critics, with Ken Tucker of Entertainment Weekly giving the song a B+ and calling it "an anthemic hymn to commitment...that builds steadily to a gloriously clanging climax."[2] Matt Lee of the BBC was less impressed, describing the track as "pedestrian, the vocals soulless, even more so than" the band's biggest hit single, "Drops of Jupiter (Tell Me)".[3]

Awards and nominations[]

The recording was nominated for two Grammy Awards at the ceremony held in February 2004. In the category Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group, it lost out to "Disorder in the House" by Bruce Springsteen and Warren Zevon. In the category Best Rock Song, the winner was "Seven Nation Army" by The White Stripes.[4]

Track listings[]

European CD single[5]

  1. "Calling All Angels" (radio edit) – 3:51
  2. "For You" – 3:04

European maxi-single[6]

  1. "Calling All Angels" (radio edit) – 3:51
  2. "Fascinated" – 3:26
  3. "Landmine" – 3:49
  4. "Calling All Angels" (video)

Charts[]

Certifications[]

Region Certification Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[16] Platinum 1,000,000double-dagger

double-dagger Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history[]

Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref.
United States April 14, 2003 (2003-04-14)
Columbia [17]
Australia May 26, 2003 (2003-05-26) CD [18]
United States June 9, 2003 (2003-06-09) Adult contemporary radio [19]

Cover versions[]

In 2016, the song was used in the US version of The Passion. It was sung by Jencarlos and appeared of the official soundtrack album. It was sung in the story when Jesus (Jencarlos) prays in the Garden of Gethsemane. The tempo was slowed, several lyrics were changed, and the third verse was entirely cut to fit the theme of the scene.

Another cover version, by Jane Siberry and k.d. lang is used in episode 5 of the 2021 HBO miniseries The Chair.

Jane Siberry's song, which was used on HBO's The Chair, is not a cover! It has entirely different music and lyrics, published and recorded over a decade before Train's song. Look it up, right here on Wikipedia

In popular culture[]

The song has also been prominent in pop culture, appearing in several television shows including One Tree Hill, and as the theme song in the intro for the short lived medical drama 3 lbs. Train also performed the song at the 2006 Pepsi Super Bowl Smash.

"Calling All Angels" is an unofficial anthem of the Los Angeles Angels baseball team, and is played at Angel Stadium before every game while the video screen shows a montage of the team's history. In addition, the band performed it live prior to the Home Run Derby of the 2010 All-Star Game, which was held at Angel Stadium.

It was performed on the CSI: New York episode "Second Chances", and during the third-season premiere of Smallville.

Train incorporated the words "Calling all angels" from the chorus into their cover of "Joy to the World" for the 2012 holiday album A Very Special Christmas: 25 Years Bringing Joy to the World.

References[]

  1. ^ Harris, Kristin (April 30, 2015). "Train's Pat Monahan Explains Some Of Their Most Iconic Lyrics". BuzzFeed. Retrieved August 11, 2021.
  2. ^ Tucker, Ken (June 6, 2003). "My Private Nation". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved October 20, 2019.
  3. ^ Music review from bbc.co.uk
  4. ^ Associated Press (December 4, 2003). "Complete List of 46th Annual Grammy Winners and Nominees". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved December 16, 2020.
  5. ^ Calling All Angels (European CD single liner notes). Train. Columbia Records. 2003. COL 673648 1.CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  6. ^ Calling All Angels (European maxi-single liner notes). Train. Columbia Records. 2003. COL 673648 2, 6736482003.CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  7. ^ "Australian-charts.com – Train – Calling All Angels". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  8. ^ "Charts.nz – Train – Calling All Angels". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  9. ^ "Train Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  10. ^ "Train Chart History (Adult Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  11. ^ "Train Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  12. ^ "Train Chart History (Adult Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  13. ^ "Train Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  14. ^ "Train Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  15. ^ Pedro. "Longbored Surfer - 2003". LongboredSurfer.com. Retrieved October 22, 2014.
  16. ^ "American single certifications – Train – Calling All Angels". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved April 7, 2021.
  17. ^ "Going for Adds" (PDF). Radio & Records. No. 1499. April 11, 2003. p. 24. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
  18. ^ "The ARIA Report: New Releases Singles – Week Commencing 26th May 2003" (PDF). ARIA. May 26, 2003. p. 25. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 16, 2019. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
  19. ^ "Going for Adds" (PDF). Radio & Records. No. 1507. June 6, 2003. p. 27. Retrieved May 12, 2021.

External links[]

See also[]

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